Age-old friendly rivalries between the neighbouring cities of Bradford and Leeds are to be settled over a perfect pint.

In a Yorkshire Day truce, Bradford Brewery and Leeds Brewery have come together for a first-ever collaboration to create a special celebration local beer.

The new brew will be unveiled during Yorkshire Day weekend festivities, after being brewed on site at Bradford Brewery by Bradford’s Head Brewer, Anthony Barrett and Leeds Brewery’s Assistant Head Brewer, Will Warriner.

The first pints of ‘Northern Powerhouse’ will be pulled at Bradford Brewery’s Yorkshire Day Beer and Food festival, taking place at the brewery off Westgate, Bradford, on Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd August.

Managing Director Matt Halliday said: “There has always been a cheeky bit of rivalry between Bradford and Leeds – including arguments about who can brew the best beer.”

“But the truth is that the brewing industry is part of a proud tradition across the whole county – so, for Yorkshire Day, we decided to bury the hatchet and work together to create a powerful new brew which we feel sure will get everyone’s vote.”

“For this weekend at least, we are all united behind one aim as beer loving Yorkshire folk, so we’ve named it Northern Powerhouse. The difference here is that you can be confident that our vision will be allowed to proceed to maturity!”

Leeds Brewery’s Head Brewer Venkatesh Lyer said: “When the idea was put forward by Matt at Bradford Brewery we were quite excited, as we’ve never done a collaboration brew before. We felt there was no better way to do a great Yorkshire Day beer than in a collaboration brew with Bradford – and the name Northern Powerhouse seemed very apt!”

Just 40 casks of the special edition Yorkshire beer have been brewed, with half to be distributed across bars in Bradford and half in Leeds.

The hops going into the brew are all British and included First Gold, Admiral, Target and Bramling Cross.

0O9A3802Bradford Head Brewer Anthony Barrett, said: “We’re using hops which we’ve never put together before, so we’re not 100% sure how it’s going to turn out. It’s already smelling and tasting incredible though.”

“It has a reddish hue and, at around 5.5%, may emerge as an ESB (Extra Special Bitter) or a Best. You’ll just have to come along and try it over the Yorkshire Day weekend and, in the unlikely event that there’s anyone who doesn’t think it’s amazing, then we’ll just tell them it’s a Leeds beer…!”

The Bradford Brewery Beer and Food Festival goes on from 11am to midnight on the Saturday and from 11am until the bottoms of the barrels are seen on Sunday. As well as the Northern Powerhouse launch there will be a choice of 50 Yorkshire Beers and a Yorkshire Cider Bar.

With Bradford Brewery’s iconic logo being the city’s emblem, the Bradford Boar, the legendary creature’s demise will be celebrated with a boar roast in the beer garden.

There will also be a selection of locally-made vegetarian snacks served in the bar as a brief diversion from the usual pie and mash menu.

The event will feature live music throughout the weekend with buskers and local musicians invited to drop in and play. Saturday night’s highlight is Bradford’s No Hands DJs with Sunday offering a more laid-back mellow acoustic theme, finishing with a DJ set from Shipley’s very own Front Room Disco DJ Will Oddsox.

The event will form a central part of the celebrations taking place across Bradford’s Independent Quarter over the Yorkshire Day weekend which also includes a North Parade street party.

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