PEOPLE watching - what could be better? People watching with a pint in your hand. Even better when your brew comes from a hand-picked range of the finest craft beers around. So sip on your Cloudwater, Runaway or Wild Beer – IPA, Amber or Porter – and check out the springtime crowd on Great Northern Square.
Check out the staff picks on the board for some amazing one-offs
You are in No1 Watson Street, what was formerly Taps, the innovative pour-your-own pint bar. These days you get served the ales, which are vast improvement on before, showcasing the blooming craft beer revolution, both locally and nationally.
The prices are great too for such quality, starting with their own in-house Worker Bee Lager at just £3.80 a pint. It fits perfectly with their happy hour when it goes down to £3 (Tue-Fri, 5-9pm) plus they also offer two-for-one pizza deals and the like, but this light airy continental-style beer cafe is worth mooching in any time of the day. It takes you a while to get through the ever-rotating draught beer list chalked behind the bar. There are 12 taps and more than 50 bottles on offer. Their website lists an array of standard bottles but check out the staff picks on the board for some amazing one-offs.
With the draught picks ask General Manager Tom Leonard or one of his staff to give you a taste before ordering. Some of the more leftfield beer styles such as Saisons or Sours aren’t always for the novice.
Probably none of the beers myself and my beer-bonkers brother sampled there might be available when you take up our strong advice to visit, but here are five that demonstrate the deliciousness available… and if any are on tap do try them.
Runaway Rye IPA (5.9%)
Mark Welsby’s Dantzic Street operation is a front-runner in the Manchester brewing resurgence and this spicy resiny twist on the IPA style shows why. 20 per cent German rye malt combine with Aussie and US hops to produce a dry, bitter refresher. £5.80 a pint.
Wild Beer Evolver IPA (5.8%)
One for the beer nerd, but who cares when it’s this delicious? It’s fermented with 100 per cent brettanomyces yeast, which keep hop flavours fresher longer and after a few months creates greater complexity in a pale ale, say. Maybe I was drinking this too young? No matter, its combo of tropical and earthy was fine by me. £5.80
Wiper And True In The Pines Amber Ale (5.3%)
A definitely amber ale that smells beguilingly of pine (more forest depths than Harpic), sweetish malts married to complex Simcoe and Mosaic hoppiness from this cutting edge Bristol-based brewery. £5.20
Cloudwater Porter (6%)
A deliciously light, chocolatey, roasted take on the trdaitionap porter is part of the Ardwick-based superbrewery’s autumn range. They only do seasonal beers; they hardly put a foot wrong. £4.80
Arbor Gingerbread Saison (6.2%)
This unusual Saison (French/Belgian seasonal/farmhouse style), from another Bristol brewer, was our favourite on the day. The initial taste is yeasty but a genuine flavour of gingerbread comes through, lingering with a surprising bitterness in the aftertaste. Complex and refreshing. £5.20
No.1 Watson Street, Great Northern Square M3 4EE.
Find out more via the website