Worth going to Manchester for

One of the biggest beer festivals in the North West, the CAMRA Manchester Beer and Cider Festival, will be held from 20 to 23 January at Manchester Central (formerly the G-Mex, and originally Manchester Central railway station). The venue is impressive and I have seen bands there such as Simply Red, Deacon Blue and AC/DC in the past.

It is a new home for the festival and, unlike the previous one, the National Cycle Centre (aka the Velodrome), it's in the centre of Manchester. From Southport there's a direct train to Deansgate Station, and then a short 8 to 10 minute walk to the festival.

Organised by CAMRA's Greater Manchester Branches, it's a direct successor to the National Winter Ales Festival which was held in the city for many years until 2013, after which it was moved to Derby. They'll be offering more than 500 beers, ciders and perries. As well as a huge selection of cask-conditioned real ales and traditional ciders and perries, there will be bottled and draught beers from around the world, plus a 'real ale in a bottle' bar where you can buy beers either to drink at the festival or to take home. Tickets can be bought either in advance or on the door, and CAMRA members get in free on Wednesday and Thursday (see: membership has its privileges). For more details and advance tickets, go to the festival website.

I enjoyed last year's at the Velodrome, although the sight of cyclists hurtling around at high speed while you supped your pint seemed a bit incongruous. I'm not sure yet which day I'm going, but I'll add a note to this post so that fellow bloggers can either look out for me or avoid me as they see fit.

The full address of Manchester Central is Windmill Street, Manchester, M2 3GX.