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The Thirsty Games 2017

THE THIRSTY GAMES 2017

We are seeking the best new progressive UK breweries to enter our 2017 competition, The Thirsty Games.

In 2016 we launched the inaugural Thirsty Games. Fiveclouds (Macclesfield) took home the trophy following a public vote on the best Thirsty Games brewery pouring at the festival from three finalists. Wilde Child (Leeds) and Maregade (London) completed the 2016 line-up.

Following an open call we, the IMBC jury, will decide upon the best three breweries from the 2017 submissions. The three chosen breweries will then be invited to pour a selection of their beers at IMBC 17 across all sessions (28th September – 1st October 2017). At IMBC 17, attendees will be invited to sample the Thirsty Games bar and vote on their favourite brewery via ballot and on social media. We shall also anoint selected brewers in attendance at the festival to have their say on The Thirsty Games talent.

The Thirsty Games acts as a showcase for the best up and coming forward-thinking UK breweries working out of a small facility, or who are operating on a cuckoo brewery basis.

The criteria for entering The Thirsty Games is as follows…

• Brewers must be operating on a 5BBL or less capacity
• Breweries must have been in operation for no longer than 18 months
• UK based

If the above applies then please fill in the entry form below. Should your entry be successful we will be in touch and you will be asked to submit samples of your beers. Samples should be a good indication of what you would hope to present at IMBC, we are looking for your best examples.

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Initial beer submissions must be received by Friday 30th June 2017. From the beers submitted, the IMBC team will pick their favourite breweries and purchase 1-3 kegs from each qualifying brewery to pour on The Thirsty Games 2017 bar. The finalists of The Thirsty Games 2017 will be announced on Monday 24th July 2017.

If you would like to submit additional information or branding, please contact [email protected]

The victors of The Thirsty Games 2017 will be the first brewery to be invited to showcase their beers across all sessions at IMBC 18.

The Thirsty Games is kindly supported by Lallemand.

Good luck!

#ThirstyGames17

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Fiveclouds had this to say on their winning turn on The Thirsty Games bar at IMBC 16,

“To be pouring at IMBC in our first year of trading was a massive deal to us, slightly surreal after going for the past few years as drinkers and we were totally surprised at the amount of interest and feedback from other brewers and the public alike. It opened a huge amount of doors for us as a brewery and gave us some much needed confidence. When we tweeted the results of the competition our tweet had got over 6000 interactions that night. We had about 30 bars from around the country asking for beer over twitter, etc. It was pretty crazy!”

Read a full Q&A with Fiveclouds HERE.

Posted on 23rd March 2017

Catching up with Fiveclouds

At IMBC 16 we debuted a new bar called The Thirsty Games. The bar showcased three small breweries: Maregade, Wilde Child, and Fiveclouds. The three were chosen by an IMBC panel following an open call seeking out the best UK small breweries. Beers from the three were poured throughout the festival and you, the public, voted on your favourite Thirsty Games brewery via ballot. Fiveclouds came out on top after four days of intensive tasting and took home the very first Thirsty Games trophy.

Fiveclouds Shibui and Al-Ki pouring at Fiveclouds Tap

Team IMBC took a trip to Fiveclouds Tap in Macclesfield to catch up with our Thirsty Games 2016 winners, Fiveclouds. We spoke to Tom and Josh in the excellent surrounds of Fiveclouds Tap’s cellar…

Who is Fiveclouds? Tell us a little about your brewing setup

Fiveclouds is a small gypsy brewery based in Macclesfield, Cheshire. We focus on brewing seasonal, progressive and modern beer. We started as a small 1BBL brewery brewing out of Torrside. We used their pilot kit for 10 months before moving up to their full size kit as demand increased. We’re massively grateful to those guys for helping us get our beer out! We started brewing at Wincle to allow us to brew 2 10BBL batches a month – the slight difference in kits suits us as we can experiment more with process and most of all learn from both of them!

The Thirsty Games trophy, created by current Cloudwater artist Mariel Osborn, taking pride above the Thirsty Games Tap bar

The Thirsty Games bar at IMBC 16

How was your experience of being at IMBC 16?

Absolutely awesome yet pretty overwhelming! We had such an amazing time pouring next to some of our favourite breweries and friends alike. To be pouring at IMBC in our first year of trading was a massive deal to us, slightly surreal after going for the past few years as drinkers and we were totally surprised at the amount of interest and feedback from other brewers and the public alike. It opened a huge amount of doors for us as a brewery and gave us some much needed confidence.

When we tweeted the results of the competition our tweet had got over 6000 interactions that night. We had about 30 bars from around the country asking for beer over twitter, etc. It was pretty crazy!

Down in the Fiveclouds Tap cellar

How has your life changed since winning the inaugural Thirsty Games?

Since IMBC ’16 we’ve started to brew monthly at two separate breweries – Torrside Brewery and Wincle Brewery – producing around 20BBL of beer a month. That’s around 5 or 6 times more beer per month than we were brewing, however it was much needed as we got to a point where we were selling out before I’d got a chance to post availability out.

Ground floor of the Fiveclouds Tap, Macclesfield

What’s next for Fiveclouds?

We’re spending this year on building up the brewery, focusing on creating continually evolving beers that we want to brew while focusing on quality, consistency and experimentation in our practices and techniques. We’re currently working on getting a take-home product out on the market that we’re happy with, and getting this to the end customer directly in the best possible condition – this is hugely important to us as a small brewery as allows people to experience our product how it’s intended while making it sustainable for us to brew the beers we like by selling direct.

As winner of The Thirsty Games you won the privilege of being the first brewery on the team sheet for IMBC 17. What can people expect?

We’ve got a rough idea of what we’d like to bring to IMBC ’17 and we’re lining up a few special collabs for it! Either way, expect some fresh and juicy hop forward pales/IPAs along with a possible return of last years Double Sunset and a few more specials we have planned!
Where can we find your beer?

Our beers our slowly getting around the north west. Port Street, Common, The Beagle, Brink, Heaton Hops have all taken beer recently. Our cans will soon be available on Eebria to buy, as well as around some bottles shops.

THANKS FIVECLOUDS! SEE YOU AT IMBC 17!

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Should you find yourselves Macclesfield-way, we implore you to make a visit to the Fiveclouds Tap & Bottle. It’s a great setup with a really nice underground bunker of a cellar. There’s 4 kegs and a cask line, a fine bottle selection, and it’s open 7 days a week. Taste Fiveclouds wherever you can, they’re coming out with some great beer at the moment and we can’t wait to see what they do at IMBC 17.

THE THIRSTY GAMES will be returning to IMBC 17 with a host of new breweries. Look out for details on that and how to enter very shortly indeed!

Follow Fiveclouds online at…
Instagram
Twitter
Facebook
and check them out at,
www.fivecloudbrew.co

Posted on 16th March 2017

IMBC 17 Dates

Ahoy!

The dates for 2017’s Independent Manchester Beer Convention are…

Thursday 28th September – Sunday 1st October 2017.

The venue, as ever, will be Victoria Baths.

Tickets for IMBC 17 will go on sale mid-2017. Details to follow on an exact date when we have it. Brewery list and full line-up details will follow.

Independent Manchester Beer Convention 2017
28th September – 1st October 2017
Victoria Baths, Manchester
#IMBC17 #IMBC17 #IMBC17

Posted on 20th January 2017

IMBC 16 Fringe

So many happenings a-happening around IMBC extended weekend Thursday 6th – Sunday 9th October. Here’s the events that we’ve got a hand in/give a thumbs up too…

BEAVERTOWN TAKEOVER COMMON
Thursday 6th October – Sunday 9th October 2016

Beavertown commandeer the taps, hearts, minds, and ass of our dearest Common. Expect Beavertown galore, a pop-up exhibition by Beavertown illustrator Nick Dwyer, Beavertown cocktails, and Beavertown brunch specials.

Opening hours: Thursday 11am-late / Friday 11am-2am / Saturday 10am-2am / Sunday 10am-late. Brunch is served from 11am weekdays / 10am weekends until 3pm. Food is served until 9.30pm.

BUXTON TAKEOVER PORT STREET
Thursday 6th October – Sunday 9th October 2016

Buxton, oh Buxton. Buxton come to Port Street. Fawn over their brilliant beers with a smattering of rare as hen’s teeth BUXTON CASK (you don’t find it anywhere outside of the Buxton tap these days) plus keg-o-rama galore. Rumours of soft serve Omnipollo beer collabs abound PLUS Yellow Belly Sundae cask…ummmmmmmm, YAH.

Port Street Buxton Tap is open until 1am Friday / 2am Saturday / Midnight Sunday.

HAWKSHEAD TAKEOVER THE BEAGLE
Thursday 6th October – Sunday 9th October 2016

Those lords of the lakes, Hawkshead, make their way to The Beagle in darling Chorlton with their emphatic haul of SEMINAL cask and OUTSTANDING keg. Check it the hell out. The Beagle is firing out “Beer Food” specials during IMBC, food with beer in? SOLD!

The Beagle is serving up brunch for all your IMBC needs 10am-2pm Saturday and Sunday / Food service runs until 10pm every day / Hawkshead rule / The Beagle is open until 1am Friday and Saturday night.

LOST AND GROUNDED AT THE PILCROW
Friday 7th October 2016

Meet the UK’s newest brewery when Bristol’s Lost and Grounded come to Manchester’s newest pub, The Pilcrow. Drink Lost and Grounded’s beers and meet your new buds behind the suds.

KERNEL AT BREWDOG MANCHESTER
Thursday 6th October – Sunday 9th October 2016

Those fresh to death EXPERTS, Kernel from London town, make themselves at home at Brewdog Manchester while they’re up visiting for IMBC. Don’t miss this tap takeover.

Posted on 4th October 2016

IMBC 16 Breweries

Huzzah! Below are the breweries that you’ll find at IMBC this year. We hope you agree it’s a delectable spread.

On the THURSDAY 6th and FRIDAY 7th October 2016 sessions you will find…

BEAVERTOWN (London)
CLOUDWATER (Manchester)
FOURPURE (London)
NORTHERN MONK (Leeds)
REDCHURCH (London)
SIREN CRAFT BREW (Wokingham)
WILD BEER CO (Bristol)

ALMASTY (Newcastle)
ARBOR (Bristol)
ATOM (Hull)
BLACKJACK (Manchester)
BOUNDARY (Belfast)
BRASS CASTLE (York)
BREWDOG (Aberdeen)
CHORLTON BREWING COMPANY (Manchester)
DRY & BITTER (Gørløse, Denmark)
HAWKSHEAD (Kendal)
JESTER KING (Texas, USA)
LERVIG (Stavenger, Norway)
LOST AND GROUNDED (Bristol)
MAD HATTER (Liverpool)
MAGIC ROCK (Huddersfield)
MARBLE (Manchester)
NORTH BREWING CO (Leeds)
QUANTUM (Stockport)
RUNAWAY (Manchester)
SIX DEGREES NORTH (Aberdeen)
SQUAWK (Manchester)
STONE BERLIN (Berlin, Germany)
TO ØL (Copenhagen, Denmark)
TRACK (Manchester)
VERDANT (Falmouth)
WARPIGS (Copenhagen, Denmark)
WYLAM (Newcastle)

The Thirsty Games Bar
FIVECLOUD (Leek)
MAREGADE (London)
WILDE CHILD (Leeds)

And on the SATURDAY 8th and SUNDAY 9th October sessions your IMBC 16 breweries will be…

BEAVERTOWN (London)
CLOUDWATER (Manchester)
FOURPURE (London)
NORTHERN MONK (Leeds)
REDCHURCH (London)
SIREN CRAFT BREW (Wokingham)
WILD BEER CO (Bristol)

AGAINST THE GRAIN (Louisville, USA)
BREW BY NUMBERS (London)
BREWDOG (Aberdeen)
BRODIE’S (London)
BURNING SKY (Firle)
BUXTON (Buxton)
HAWKSHEAD (Staveley)
JESTER KING (Texas, USA)
KERNEL (London)
LEFT HANDED GIANT (Bristol)
LERVIG (Stavanger, Norway)
LINES (Caerphilly)
MAGIC ROCK (Huddersfield)
MONDO (London)
MOOR (Bristol)
NZ COLLECTIVE (New Zealand)
PARTIZAN (London)
SIX DEGREES NORTH (Aberdeen)
SUMMER WINE (Holmfirth)
THE BEAK (Leeds)
THIRST CLASS (Stockport)
THORNBRIDGE (Bakewell)
TO ØL (Copenhagen, Denmark)
TORRSIDE (New Mills)
VOCATION (Hebden Bridge)
WARPIGS (Copenhagen, Denmark)
WEIRD BEARD (London)
WYLAM (Newcastle)
ZAPATO (Yorkshire)

The Thirsty Games Bar
FIVECLOUD (Leek)
MAREGADE (London)
WILDE CHILD (Leeds)

Tickets are still available for the Thursday 6th October and Sunday 9th October sessions HERE.

Posted on 22nd September 2016

Cider at IMBC 16

As always we like to flex our cider arm at IMBC. For IMBC 16 we’ve got a big apple line-up as ever. Cider drinkers take heed, here are the cider makers you’ll find at every session at IMBC.

HOGAN’S CIDER

Inviting curious folk to taste proper cider. Fresh pressed traditional and experimental ciders from Alcester. Hogan’s have been barrel ageing, hopping, keeving and all sorts in recent times, turning out some fine off-kilter ciders on keg and cask. Excited to learn what they’re bringing to IMBC 16. Watch this space.

THE REAL CIDER COMPANY / PULP CRAFT CIDER

The Real Cider Company, they of excellent cider curation, return to IMBC with a strong arm of cider brands as ever. This time however they are boasting their very own Pulp Craft Cider imprint. New out of the gates this year with an emphasis on fresh and real ciders, Pulp cite that it is true craft cider because their ciders are made from crushed whole apples with real fruit added. There is no apple concentrate involved nor are they using fruit flavours. As a result you can really taste the difference. It is as they say ‘all pulp and no fiction!’.

THISTLY CROSS

Born out of a passion for making cider in the best possible way, combined with belief in the quality of Scottish produce, and asking ‘why not?’, came Thistly Cross Cider, Scotland’s award winning farmhouse ciders. Established as a collaboration between farmer, Ian Rennie, and artist-turned-cidermaker, Peter Stuart, in 2008, Thistly Cross has gained a reputation for making ciders that people rave about. We are pleased as cider punch to welcome them back to IMBC.

MOSS CIDER

The most excellently named Moss Cider, of Moss Side, Manchester, return to IMBC with all the cider and apple juice you’ll ever need. Moss Cider run an excellent community project where you give them apples and they turn said apples into cider. Like a West Country Jesus. Basically for free too! Highly endorsed, check them out at IMBC 16.

Posted on 22nd September 2016

TOKENS AT IMBC 16

Each year in the planning of Indy Man Beer Con we seek to evolve and shape the event. 2016 is our fifth year of IMBC and we’ve learned a lot and developed each year since our inception. The driving force being to make each year better than the last, for you, the IMBC goer. This year we have made an adjustment to our pricing system that we believe will benefit attendees at IMBC 16.

For the first time every beer at IMBC will be the same token price. One Indy Man Beer Coin for any beer at the festival. One token to rule them all.

For IMBC 16 we have been working on a token structure that breaks down boundaries, giving all beers at the festival a level playing field. This is in response to the way you, our customers, like to drink at IMBC. In our experience you like to try a bit of everything we have on offer: pale, strong, dark, sour, the lot, and we wanted to make this easier. If you have one token in your hand there will be no limitations on where you spend it. You can take that one token and cash it in at any of the 35+ breweries on any given session on any one of the 150+ beers on offer.

As with every year at IMBC, we will continue to use the third of a pint measure. In our minds, and we hope you agree, the third is the perfect serving for a modern beer festival. The third, along with the new singular pricing, is an encouragement to attendees to try different beers from different breweries and sample the sprawling array of styles and approaches on offer.

Tokens will also be used to purchase food, merchandise, soft drinks, and cider. Alternatively, you could choose to use your excess tokens to take away beer from the festival at either the WeCan canning stall where you can take away any beer available at the festival in a can or from the Beer Merchants takeaway stall.

Last year at IMBC 15, where one token equated to £1, prices ranged from one token to six tokens per third. Based on last year’s prices, the average beer cost would have been £2.34.

This year, based upon the average of our beer ordering for IMBC 16, we will sell 11 beer tokens for £25*. This translates to £2.27 per token; cheaper than the average cost of a beer at last year’s festival. All tokens are refundable from the token desks**, should you have leftovers at the end of your session.

We hope that you agree that the new single beer price makes for a more exciting than ever IMBC for beer drinkers. See you down the deep end!

If you have any queries or feedback then please contact us at [email protected]

OLD TOKENS: Given that there is a new pricing structure this year, old tokens will not be transferrable.

*tokens will also be available to buy singularly at £2.50 each

**excess tokens will be refunded at £2.25

Posted on 14th September 2016

IMBC U SOON: 22 days to go

IMBC U SOON: 22 days to go
Wednesday 14th September 2016 / 6pm-late
Port Street Beer House / free entry

Join us for the comprehensive unveiling party ahead of Indy Man Beer Con 2016 (6th-9th October, Victoria Baths) at Port Street Beer House. The IMBC 16 brewery list will be released in full featuring over 50 of the most progressive and forward-thinking national and international breweries. Find out first the food vendors, talks and tastings, live music and events that will make up your IMBC 16 experience.

Expect a Port Street bar teaming with keg and cask from IMBC 16 sponsors, Cloudwater, Beavertown, Redchurch, Fourpure, Northern Monk, Siren Craft Brew, and Wild Beer Co. Alongside this rich haul we’ll have pop-up tastings on the night from some very special breweries to be unveiled soon. Food will be provided on the night from Epicerie Ludo, get down early to scoop free limited bumper cheese platters from Chorlton’s finest. More details coming soon!

Join us and raise a glass to the forthcoming festivities. 22 days to go!

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IMBC 16 tickets for Thursday 6th October (5.30pm-11.30pm) and Sunday 9th October (1pm-7pm) are still available at https://www.indymanbeercon.co.uk/tickets/

Trade tickets for Friday 7th October (11.30am-4.30pm) are available. Please email [email protected]

We seek VOLUNTEERS for IMBC 16. More here: https://www.indymanbeercon.co.uk/2016/08/imbc-16-volunteers/

Can’t make it to Port Street on the evening of the 14th September? Don’t despair! We’ll be unveiling all the info for IMBC 16 online right here too.

Posted on 2nd September 2016