Meet the couple who travelled the world to bring the best of the craft beer revolution back home to Yorkshire
When Friends of Ham opened in July 2012, craft beer was still a niche interest. According to Claire and Anthony Kitching, the couple behind this cafe-bar in the centre of Leeds, they could have easily stocked every single good beer produced in the country at the time. Since then, theres been a beer-making revolution 170 new breweries in the UK in the last 12 months and they have to be more choosy, or thered be no room for customers.
Friends of Ham is a magnet for craft-beer devotees, who come to sample the latest IPA from a local microbrewer such as Northern Monk in nearby Holbeck or an obscure import from the US (400 Pound Monkey IPA by Colorados Left Hand Brewing Company was a standout from my visit) but it doesnt feel elitist. Theyve limited themselves to just nine beers on tap and theres no muttering into beards if you dont know the difference between cask and keg.
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