Manchester, UK

Ah Manchester. A city I've visited many times and I hope I shall never grow tired of. The place has a thriving craft beer scene, probably second only to London in the UK.

Let's start with the big hitters. If you love beer, you really have to go to these places. Number 1 on your list is, probably unsurprisingly, the indomitable Cloudwater Brewery🍺. Several years ago, they moved to a large new location on an industrial estate in the Southern part of town. It could be said that the taproom is a little starchy and not perhaps among the more eccentric places to enjoy a beer. That said, I challenge anyone to raise a complaint about the beer. A delicious range of Pale Ales and IPAs as well as an enlarged selection of more esoteric beer styles should keep anyone with a pulse happy.

As an exciting two-for-one proposition, you'll find Track Brewing has a taproom just a few steps away on the same industrial estate. Again, expect world calss beer and a nice laid-back vibe. Spiralling out from here, Sureshot Brewing has a cosy little taproom just underneath the nearby railway line. Again, delicious hoppy beers abound and Sureshot, like Track and Cloudwater are rightly appreciated for brewing balanced and drinkable beers.

Now honestly there are a load of other good breweries in Manchester, but I've not visited them yet so here's a prompt for future me to add them to this article.

Alright, if you've followed my advice so far you're probably going to be drunk and a little hungry. DO NOT FEAR and DO visit Bundobust🍺. Absolutely world-class vegan food along with a great taplist. There is really no room to go long here. Even if you're not one to enjoy vegan food, this is still definitively the place for you. They actually also have a new location Bundobust Brewery which I have yet to try but I don't doubt is equally excellent.

If for some reason, you are in need of something more traditional, I have a huge soft spot for Pie & Ale in the Northern Quarter. It's delicious pie and a fine selection of cask beer. Again there is literally no way for this to be anything but incredibly pleasant.

Suitably fed and presumably at least equally well-watered, you might want to go to bed and get some sleep. Some good places to continue the beer adventure are Café Beermoth🍺, cask and the ever popular Port Street Beer House. All three very homely and relaxing, unsuprisingly with fantastic beer.

If you're more interested in a pub experience, there are far too many great places to list here (and many more that I've yet to visit). However, you certainly go wrong at The Marble Arch Inn. An outpost of Marble Brewery in a very pleasing pub setting.

If you're taking the train onwards, grab one last pint at the Piccadilly Tap just outside the train station.