A Harrogate pop-up shop is hoping to “tackle the stigma” of non-alcoholic beer with a pop up shop.

Andy Mee, who runs the Alcohol Free Drinks Company, is set to operate a “dry off-licence” on the town’s Cambridge Street.

He set up the business after quitting drinking following this year’s covid lockdown, during which he said he drank “far too much” in order to cope with the shutdown of the family business.

The idea for the drinks company came when he visited a restaurant and was offered soft drinks, but no non-alcoholic beer with his meal.

Andy hopes the pop-up shop at the Victoria Shopping Centre, which is being held as part of Harrogate Beer Week, will encourage people to reach for a non-alcoholic option instead of feeling the pressure to drink.

He said:

“I’m not intending it to be a soapbox, but people have to stop sober shaming.

“I hope this can break that stigma.”

Initially online, the company offers a range of non-alcoholic beers to buy and deliver to people.

The pop-up shop will be open from 10am until 6pm this week, but will also offer free taster sessions from 1pm until 2pm.

Harrogate Beer Week

The “dry off-licence” comes as part of Harrogate Beer Week, which will run until September 26.

It intends to celebrate the town’s growing brewing culture as well as the bars, pubs and restaurants which support the breweries.

Read More: 

• There’s something in the water as Harrogate brews up for Beer Week
• New Harrogate Beer Week raises glass to local pubs and breweries
• Masham brewery brings back tours after 18 months

A programme of special events and initiatives will be hosted at bars, brewery taps, and eateries across Harrogate. The event will culminate in a big beer weekend in the town centre. 

Other features on the programme will include an ‘Indie Beer Trail’, live local music, and a home brewing competition, with some big names in UK beer heading to Harrogate to host a range of talks and tastings.

A woman has described seeing a man brandishing a “huge” knife outside the Odeon in Harrogate last night.

Pub chef Chloe Horner had just got home from work when her partner alerted her to a man with a blade several inches long outside the cinema at about midnight.

Ms Horner said she saw the incident clearly from her kitchen window and observed the man standing motionless holding the knife.

She said another man, who walked by and was threatened, called the police.

By the time the police arrived, the person with the knife had walked off in the direction of Asda, she added.

“It was scary. You don’t expect to see that outside your own window. I feel for anyone else who might have walked by him. The knife was huge.”

Ms Horner said police, including armed officers and officers with dogs, were at the scene for about an hour but she does not know if any arrests were made.

By the time they arrived the man, who she said was wearing a dirty brown hoodie and joggers, had walked off.

“It’s crazy. You don’t expect to see that in Harrogate”.

The Stray Ferret has approached North Yorkshire Police for details.

Read more:

• Two charged over Ripon knifepoint robbery
• Harrogate woman discovers she’s pregnant and has cancer within a month

New proposals outlining the number of Harrogate district councillors for the new super authority leave voters “short changed”, says a county councillor.

Liberal Democrat cllr Philip Broadbank, who represents Harrogate Starbeck on North Yorkshire County Council, is to submit an alternative proposal to government so the borough is “better represented”.

Under current proposals, 89 councillors would sit on the new authority – of which 20 would be in Harrogate district.

This means that each councillor in Harrogate would represent on average 6,194 voters, compared with 5,329 across the county.

Cllr Broadbank said the plan was “not right” and that he will be submitting an alternative which will reduce the average number of people per ward.

He said:

“I’m proposing a new arrangement for Harrogate and Knaresborough. It will affect nowhere else.

“It feels like Harrogate is getting short changed. I’m just trying to get better representation for Harrogate and Knaresborough.”

Some of the wards proposed by North Yorkshire County Council for the new unitary authority.

Under his proposal, the number of councillors in Harrogate and Knaresborough would increase by one but reduce the average people in a ward to below 6,000.

It would also bring the total number of members on the unitary authority to the government’s maximum of 90.

Cllr Broadbank will put his proposal to senior county councillors on the executive on Tuesday. However, he said he intends to submit it to the government as well.

Read more:

• What will one super council for North Yorkshire look like?
• Number of Harrogate district councillors could be cut by two-thirds
• Robert Jenrick: Two councils for North Yorkshire would have been risky

Ministers at the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government will have the final say on how many new councillors are elected to the new authority.

‘Tinkering too much’ with the proposal

Meanwhile, Conservative Cllr Gareth Dadd, executive county councillor for finance, agreed that the district was “slightly underrepresented”.

However, he warned against “tinkering too much” with the proposal.

Cllr Dadd told a meeting of the Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency committee that he had been lobbied by other “interested groups in the county” to also change the number of councillors.

He said:

“If we succumb to the other two or three ‘lobby groups’, we could end up with 92 or 93 councillors. Where do you stop?

“It’s a debate to be had.”

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

• Harrogate Beer Week runs from September 20 – 26. For the full programme click here.

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.

Read more:

• New Harrogate walking trail app launched
• History: The story behind Harrogate’s Spitfire plaque

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.

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.

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.”

Read more:

• Harrogate man wins gold at Parkinson’s table tennis world championships
• Saint Michael’s urges Harrogate district to ‘go purple’

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 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.”

Read more:

• Harrogate Town appoints Sarah Barry as chief executive
• Wembley hero Jack Diamond rejoins Harrogate Town
• Harrogate Town boss nominated for Manager of the Month

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.

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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• Knaresborough vaccine site moves to offer 1,500 jabs a day
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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.

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.”

Read more:

• Harrogate businesses reject key proposals in £10.9m Station Gateway scheme
• Work on £10.9m Harrogate Station Gateway could start in February

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”

Read More:

• Harrogate Grammar resumes outdoor activities as lockdown eases
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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.