Wold Top Brewery, Hunmanby
This family-run brewery can be found in the village of Hunmanby in the scenic Yorkshire Wolds. It was founded in 2003 by Tom and Gill, who turned to brewing as a way to diversify their farming business. Nowadays, Wold Top is known for its famous gluten-free beer ‘Against The Grain’, along with the award-winning Wold Gold, Scarborough Fair IPA and Wold Top Bitter, and its rich and flavourful Marmalade Porter. If you’d like to see the brewery for yourself, Wold Top runs tours on Tuesdays and Saturdays. These cost £15 per person and begin in the brewery’s cosy bar, where you can sit down with a pint while listening to an interesting and informative talk about how Wold Top’s delicious beers are made. You’ll then go into the brewery itself, where you’ll be able to see some of the processes you’ve heard about in action.

Piglove Brewing, Leeds
‘Cochino amor’ or ‘pig love’ is a Venezuelan expression used to describe a passion so huge that it becomes filthy. Like pigs love mud, friends Marcos Ramirez and Jesus Moren love brewing – so much so that in 2019 they opened their very own craft brewery in Leeds. Piglove’s tagline is ‘brave brewing with eccentric taste’ and the imaginative beers they produce are full of unexpected flavours. These include Hypermnesia White Ale with pineapple notes and flavours of citrus and achiote (annatto), an ancient Amazonian symbol of divinity and power. There’s also Phantasticum Universe – an ‘amazonic sour IPA’ with a fruity punch of tamarind, a smoky hint of chapulin grasshopper salts and a woody aftertaste of chuchuhuasi. Piglove’s taproom can be found beside the River Aire in the Climate Innovation District, where you can enjoy a pint on the sunny riverbank from Wednesday-Sunday.

Black Sheep Brewery, Masham
Known for its Black Sheep and Golden Sheep ales, Milk Stout and Yorkshire Terrier, the Black Sheep Brewery was born when Paul Theakston left his family brewery in Masham following its sale to a national chain in 1992. Wanting to support and promote independent brewing, he instead opened his own rival brewery in the same town. Black Sheep is still family-owned, with Paul’s sons now involved in its day-to-day running. In recent years, the brewery has started to create limited edition ‘new wave’ craft beers through its 5 Barrel Project. Each beer is produced in a very small quantity, giving the brewers here a chance to experiment without any restrictions on style, abv or price. If you’d like to learn more about this project, or Black Sheep’s other great beers, you can take one of the brewery’s family-friendly tours. These take you on a journey around the brewhouse, where you can experience the sights, sounds and smells of the brewing process. You’ll follow Black Sheep’s story, from its beginnings to the present day, before finishing at the bar where you can try a range of beers. Tours of the Black Sheep Brewery cost £12 for adults, £10 for seniors and students and £5.50 for children.

Northern Monk, Leeds
Founded in 2008, Northern Monk was born when co-owner Russ Bisset was gifted £5k by his grandmother, who had sold her house to downsize. Russ had a dream of starting his own northern brewery and when he met Brian Dickson at a beer festival this became a reality. The pair began by brewing beer in a cellar in Bradford before moving into the Old Flax Store in Leeds in 2014. Northern Monk’s beers include the award-winning Faith, Eternal and Heathen, along with many other inventive, exciting brews like Don’t Mess With Yorkshire – a rhubarb and custard flavoured pale ale. The brewery regularly collaborates with artists, makers and other celebrities though its Patrons Project and has recently released its fourth limited edition beer with Chris (Simpsons artist). If you’d like to find out more about Northern Monk’s brewing process and see their beers being made, you can take a 45-minute tour of the Old Flax Store. Each tour costs £15 per person and includes three ?-sized tasters of beer to try at the end.

Saltaire Brewery
Situated in the UNESCO World Heritage village of Saltaire, this independent brewery has been making its award-winning beers since 2006. When founder Tony Gartland met industrial chemist Derek Todd on a Brewlab course, the pair had no idea that the microbrewery they planned to open would grow to produce more than 5 million pints per year. Among Saltaire’s best-loved beers are its Saltaire Blonde and Cascade Pale, along with its ‘citrusy and refreshing’ session IPA Velocity and the multi award-winning Triple Choc speciality stout. You can see what happens behind the scenes in Saltaire’s brewhouse with a 1.5-hour long guided tour. These cost £15 per person and include a tasting flight in the taproom at the end.

Brew York
Now seven years old, Brew York has been producing its wonderful range of craft beers since 2016. The brewery was founded by Wayne Smith and Lee Grabham, who met at a mutual friend’s stag party and bonded over their passion for real ale. The pair began brewing at home and then set up Brew York in York city centre – achieving their dream of building a brewery with an on-site tap room where beers can be enjoyed next to the tanks they are brewed in. Smith and Grabham say they produce ‘the types of beers which we would love to drink’, and Brew York’s offering includes beers that are fun and playful as well as tasty. Among their core range, you’ll find the gluten-free Calmer Chameleon, Golden Eagle, fruited IPA Juice Forsyth and ‘rhubarb milkshake’ pale ale Rhubarbra Streisand. Always ready to rise to a special occasion, the brewery also recently released a selection of unique brews to celebrate Star Wars Day on May 4th. These include Obi Wan Cannoli – a cannoli milk stout with chocolate flavours and a creamy finish – and ‘The Mangolorian’, a juicy mango and lime milkshake IPA, made with Galaxy hops. Tours of Brew York’s Walmgate brewery take place every Friday and Saturday and tickets cost £10 for anyone aged over five. Carefully supervised children are welcome to come along and will be served a soft drink at the end of the tour, while grown-ups can sample four beers.

Ossett
Describing itself as a ‘progressive and passionate’ independent brewery, Ossett has been making real ale in the town it’s named after for 25 years. Some of the brewery’s most popular offerings include the full-bodied classic Yorkshire Blonde, floral and spicy Butterley Yorkshire Bitter and Silver King American Pale Ale. Ossett also recently took over Huddersfield’s Rat Brewery, adding their fantastic range of beers to the feathers in its cap. Visitors to Ossett’s taproom in Kings Yard can take a behind the scenes tour, learning more about how the brewery’s award-winning beers are made. Each tour takes between 45-55 minutes and includes a tutored tasting of some of your favourite Ossett beers. Tours are suitable for over 18s only and tickets cost £9.95 per person.

Images: @brewyorkbeer @helmsleybrewingcompany @blacksheepbrewery