Spring is a flourishing season for ale aficionados.

The run up to Easter sees a bevy of beer festivals and charity events, which is good news for real ale drinkers and for Huddersfield-based beer blog A Swift One.

Over the next few weeks the bloggers will be able to write about things like Riverhead Brewery, of Marsden , taking part in International Women’s Collaboration Brew Day on March 8 for Huddersfield Womens Aid.

The team behind A Swift One will also be chasing rare brews at Wetherspoons Real Ale Festival (March 13-29) and taking up residency at one of the best pub beer festivals in the country, The Star Inn’s spring festival at Lockwood (March 18-22).

And then there is the explosion of beer dos across Yorkshire at Easter.

A Swift One has been covering such news for eight years. It’s an informal information service run by like-minded people, who write under thinly-veiled pseudonyms.

A screenshot of the A Swift One blog
A screenshot of the A Swift One blog

Founder Ale Louse said: “The blog, in its current form, started in 2007 to primarily show the wonderful interiors that many of our real ale pubs boasted. With so much good beer once more available CAMRA had succeeded and we wanted to make a point that having a comfortable, relaxing, stylish environment to enjoy the beer in was every bit as important as the beer itself.

“Ossett Brewery was obviously my inspiration at the time – snapping up once great pubs and restoring their character for a new generation of beer fans who wouldn’t be content with poorly managed and maintained premises, the worst part of the pubco legacy.”

Ale Louse was later joined by regular contributors Timbo, Bloke from Hull, Aliain and Ale Ambler.

They cover anything beery that happens in Yorkshire, but with a particular bias towards Huddersfield.

A calling card from beer character The Bloke from Hull. Look out for them in pubs across the county.
A calling card from beer character The Bloke from Hull. Look out for them in pubs across the county.

Timbo, who joined in 2008, said: “I am always pleased to write about the local beer scene which has mushroomed in recent years. I have a fascination with hops and like to search out new beers using newer hops. I try to bring as many of these as I can to the attention of our readers – it’s a hard job but someone has to do it!”