Craft ale operators line up Manchester sites

1 October 2019 10:23 Comments (0)

Licensing applications from two of the UK’s most prominent craft beer operators have been lodged with Manchester City Council, with Brewdog and Bloomsbury Leisure set for key moves.

Bloomsbury’s application is for a former refuse store, listed at 2 Todd Street, Victoria Station Approach. Led by Jon Dalton, Bloomsbury Leisure has become an operator whose new openings have been tracked keenly by beer fans since the Euston Tap opened in the grade two-listed West Lodge outside Euston station in 2011. Dalton has since opened more than a dozen London venues, two in Bristol and the Piccadilly Tap.

Dalton told Place: “As the Victoria site is a period properly, we will reflect this, but still have a bit of the quirkiness that people expect from us. There are some amazing features for us to work with, and the outside terrace will also be a brilliant addition.

“This site difference greatly from Piccadilly Tap, but as with all our sites, Victoria Tap will offer a deep range of cask, craft beers and importantly session beers at reasonable prices. We are super-excited.”

Self-styled punk beer brand Brewdog’s application is for 18-20 Fountain Street, the three-storey podium building that forms an endpiece to [pin url=”https://explore.deetu.com/pnw/#lowry-house”][/pin]Lowry House in Marble Street. The Scottish brewer, which sold 22% of the business to private equity in 2017, opened at its current Manchester home 35 Peter Street in 2012, and earlier this year opened one of its large-format Outpost brewpubs on Oxford Road.

Opening in Fountain Street could trigger redevelopment at the Peter Street building. The office above the Peter Street bar has been vacant since law firm Berg Legal left following its merger with Kennedys in 2017. Place understands that Berg still owns the building. An earlier proposal to develop it along with neighbouring 29 Peter Street into a 50,000 sq ft office scheme fell by the wayside several years ago. The 29 building has since been refurbished and returned to the market.

Brewdog’s application is open for consultation with the council until 21 October, and Bloomsbury’s until 18 October.