A host of Northern angels

Libby Soley, head of sales and marketing at Tooth and Claw, credits head brewer Ryan Shore with the festival’s stellar line-up. “He's got a lot of good connections with breweries all around the north, which is so important, especially here. I think being in the north-east, in Hartlepool, we can sometimes feel a little bit isolated. So that makes people even more keen to get involved, and I think this year was the best line-up we’ve ever had.

“It’s great fun, but also great for getting our name out there a bit more. We've had our fifth birthday this year, so we’ve also done some great collabs, which have definitely helped, then we’re working with Beer52 on its North East box… So we’re gaining so much from the momentum and exposure, and it’s great to see that people actively want to be associated more with NEBS as an event.”

The event itself is largely outdoors, enclosed by brewery stalls around the outside, along with food vendors, a DJ and lawn games. The vibe is charmingly lo-fi, with seats made from kegs, and tables made from old cable drums.

“We obviously love families coming along, and there are kids there usually until around 6 or 7pm. It's quite diverse in terms of male and female, and different age ranges as well. There’s obviously a good contingent of what you’d call beer geeks there, but also a lot who just turn up casually and pay on the door. I left about 5pm this year, but Ryan was saying a couple of rugby teams showed up later. So yes, it’s quite diverse!”

This kind of open, egalitarian spirit feels very in-keeping with Tooth & Claw itself, whose ethos has always been welcoming of good ideas, wherever they come from.

Libby explains: “Tooth and Claw is run as a separate brewery from Cameron’s, but it’s a collective of Cameron’s employees. It's open to anyone interested in brewing; you can be working on the kegging line, or forklift truck drive, or anyone. If you’ve got a beer you’re passionate about brewing, and you’re willing to put a bit of work into making it happen, everyone will work together to bring the best ideas to reality. I think that’s been a big part of our success.”

A taste of the festival

James Caley, beer buyer at Beer52 discusses the NEBS collaboration beer in this month’s box, and what it meant to work with so many great Northern breweries.

“There is something really special about the brewing scene in the North of England, and I think the North East in particular sometimes gets a bit neglected,” he says. “We absolutely love NEBS; it’s still relatively new on the festival circuit, but you can see these fantastic breweries from the region really getting behind it. Especially since we were already working with a number of these breweries – including Tooth & Claw – on beers for our Angels of The North box, we really wanted to help celebrate the festival too, and how better to do that than with a collaboration beer?”

Carlos de la Barra, Beer52’s head brewer and winemaker, adds: “For an outdoor summer festival, we wanted to brew something refreshing but full of character, so went for a dry-hopped farmhouse ale. We used a very expressive yeast and some complementary hops, steering it from floral to fruity with a subtly spicy undertone. It has a modern hop profile and a beautiful deep golden colour with a clear appearance and characteristically high carbonation. We all think people will really enjoy it.”