Call to give Huddersfield ales pulling power

Jan 1 2009 by Henryk Zientek, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

REAL ale enthusiasts have launched a campaign to boost sales of their favourite brews in Kirklees pubs.

Members of CAMRA – the Campaign for Real Ale – have embarked on a LocAle Scheme to promote the beers made by local micro-breweries and sold in pubs across the district.

Huddersfield branch spokesman Bob Tomlinson said: “Anyone visiting their local pub today will be only too aware that the majority of the beers on sale are nationally produced ones which have lost any of the regional characteristics and identity they may once have had.

“They are generally bland and inoffensive, designed to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. People drink them because they are widely advertised and often there is no locally-brewed alternative.”

Mr Tomlinson said Yorkshire boasted more than 65 different breweries, while Kirklees was well served by breweries such as Linfit, Riverhead, Golcar, Empire, Mallinsons, Summer Wine and Anglo Dutch.

But he said: “Unfortunately, beers from these breweries are not always easy to find – so to encourage pubs and clubs to stock them, the Huddersfield and Heavy Woollen CAMRA branches are launching the LocAle scheme throughout Kirklees.”