The Merseyside & Cheshire beer scene booming, according to the Good Beer Guide

It reports that across Merseyside and Cheshire there are three new breweries:

1. Tom’s Tap, Crewe, Cheshire

2. Liverpool Brewing, Liverpool, Merseyside

3. Team Toxic, Birkenhead, Merseyside

In addition, the Cricketers Arms in St. Helens has once again been named one of the best pubs in the UK, making its way to the next stage of the competition in the nationwide search for CAMRA’s Pub of the Year.

Having already won the top prize in 2017, the Cricketers is a well-known staple of the St. Helens vibrant pub scene. A friendly, family-run community pub, it boasts 13 ever-changing hand pulls, 10 ciders and over 100 gins. This traditional pub has just undergone a refurbishment and has two beer gardens and an outside bar for regular beer festivals, private events, darts and pool leagues, quiz nights and regular fundraising events for local charities. An on-site micro-brewery started brewing last month.

It will now compete in the next round of the competition, hoping to be named one of four finalists – and stay in with a chance of becoming the overall winner, to be revealed in February 2020.

The Good Beer Guide, which reviews over 4,500 pubs across the UK, is the definitive beer drinkers’ guide to the very best pints in a variety of styles of pubs to suit individual tastes. Compiled by thousands of independent volunteers, it helps identify significant trends and themes locally and nationally.

Tom Stainer, CAMRA’s Chief Executive said: “For nearly five decades, the Good Beer Guide has been a comprehensive guide to the UK’s breweries, their ales, and the best outlets to find them in across the country.

“What makes the Guide unique is that all the entries are compiled and vetted by a huge volunteer team, based around the country. We work hard to ensure that all areas of the country are covered and, unlike with some competitor titles, inclusion in this book is dependent only on merit, not on payment.

“The Good Beer Guide has always had an important role in acting as a barometer of the beer and pub industry. We believe information gleaned from the Guide is absolutely vital in the drive to save our pubs from closure and campaign for policies that better support pubs, local brewers and their customers.”

The local branch will be hosting a launch for the Good Beer Guide today at the Lion in Liverpool Centre.

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