How Yorkshire’s microbreweries are leading the fightback after years of decline for pubs

A mile south of Leeds city centre, New Craven Hall sits on an industrial estate overlooking the M621, close to where Dewsbury Road begins its journey to Beeston, Tingley and beyond.

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From here, a short walk offers an appropriately sobering insight into the decline of the suburban local. The Mulberry on Hunslet Road and the Junction on the corner of Moor Road both stand empty and unloved.

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Saddest of all, across the motorway is the decaying hulk of the Blooming Rose, once a thriving local, much frequented by Leeds United supporters seeking well-kept Tetley Bitter and the finest pre-match pie and peas in Christendom. Though recent figures suggest that the annual decrease in the number of pubs in the UK may now be at an end, the loss of these historic inns will remain keenly felt. Each is symbolic of a worrying trend, as pubs which have been at the heart of their communities for generations have closed in devastating numbers.

Yet for the last two years, New Craven Hall has been home to Leeds Festival of Brewers, an annual celebration of some of the smaller brewers on the local scene. There are plenty; more than 20 in a city once dominated by a single massive brewery, and over 220 across Yorkshire.

The Festival is the brainchild of Mike Hampshire, a former Chairman of Leeds CAMRA who realised that many interesting microbreweries were being denied an opportunity to showcase their wares to the public.

“I was at a beer festival in Newcastle. The brewers there were all good ones – the likes of Tiny Rebel, Cloudwater and Hawkshead – but these are all well-established brands and you see them everywhere at other festivals. As great as these might be, I prefer to enjoy beers from breweries which I haven’t come across before.”

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Nomadic Brewery, based close to Leeds city centre in Sheepscar, was among those featured at this year’s event.

Boss Katie Marriott became immersed in the world of beer while a chemistry student at Leeds University: “I joined the Real Ale Society after going on a Theakston’s brewery tour,” she says. “I’ve been brewing for four years now and wouldn’t want to do anything else. It’s great fun to play on a giant chemistry kit – and then consume the end product.”