OUT AND ABOUT | LORE OF THE NORTH BOOK LAUNCH AND EXHIBITION

Last Thursday saw the launch of Lord Whitney's book and exhibition for their exciting new publication Lore of the North at Munro House.

Lord Whitney, a collaboration between Amy Lord and Rebekah Whitney make regular appearances on the Leeds art and culture scene with their work on developing visual ideas and concepts for all manners of bizarre yet joyously canny projects (for example, see previous post here).

This book is the result of a project which started last year. The project was centred around celebrating the heritage and fantasy surrounding folklore and traditions in Yorkshire and the North of England. 

With funding and support by Grants for the Arts and Leeds Inspired, they have been able to produce a photographic series based on their findings, research and inspiration. The exhibition is on until 25 March.

Dinner was sorted for the evening thanks to the talented Ross over at Food&. 

Serving up a delicious Spring Vegetable and Rice Stew. I chose for mine to be served with some prosciutto from Friends of Ham and tried some gorgeous sourdough bread from Haxby Baker.

The stew was served on a bed of raw cabbage and was really fresh and uplifting. A nice hint of mint which really brought the dish alive.

OUT AND ABOUT | ILKLEY BREWERY 'MEET THE BREWER' SESSION AT WHITELOCKS

As a young twenty-something female, opting for an ale at the bar may seem an odd choice to some, but from my time living in Poland a few years ago I have become increasingly interested in good beer. Now back in good old Yorkshire I am lucky enough to be surrounded by numerous great breweries and micro-breweries offering delicious ales a'plenty.

So last week I ventured over to Whitelocks Ale House, one of Leeds oldest pubs,  for a 'Meet the Brewer' session with Ilkley Brewery.

 One of the first ales I ever tried was Yorkshire's most wanted multi-award winning ale, Ilkley Brewery's Mary Jane. Not a bad introduction if you ask me! It is today still one of my favourites and I do have a silent squeal of excitement to myself when I see it on keg in a bar.

Arriving at Whitelocks, we worked our way down the back bar for a nice cosy affair of about 10-15 like-minded ale lovers. 

Photo: Diane Wong

On arrival, there were some lovely little bite-sized snacks on offer, including some banging pork pies and black pudding and brown sauce topped hash browns.

The bar was graced with three new brews for us keen-tasters to try. These included a Black IPA, Pata Negra, an Olicana Pale and Rye N' Dry.

Chris Ives, Head Brewer and Christa Sandquist, Lead Brewer, were at hand to talk us through the new beers and enlighten us on what makes Ilkley Brewery beers so distinctive and drinkable.

I had a taster of all three and went for a half pint of the Pata Negra. This beer was originally brewed to celebrate local independent bar Friends of Ham's first birthday, but has been tweaked and a single batch reproduced for this year.

Coming in at 6.2%, this is quite a strong beer, but it was delicious, not too heavy and perfectly accompanied the bar snacks on offer.

Photo: Diane Wong

Listening to Chris, it was great to hear about their process of making new beers and how they are constantly innovating and developing new and exciting beers since their opening in 2009.

Unfortunately I didn't get to stay for as long as I liked (I had already been out that evening filling my belly with Bundobust, see my post here) but I did get a good chance to talk to Chris.

It is clear he is extremely passionate about what he does and the beer that they produce and I am hoping to meet him in the near future at Ilkley Brewery to have a little behind the scenes tour.

Chris will also be at the Street Feast at Belgrave Music Hall tomorrow to launch Ilkley Brewery's latest beer, American Smooth. The launch will be held from 4pm in the second floor bar.

FOOD&

Last Friday saw the launch of the brand new culinary resource and online journal FOOD&_.

I knew it would be impressive with such a great team working towards the launch.

A Leeds-based initative too, this is something close to home and absolutely lovely to see.

You can check out the website here, which hosts features, photo essays and recipes from all interesting avenues from various destinations all over the world.

I was lucky enough to attend the secret gathering launch party they put on last Saturday, styled and hosted by the brilliant Lord Whitney in their Leeds studio. Food and booze courtesy of the local lovelies Friends of Ham and Leeds Bread Co-op, I was spoilt rotten! Pictures are shown below.

Thanks for having me Food&_ and I look forward to your next series of features and perhaps a future collaboration!

Photos: Victoria Harley 

Styling: Lord Whitney