A beer festival with a difference – that is the only way to describe a unique event taking place in Moray this weekend.
The first ever ‘back yard beer festival’ will take place on Saturday in the yard behind the Speyside Craft Brewery on the Greshop Estate in Forres.
In recent years Moray has been growing in stature as a centre of excellence in Craft Brewing – now all the different brands and a whole lot more are being brought together for the festival.
Managing Director of the Speyside Craft Brewery, Seb Jones, said the idea was to create a beer festival that was “a little bit different” and would appeal to a wider audience. He said: “We’re having an afternoon session from 12noon, with the sort of music our afternoon guests might appreciate – such as reggae, ska and then funky house and electro as the sun goes down.
“That ends at 5pm, and after an hour’s clear-up we start the evening session with more club sounds – the sort of beer festival I’d want to go to!
“Of course we’ll have lots of great beers from all of Moray’s awesome breweries, plus a couple from Cromarty and Cairngorm. And, as its being held at a brewery there’s no chance we’ll run out of beer!”
The back yard at the brewery has been transformed from an industrial area into one fit to host such a festival, complete with a marquee and lighting. A BBQ will be set up with supplies from the award winning Macbeth’s Butchers.
Seb said: “One the best things about our location is that it’s so accessible by public transport.
“The train is a few hundred yards away, the bus is even closer so there’s no reason to drive – but even if there is a nominated driver, there’s plenty of free parking.”
Tickets for each of the sessions at the festival are priced at £5 and can be obtained online.