Later this week, beer lovers will be able to tour some of Greater Manchester’s best pubs as part of a special anniversary trail. Almost 100 boozers across the region will throw their support behind this year’s ‘Mild Magic‘ ale trail as it marks its 30th anniversary, maintaining the enthusiasm we have for beer here in Manchester.
The annual event kicks off from Friday 12 April and is the biggest national ale trail to support the mild beer style. The celebration, organised by Stockport and South Manchester CAMRA, will feature 97 pubs from across Manchester, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and new for this year, Macclesfield.
Running until Sunday 19 May, pubs are divided into 71 different geographical areas and punters will need to drink at least half a pint of mild before collecting a sticker to put on the collector card, available in the pubs taking part as as a download.
Mild Magic participating pubs range from those in Swinton and Altrincham in the west to Ashton, Glossop and Marple in the east. There are numerous pubs with mild in the centre of Manchester and Stockport, and out to the south as far as Whaley Bridge, Chapel-en-le-Frith and Macclesfield.
City centre pubs on the Mild Magic ale trail include some of the oldest pubs around such as Britons Protection, Marble Arch and the Gay Village icon The Molly House, alongside some newer iterations including the Victoria and Piccadilly Taps, and plenty of Wetherspoons. The newly refurbished New Oxford in Salford will also be a welcome stop off, as well as much-loved student boozers such as the Friendship Inn in Fallowfield and Rusholme’s Ford Maddox Brown, for a bit of a throwback.
Two socials based upon Mild Magic are planned. Firstly, there is an opening event on the evening of Friday 12 April taking in a number of ‘local’ pubs. It starts on Chorlton Green, heading back to Heaton Mersey via West Didsbury, Didsbury Village and Parswood.
This will be followed by an afternoon saunter around a selection of pubs in Macclesfield which will take place on Friday 3 May. Ale fans will meet at Stockport Rail Station at 2.50pm, or catch up at Macclesfield Station at 3.17pm (assuming no more train strikes!).
As part of the trail, participants can win prizes of polo shirts and sweatshirts, plus more beer vouchers, for visiting 24, 48, or all 97 pubs. To win a T-shirt featuring this year’s Mild Magic logo, and two half-pint mild vouchers, punters have to visit twelve different pubs in twelve different areas, then drink half at least half a pint of mild.
Mild Magic started life in April 1994 as the Stockport Mild Challenge. Run in conjunction with the Stockport Express Advertiser, it was originally devised as a celebration of Stockport’s position as one of the remaining strongholds of traditional cask mild. No fewer than 55 pubs took part and it’s a sign of the times that 24 of those pubs have subsequently closed, and a further three no longer sell cask beer.
Thankfully Hydes, Joseph Holt, and J W Lees all still brew milds (two in the case of Hydes), along with many smaller local breweries. Hydes have agreed to sponsor Mild Magic for 2024 and many Joseph Holt’s pubs are featured on Mild Magic.
As an added bonus this year, Hydes have delved into their old recipe books and are brewing Anvil Light Ale. This mild from the 1940s was originally only available in bottles, but will now be on cask during May and June, meaning it could be available at some participating pubs.
Find more information on the Magic Mild ale trail, and further CAMRA beer outings, here.