Live From MBCF

Or the "Big Cold One" as it is now.  This is the first of a number of posts live from Manchester Beer and Cider Festival. If I have time of course.

Today is day three of set up and it is starting to look like a beer festival. The bars are mostly built, the beer is all up, cooling is starting to flow and there are fewer of the myriad of jobs left to do.  The odd thing is that it is the little things that take time such as signage, pricing and cask end cards and many more - such that these are the things you suddenly run out of time on. The food stalls have started to arrive led by the Crusty Pie Company, familiar to anyone who has experienced GBBF. The various brewery bars are being built, keg walls being set up, containers being shunted into cold stores and bottle fridges put in place. Foreign beers have arrived, the foyer is coming together and the cider lads have started grading the cider.  Now Cider grading is a mysterious tasting ritual driven no doubt by the need to ensure the cider producer knows what he or she is talking about when they describe the appley delight as dry, medium or sweet and points in between of course. I am assured that it is nothing to do with getting a head start on the supping.

I have been busy with various stuff including Health and Safety and a load of more mundane items as well as spending time with a university student who is studying Event Management. She seemed impressed by the scale of things. It is a big place.  Oddly she doesn't drink beer but says she is looking forward to trying some to see if we can change here mind.

We'll try and that reminds me. The membership stand is setting up too!

The photo shows the festival from the inside. Literally. Behind some of the many bars.