Top of the hops: Knaresborough brewery’s road to Harrogate Beer Week

I am pretty clueless when it comes to beer. For example, I had no idea that IPA stood for Indian Pale Ale or that you some beers were more “hoppy” and “juicy” than others, depending on when the hops are introduced to the brewing process. Did you know hops could also come in a pellet form resembling fish food? Me neither.

So when I spent a morning with the guys at Turning Point Brewing Co in Knaresborough, I was ready to be educated.

I figured that, as Harrogate was launching its very first ever beer week on Monday, now was the perfect time to learn.

Turning Point co-founder Aron McMahon said:

“A hop is just like a little dried bud or flower and we use whole hop cones and also use pellets as well, which are like minced up hops. They are processed and packed into tiny little pellets, a bit like fish food, and they are supposed to give more of a stronger, more intense aroma and flavour.

“You can get different properties from the hops depending on how you use them and what stage you use them.”

Humble beginnings

The story of how rapidly Turning Point Brew Co has grown is an impressive one – particularly with a worldwide pandemic thrown into the mix.

The brewery was originally launched in Kirkbymoorside by friends Aron and Cameron McQueen in 2017. Aron worked for another brewery in North Yorkshire and Cameron used to run a pub in York.

Aron said:

“I used to be one of his customers and I was probably delivering to him for about 18 months before we set off on this magical mystery tour.

“We became friends, we had the same interests and the same sense of humour.

“I decided I was leaving my job at the brewery and didn’t know what I was going to be doing and wanted to stick with something in the beer industry and start a new brewery or bar.

“I said to Cam, just out of jest, if I started a brewery would you fancy coming on board with me and he didn’t really hesitate and just said yes.”

After Aron realised that Cameron was serious, the two friends got together, had a chat, and realised the idea had legs. Through contacts in the industry, they found out about the brewery site in Kirkbymoorside.

And in just four months the pair had gone from talking about running a brewery to actually making their first beer.

Aron said:

“We managed to do it so quickly because of our contacts. Everything just fell really well for us. The site the brewing kit and everything else. We started brewing in Kirkbymoorside in 2017 and quickly got busier and busier.”

Sales went from local, to national to global within a year and within two years they had outgrown their brewery.

New brewery

Aron said:

“Just by a chance conversation with one of the owners with Roosters brewery, they told me that they were looking at moving and their site would be up for grabs in the near future. That was in January 2019 and by August 2019 we were in.

“We bought their old kit and brought our stuff as well. We were in about three months and then covid hit and we worked out we have actually only traded normally for about six months, despite being here for two years.”

The company now has five employees at its brewery at Grimbald Park in Knaresborough, as well as three part-time members of staff who work in the taproom, which is open on Fridays and Saturdays.

A taproom – for those, like me, who don’t know – is a space in which a brewery serves its beer to customers. In most cases, this is either part of the actual brewery or is attached to it.

Co-founder Cameron McQueen pours a lager at the Turning Point taproom.

Aron said:

“Here you feel like you’re actually in the brewery. It’s a quirky location where people can come and try fresh beers brewed on the premises and we have a different street food vendor every week. We’ve had a really good reaction locally.”

When the pandemic hit, the duo had to move towards online sales to keep their business going.

Fortunately Turning Point already had an online shop set-up, so they were able to flip their production completely over from mainly cask and keg to cans, which had formerly only made-up around five per cent of their business.

Aron said:

“When covid hit we had a load of beer in the tanks and we then just canned all of it. We plunged all of our beer into cans then and started selling cans on the online store.”

Online events

Once they started selling cans online, they created four different collaboration beers with breweries they admired, including Roosters, and ran their first online event to launch the beers. This was to become the first in a series of online collaborative events aimed at bringing people together during lockdown.

They also started up a beer club called Disco Royalty, which is still running as a way of keeping up engagement with their drinkers – a positive that came out of the pandemic. Brand awareness also increased due to people physically being able to look at the bold artwork on the cans, rather than just a pint in a glass.

The brewery at Grimbald Park, Knaresborough.

And it is this continued soaring success that has led them to becoming a key player in the inaugural Harrogate Beer Week, which starts on Monday.

Beer collaboration

As well as offering live music and a brewery tour, Turning Point has created a special beer for the event in collaboration with local brewers. These include Roosters, Cold Bath Brewing Co, Harrogate Brewing Co and Daleside Brewery.

The result is a West Coast 6.2% IPA is called Out Spaced – named after a B-side from a Super Furry Animals album incase you’re wondering. It will be available in cask and keg at more than 10 venues in Harrogate and Knaresborough next week, before cans are sold online from next Friday.

Aron said:

“Harrogate and Knaresborough are totally the right places to really shout about beer right now because there is so much happening.

“The number of good beer places that have opened up in Harrogate have been phenomenal. There’s probably 10 to 12 really good independent places to drink craft beer now, which is absolutely fantastic. It’s a great place to go and drink.

“Knaresborough is always going to be like it’s little brother, but it’s really good as well now. The latest addition is the Track & Sleeper at the station.

“For Harrogate to have its own beer week and shot about these venues is great.”

Taste test – I tried three Turning Point beers and this is what I thought:

OUT SPACED
WEST COAST IPA 6.2%  Brewed for Harrogate beer week in collaboration with Turning Point’s local brewing friends, Roosters, Harrogate, Cold Bath, and Daleside. Tasting notes: A West Coast classic hopped with Simcoe, Amarillo, Centennial. Properly bitter just like in the olden days.

Aron told me that West Coast IPA has “massive aromas and flavours from American hops”. He explained that West Coast IPA is is often a light to dark bronze colour with “a malty backbonet. So you get a bit of juiciness from the malt and slight caramel and slight biscuity flavours”. They also have higher levels of bitterness than New England IPA.

I had no idea beer could be so complex. But I could definitely taste a slight bitterness, however it was nicely balanced out with the sweetness and juiciness of the malt and the hops – or so Aran told me when I was trying to sum up  what I could taste. I definitely got a caramel and slightly floral flavour and I actually really liked it, despite its slightly bitter flavour. The artwork on the can is outstanding.

DISCO KING
AMERICAN PALE ALE 5.1% Tasting notes: Big on American hop flavour and aroma from Mosaic and Chinook hops. Drinkability for its ABV from a clean malt base. A real juicy little disco of a beer.

This was one of the first beers Turning Point ever brewed and it has now become their flagship top-selling beer.  It is really light, smooth and drinkable. I actually went through a phase of liking German wheat beer when I was a student. This reminded me a bit of that. I loved its slightly floral taste and it is a beautiful colour – like an old fashioned English cloudy apple juice.

EXILE
PILSNER 5% Czech-style Pilsner with Saaz hops. Tasting notes: Bready and crisp with a balanced bitterness and delicate hop aroma. Showcasing perhaps Turning Points least celebrated ingredient: Soft Yorkshire water.

This is Turning Point’s lager offering and this was actually my favourite. Aron described it as “smashable” and he wasn’t joking. As it was only 11am when I visited, I just about managed to restrain myself from drinking the whole glass. It was really fruity in flavour and had a grapefruity taste. Apparently I had done well to pick this flavour out, so I felt pretty pleased with myself.

This one takes ages to make apparently. Once it has brewed it has to sit in the tank and “lager” – a German word for “store” – for around eight weeks. This is what makes it so drinkable. Totally worth it.

Venues

If all this talk of beer has made you thirsty, you can try Out Spaced at these venues during Harrogate Beer Week:

Major Tom’s – keg and cask

Cold Bath Brewing Co. – keg

Roosters – keg

Harrogate Brewing Co. – cask from October 1st

Tap On Tower Street – keg

Half Moon, Knaresborough – cask

The Disappearing Chin – keg

Devonshire Tap House – cask

Paradise Tap & Taco – keg

Little Ale House – cask

Husk Beer Emporium – cans and possibly keg

 

Plaque unveiled in Harrogate for Hungarian artist

A new brown plaque was unveiled in Harrogate today to commemorate Hungarian artist Jean-Georges Simon.

Simon studied art in Budapest before the Great War. He left Hungary in 1920 to develop his style of post-impressionism in Italy, Switzerland and France, before marrying in London in 1937.

In 1941, Simon moved to Ramsgill before later moving to Harrogate where he lived for most of his life on 4 Park Road.

The Hungarian artist taught at Harrogate School of Art and a 2005 monograph by Robert Waterhouse, who was at today’s unveiling, brought his life and work to a wider audience.

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Mayor of Harrogate Borough, Trevor Chapman, unveiled the plaque today alongside Consul General of Hungary, Krisztina Katai-Nagy at Simon’s former home on Park Road. Robin Sutcliffe, who is involved in Simon’s archive, was also in attendance.

A self-portrait of the Hungarian artist, Jean-Georges Simon. Credit: Robert Waterhouse.

A self-portrait of the Hungarian artist, Jean-Georges Simon. Credit: Robert Waterhouse.

Mr Waterhouse said at the unveiling today that they had planned to recognise Simon three years ago at an exhibition called Their Safe Haven.

The 2018 exhibition would have showcased 14 Hungarian artists, including Simon, who established themselves in Britain before the Second World War. Another planned showcase a few years later fell through due to the covid pandemic.

He said:

“Unfortunately, it [the 2018 exhibition] did not go to plan because there was no money for it.

“It’s very important to Robin and I that there is finally public recognition for Simon.”

Financed by a grant from the Jean-Georges Simon Trust and co-ordinated by Harrogate Civic Society, the plaque becomes the 88th in the town to be commissioned.

Harrogate woman discovers she’s pregnant and has cancer within a month

A young woman from Harrogate has urged people to check themselves after finding out she was pregnant and had breast cancer within a month.

Nicky Davis, 38, found out she was pregnant with her “miracle baby” on April 14 after three failed rounds of IVF.

But exactly a month later she was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer after finding a lump.

At first she thought the lump could be related to her pregnancy but it wasn’t. The cancer was in her breast and spread to the skin causing an orange peel effect.

She began chemotherapy in June when she was 11 weeks pregnant and will keep going until November before giving birth.

Nicky said:

“We’d been trying for a baby for a long time so it was an absolute miracle.

“My cancer is hormone-responsive so it’s likely I’ve always had cancerous cells but the pregnancy had a huge impact. Without the baby I may never have known, this baby basically saved my life.

“We went from the highest of highs then to the lowest of lows.”

A week ago, Nicky had a single mastectomy to remove her breast and several lymph nodes to prevent the cancer spreading.

Due to her high risk pregnancy, Nicky will be delivering her baby girl early in November. After this she will continue chemotherapy and then move onto radiotherapy.

Nicky with her husband Mark on their wedding day in August.

Despite all of this she wants to raise awareness and encourage people to check themselves regularly:

“Breast cancer doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care who you are or how old you are. I had no family history and I’m still young.

“Even if people set a reminder in their phones to check themselves every few weeks, it’s so so important and we all need to do it.”

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Nicky is very grateful for all the “incredible” care received at Harrogate District Hospital but said it has made her more aware of the difference is healthcare in different countries.

She is now working with her family to fundraise for Breast Cancer Support. The charity works with breast cancer patients across the world who can’t afford medication or treatment.

Her family are arranging a walk of the Harrogate Ringway, around 20 miles, in hopes of raising money for the charity. Nicky is hoping to take part in the final few miles on October 30.

To support Nicky’s fundraising, click here.

 

Harrogate Town to host first fans forum

Harrogate Town is set to host its first fans forum this month.

Taking place at the Cedar Court Hotel, fans will be invited to hear updates from club officials and manager Simon Weaver as well as ask questions.

Doors will open at 6.30pm and the forum will start at 7pm. The forum will be held on Wednesday, September 29.

A spokesperson for Harrogate Town said:

“The forum will provide attendees the chance to hear all the upcoming news from club representatives, the Community Foundation, the Independent Supporters Club, the Supporters Trust, and first team manager Simon Weaver, who will be discussing a wide range of topics and will be available to answer any questions you may have.”

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Town currently sit second in League Two with 14 points from six matches and have a game in hand.

Fans wishing to attend the forum must email Phill Holdsworth, supporter liaison officer, on phillholdsworth@harrogatetownafc.com to reserve a seat and submit questions.

Festival of wellbeing to be held in Harrogate

A free wellness event is to be held in Harrogate tomorrow in an effort to improve peoples’ health.

Onewellness, a fitness club which is based in the town, will host a “festival of wellbeing” at its facilities in Mowbray Square.

The event includes classes in various fitness disciplines, such as Pilates, HIIT, Yoga, and Barre, to guided meditation and mindfulness sessions.

There will also be prenatal and postnatal fitness classes, offers designed for people over the age of 50, group running, family gym sessions and a nutrition workshop.

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Stalls will also be set up at the event with healthy food and snacks, juices and drinks, as well as a sportswear pop-up shop.

Alasdair Everest-Ford, Head of OneWellness in Harrogate, said:

“We have created The Festival of Wellbeing as an opportunity to bring our community together, and so people can make the most of and enjoy their health.”

For more information on the festival, visit the Onewellness website here.

£10.9m Harrogate Station Gateway ‘must focus’ on cycling and walking

The £10.9m secured for the Harrogate Station Gateway scheme must be spent on promoting cycling and walking, one of the councillors leading the initiative has said.

Yesterday a survey revealed most Harrogate businesses rejected the key proposals of reducing Station Parade to single lane traffic and pedestrianising James Street.

Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access at North Yorkshire County Council, said the project had been funded by the UK government’s Transforming Cities Fund, which was set up specifically to encourage sustainable travel.

Therefore, he added, cycling and walking “must be the focus of this scheme”.

He added:

“It would not be possible, for example, to focus solely on public realm improvements or parking.”

Polarised opinion

An online survey run by the councils supporting the scheme revealed 45% of 1,101 respondents were in favour of the full pedestrianisation of James Street and 49% favoured making Station Parade one lane.

It would therefore seem the scheme enjoys wider support among the general public than it does among businesses but the issue continues to polarise opinion as a second round of consultation looms.

Cllr Mackenzie said:

“I would like to reassure the businesses that a principal reason for our current gateway schemes in Harrogate, Selby and Skipton is to make town centres more attractive places to visit and to boost the local economy in each town.

“With our partners, we undertook an extensive public consultation earlier this year on the initial proposals, in which all residents and businesses were able to give their views. This included events specifically designed to enable business groups, including Harrogate Business Improvement District, to give their feedback.

“The BID expressed the views now presented in its survey at that time, and these were taken into account as we prepared the revised proposals, as was the wider feedback we received from the community.

“A further planned consultation will be launched next month, in which all residents and businesses will be able to comment on the revised proposals. Again, there will be specific opportunities for businesses to comment.

“This will enable us to have a proper dialogue and help us to understand the issues behind the headline figures of the BID’s survey.

“In the meantime, we will continue to engage with the BID.”

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Harrogate student stars in second series of All Creatures Great and Small

Popular drama All Creatures Great and Small returns tonight on Channel 5  with Harrogate Grammar student Imogen Clawson reprising her role as Jenny Alderson.

Fourteen year old Imogen has just started studying for her GSCEs and had to do an hour a day tutoring whilst she was on the TV set.

It is the second time James Herriot’s famous books, as life as a vet in the Dales, have been dramatised for TV.  It’s has been a big success for Channel 5 bringing in millions of viewers.

When asked about the similarities she shares with her character Jenny Alderson, Imogen said:

“We share the same confident flair, we’re both independent and witty, and we both have a love for animals”

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Imogen said it has been great to work with the cast of All Creatures Great and Small and how supportive her school, Harrogate Grammar, has been.

Neil Renton, head teacher of HGS, said:

“We are incredibly proud of Imogen’s achievements and her commitment to the arts. She effectively balances the pressures of her acting role with her studies and this a real credit to her dedication. We look forward to watching the new series and seeing her future career unfold.”

Imogen added that the show’s success may also be down to timing :

“It’s a great show to watch after covid 19 as it’s a very relaxing show.”

Series 2 of All Creatures Great and Small starts at 9pm tonight on Channel 5, Thursday, September 16.

Beech Grove closure to remain in place, despite petition objecting

Harrogate’s low traffic neighbourhood on Beech Grove will remain in place, despite a 770-signature petition calling for it to be removed being lodged.

Councillors on North Yorkshire County Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough Area Committee heard the petition today, which was set up by Harrogate Residents’ Association.

It called for the planters, which the county council put in place to encourage walking and cycling, to be removed from both Beech Grove and Lancaster Road junction.

However, councillors voted to keep the scheme in place on the grounds that the council had committed to improving cycling and walking infrastructure in Harrogate town centre.

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Cllr Don Mackenzie, executive county councillor for access, said that the measure was a small part of a wider scheme.

He said:

“The Beech Grove LTN is a very modest step to what this area constituency committee asked officers to do. 

“Namely, to introduce a better system of walking and cycling in Harrogate town centre and also to encourage people out of their cars onto their feet and public transport.”

He added that the scheme was “under constant review” and had a maximum term to be in place until August 2022.

‘Lack of consultation’

Anna McIntee and Lucy Gardner, of Harrogate Residents Association, told the committee that the county council had “failed to consult the community” on the scheme.

They added that the council was “reactive and not proactive” when engaging with people.

Mrs McIntee said:

“The priority [for consultation] should have been the residents on Lancaster Road and Beech Grove and the many residents who do not really use social media.”

But, Kevin Douglas, chair of Harrogate District Cycle Action, said that the scheme had “transformed the experience of cycling” in the town and had a benefit for pedestrians, such as dog walkers.

He added that the scheme would become part of a wider cycle network and help connect Otley Road to Victoria Avenue.

Councillors on the committee voted to note the petition, but continue with the experimental scheme until its conclusion next year.

20 parents protest against covid vaccine for children at St Aidan’s

Around 20 parents linked arms outside St Aidan’s Church of England High School today to protest against giving children aged 12-15 the covid vaccine.

Children will be able to get their first shot of the vaccine from next week, the government has confirmed.

It follows advice from all four of the UK’s chief medical officers, who said offering vaccinations to children would reduce disruption in schools.

Evidence suggests a single dose cuts the risk of catching covid by around 55%. However, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, which advises the government, recommended not vaccinating children on health grounds alone.

One parent at the protest today said she disagreed with the government’s decision not to follow the JVCI’s recommendation. The woman accused the government of “brainwashing” children to take the jab.

She said:

“We are concerned for our children.”

Another protestor added:

“Our hearts are broken.

“We maintain the vaccinations are nothing to do with health”.

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Groups of curious sixth formers stood outside their classrooms to watch, and some approached the protestors to ask why they were there. Two police officers also attended the scene.

Afterwards, the Stray Ferret was contacted by mother Charlotte Castle, who has a child in the sixth form at St Aidan’s. She said she was “furious” at the protestors, who she called “idiots”.

She added:

“The arrogance that these parents know more than 99.9% of world’s viralogists. These people live in echo chambers. They are misinformed.”

Boost to Nidderdale Greenway extension plans

Harrogate Borough Council has pledged to support plans to extend the Nidderdale Greenway by up to 23 miles.

The authority has agreed to join a steering group leading on the plans, which would see the four mile cycling and walking route from Harrogate to Ripley extended through the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty to Scar House Reservoir.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting last night, councillor Stanley Lumley, who represents the Pateley Bridge and Nidderdale Moors ward, said:

“These plans have been approached on several occasions, but this is the first time it has got real credence.

“The first part of the Nidderdale Greenway has proved to be an enormous success creating a safe cycling and walking route.

“The ambition to extend it through Nidderdale to Pateley Bridge would have great benefits for businesses and residents. It would also be a great asset to Nidderdale and the district as a whole.”

Councillor Phil Ireland, cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability, added:

“Sustainable transport is a key priority of this council and opportunities such as this should be supported.

“We do need representation on the steering group otherwise we would have no input into the development and delivery of the project.”

Councils, campaigners and residents will make up the steering group which could be officially formed by this autumn.

It is being led by cycling campaigner Malcolm Margolis, who long before the greenway opened in 2013 has always held an ambition of extending the route, which is used by an estimated 200,000 people every year.

Mr Margolis worked with Sustrans, a national charity that lobbies for and helps build cycling infrastructure, to produce a feasibility study for the extension plans before the pandemic struck and caused some delays in moving the project forward.

The plan though does have its detractors with some landowners in Nidderdale calling it a “Blackway”, arguing it will urbanise the rural footpaths.

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The steering group will oversee the next stages of the project, including route planning and further talks with landowners. The aim is for the route to follow disused railway lines or existing rights of way wherever possible.

Mr Margolis previously said he hoped the route would be “substantially built” within the next five years and be funded by government grants and fundraising.