Manchester Trip : Cloudwater Taproom
Next on the agenda for the evening was Cloudwater Taproom, which I’ve been to before when I rushed there from the railway station last year during a break in my journey. They’ve also got another taproom in London, along the Bermondsey Beer Mile. Cloudwater were founded in 2014 and they also operate the Sadler’s Cat pub in the city which I’ve been to, but I’ve realised didn’t write about.
Liam was using Untappd here rather than trying to distract himself, but I know that Ross wasn’t as he is adamant he’ll only use a lager only beer app. The beer is the Stollen from Ivor, which I thought was a little thin, but it had a sweetness to the taste and a pleasant lingering flavour. Richard is starting to use Untappd as well, but I think the technology is sometimes a bit beyond him, but the will is there. Simon is a drinking professional, so of course he uses it, although Łukasz is completely unconvinced.
The Weisse from Cloudwater, which was better than I expected and it had a suitably banana flavour and was light and fluffy.
If we go back to the Middle Ages in Bavaria, which Richard claimed he can’t remember, brewing was largely controlled by monasteries. Weissbier, with its high wheat content, was seen as a nutritious and refreshing drink, perfect for sustenance during fasting periods. But there was a problem, the German Purity Laws were brought in partly to stop wheat being used for beer, when it was needed for bread. Luckily, some of the aristocracy quite liked this wheat beer, so exceptions had to be made. I can’t establish the veracity of this, but it’s widely noted that the Dukes of Degenberg were given a special exemption to brew wheat beer in the sixteenth century, so had something of a monopoly for a while. Not that it’s one law for the rich and a different one for the poor….
Someone had acquired me crisps, probably in a bid to keep me quiet for a while, which is to be fair is an effective strategy. This is the Mimosa Breeze from Cloudwater, orange to the core, smooth and with a taste of honey.
Thanks to Simon for this, it had marshmallow, chocolate, cherry and biscuit. Delicious, pastry stouts are very much my thing. And pastry sours as well, it must be that pastry thing I like….. The pastry element here refers to the sweetness, although there are often similar flavours going on as to what would be found in desserts.
Łukasz and I often seem to end up playing Jenga in the pub. I can’t remember who won, but we all watched intently as Richard tried to steady his hand when taking Simon to the wire when he gave it a try. Incidentally, as a fun fact that I found out recently, Jenga blocks are actually all slightly different sizes and weights, which is part of the design to make the game slightly more challenging.
I very much like Cloudwater and this taproom is no exception. It’s a spacious and well proportioned taproom which is located upstairs above their brewery set-up. It’s not a surprise, given that this is a craft beer brewer, that the interior is on trend, modern and functional. It was also busy, we were fortunate to get a table, although the turnover of customers seems relatively fast. The staff were friendly, knowledgeable and keen to engage, with the crisps selection meeting my expectations. Their food set-up is from Osaka, an interesting looking Japanese arrangement.
It was meant to be off to Track after this, but as we started to walk there someone just leaving mentioned they had closed, so that meant a rapid change of plan for the evening. Fortunately, there were no shortage of places on the list to visit.
