THE NORTH West Spring Wine Fest 2012 is a celebration of exclusive and boutique wines. It takes place in a very special location in Manchester and is delivered by independent merchants over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Charmingly a very Mancunian mode of transport will be available, with shuttles for the Saturday evening session laid on by Manchester’s brand new open top bus.
The setting St Peter's - a beautiful Romanesque-style church from 1859 tucked away in Ancoats - provides the perfect location for enjoying the fruits of the best wine producers, hand-picked by the region’s very best independent retailers.
Outside the artful Cutting Room Square designed by Dan Dubowitz is will provide a grand place to mill around and chat with other oenophiles.
Participating purveyors of fine wine include: Hangingditch, city centre; Bakerie, city centre; Cork’s Out, Alderley Edge, Chester, Stockton Heath, Heswall & Timperley; Origin Wines and Spirits, Wigan; Manchester Wine School, Manchester-wide; Tour de Belfort, Macclesfield; Pacta Connect, Nationwide; Harvey Nichols Manchester; Cape Klein, Stockport; The Co-operative Wines, Manchester; C&O Wines, Timperley; The Vineyard, Ramsbottom; Spirited Wines, city centre; FYG Deli, city centre.
The festival runs across three sessions and aims not only to showcase a first class bounty of fine wines and independent merchants, but to also explore the relationship between Manchester and wine and what this much loved tipple means in the region.
Walking tours historical location of Ancoats are set to take place throughout the day, and there'll be explorations of the area's 'Little Italy' heritage.
Also there'll be masterclasses taking place from Manchester experts including:
Simon Woods, award-winning wine writer, speaker and consultant, tasting a range ‘up market pub wines’;
Trevor Long of Pacta Connect staging his own Croatian Wines Masterclass;
Dave & Katy Paddle (Black Dog Wine Agency) exploring New Zealand Wines;
Nate Booker of Epernay tutoring guests through a Champagne masterclass;
Muriel Lismonde of Tour de Belfort hosting an exploration of French blended wines;
Stuart Rothwell from The Vineyard revealing more about boutique Australian vineyards;
Tako Horton, expert on Japanese Rice Wine, providing a tutored tasting of Sake.
Food's not forgotten.
FYG Deli will be bringing a selection of their favourite independent cheese producers and other suppliers including Adesso Olis - and there'll be artisan breads courtesy of the Bakerie while Franca’s will be showcasing their authentic Italian homemade preserves.
The unstoppable Manchester Egg will be making an appearance at the wine fest, serving up ‘Manchester’s finest export’ to hungry wine-lovers and even going in search of its perfect wine partner with the retailers on site.
Ginger’s Comfort Emporium (ice-cream for grown ups) will be serving up artisan and experimental ice-cream, with especially for the wine festival, a Dark Chocolate and Spiced Red Wine variety.
Forever Manchester, is the official charity to the event, with a wine-lovers' raffle taking place and donations from walking tours and other producers on the site going directly to local community projects.
Charmingly a very Mancunian mode of transport will be available, with shuttles for the Saturday evening session laid on by Manchester’s brand new open top bus.
Wine revelers can grab a ride with the bus from Piccadilly Gardens for the Saturday session arriving at the Festival for free. The bus will depart on Saturday 6 May from Chorlton Street at 4.45pm and onwards.
Tickets are available here and cost £10.
Inside St Peter's Church
