For the sixth year running the Edgworth Real Ale Festival has been hailed a great success as hundreds of thirsty beer drinkers slaked their thirst in sweltering temperatures.
A 70 strong team of volunteers worked tirelessly to man the pumps and provide food and entertainment as Real Ale enthusiasts and casual drinkers alike sampled a selection of 60 beers brought in from around the local area.
Running from Friday 30 September until Sunday the 2 of October, the theme of this charity event was ‘Marathon’. An area 26.2 miles in radius, with it’s centre the Barlow Institute in Edgworth was scoured to find independent brewers and from 24 of those found 60 beers were provided to satisfy the drinkers. A further 6 Ciders were sourced from as far afield as Devon and Somerset.
Brewers from Bolton included Bank Top Brewery, Dunscar Bridge Brewery and Blackledge Brewing Co. Ltd, Horwich.
The events main sponsors were Holden’s Ice Cream and RPG Chartered Accountants and the team from Holden’s were run off their feet all day Saturday supplying a never ending stream of customers with their bestselling ice cream flavours as temperatures topped 27 degrees and had even produced a ‘beer Flavoured’ ice cream especially for the weekend!
For those ‘marathon’ drinkers who stayed into the evenings of Friday and Saturday, The Witnesses provided live entertainment well into the night and pasties from Allen’s Bakery and Hunters Pork Pies were available all weekend to satisfy the need for solid sustenance.
Raising money for Help For Hero’s and Great Ormond Street Hospital Charities, the three day event was set to raise over £12,000 to be split between them.
