The Riverhead Brewery Tap

The riverhead brewery tap

stands in peel street in the centre of marsden. in its short life it has become well known for the quality beers brewed on the premises, and has won numerous awards for its achievements. the building was Francis Johnstone grocers from the late 1830's until1976. Philip Holdsworth bought the building in 1995, when it was just a shell. Its is a community pub providing a pleasant atmosphere with no distractions such as loud music enabling the customers to enjoy a quality drink and engage in conversation. There is wheelchair access and it is very convienient for public transport.

The Beers

The brewery

produces seven standard beers, on sale in the pub. All are named after local reservoirs and generaly speaking all correspond in strength to the height of the reservoirs. All the beers are produced in the traditional way using the finest selection of British Hops and Malted barley with no additives. Look out for the special brews: Ruffled Feathers 4.5% abv brewed for cuckoo day, Eastergate Bitter 4.4%ABV brewed for Easter, Bandsman Bitter 3.8% ABV brewed for the Brass Band Contest, Jazz Bitter 3.8% ABV brewed for the Jazz Festival, St Swellands 6+%ABV brewed for Christmas. Sparth Mild 3.6% ABV, Butterley Bitter 3.8% ABV, Deer Hill Porter 4.0% ABV, Cupwith Light Bitter 4.2% ABV, Black Moss Stout 4.3% ABV, March Haigh Special 4.6% ABV, Redbrook Premium Bitter 5.5% ABV.

Location

The pub is centrally located in Marsden

with regular direct rail links to Huddersfield, Manchester, Leeds and Wakefield. We are only 200 yards away from Marsden Railway Station and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal. Buses come thick and fast and the main service numbers are marsden 350, 352, 353 and 365. There is a bus stop outside the pub entrance for buses from Huddersfield.

ng hours

are: monday to thursday: 5pm-11pm Friday: 4pm-11pm saturday: 11am-11pm sunday: 12pm-10:30pm. proprietor Philip Holdsworth Riverhead Brewery Tap Ltd. 2 Peel street, Marsden, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD7 6BR, tel: 01484 841270, Please email us with your comments or enquiries:

the cuckoo legend

many years ago marsden folk noticed that the cuckoo heralded the arrival of spring. they thought if they captured the cuckoo they would also capture spring and summer. a group of men finding the cuckoo 'up scout' began building a high tower around its tree. having placed the last stone in the final course, the cuckoo flew away over the top. the men stood back dismayed and the leader of the group summed up the feelings of all his fiends by saying that they had built their tower 'nobb'ot a course too low'.

the windows

the windows were made by Design Glass in bradford.

new ones were made as it was not possible just to restore the originals, but they were studied very closely to get the colour and style right. they took about one week each to make and involved various techniques such as hand painting.

awards

• 2001 camra pub of the year award.
• 2001 camra summer pub of the season.
• 2001 camra best mild pub of the year, third place.
• 1999 camra best mild award.
• 1999 camra sparth mild beer of the festival.
• 1998 camra summer pub of the season.
• 1998 3rd place beer mat of the year competition.
• 1996 camra summer pub of the season.

pickles

you might be surprised at some of the other uses of our products and by-products: all our raw materials are re-cycled, with spent malt going to local farmers as a supplement for cattle feed. used hops go to local gardeners for use as a fertiliser. the national trust marsden moor estate also use the hops as a fertiliserwhen planting heather on the moors. and... every month 81 gallons of deer hill porter is supplied to make shaws pickles 'autumn fruit chutney with dark winter ale'.

Marsden

Marsden is an old Yorkshire mill village,

although now the mills are no longer in use with the final mill closing just recently in July 2003. It used to be named 'March-dene' meaning 'wet valley' , and if you ever visit you will find out why! It is set in the Pennines which has stunning scenery with spectacular views. The village is thriving more now than ever before with small businesses moving into the village, our own theatre company and numerous yearly events which bring people in from all over the district and country, Marsden has money being put back into the community. The village shops offer everything from those little necessities to those extras to spoil yourself with. Good food and drink and accomodation are all easily found in the village. With all this going on Marsden is still a comparatively quiet, rural area with a wonderful community spirit, a place I am sure everyone will love.

Brass Band Contest

The Riverhead Brass Band Contest

is held every year in June, it has been running now for 5 years. It is sponsored by the Riverhead Brewery and is run in conjunction with Marsden Silver Prize Band who are now a championship section band. Brass bands of all ages from all over Yorkshire and Lancashire come to take part in this competition, making it an event for brass lovers not to miss. There are two venues, firstly the bands compete at the Riverhead and then they march up to Marsden Bandroom for the second contest. An adjudicator judges the bands on different categories and prizes are handed out at the bandroom for the winners.

Cuckoo Day

Cuckoo Day takes place every year in April.

It is held to celebrate the old cuckoo legend (see about us). The weekend starts off on the Friday with a guided walk to the birthplace of the Marsden cuckoo. Then on the evening the Riverhead hosts a folk night and sells a specially brewed beer for the occasion 'Ruffled Feathers'. All through Saturday there are numerous activities for everyone to enjoy from the young, young at heart and the elderley. There are street entertainers, Morris dancers and Clog dancers, craft fairs and demonstrations, a duck race and the Grand Cuckoo Procession with floats and cuckoo hats on display.

Marsden Jazz Festival

The Marsden Jazz Festival takes place every October

and has been running since 1992, it was founded by Mike Lucas who decided that Holmfirth had its own folk festival, Huddersfield had a contempory arts festival, so why shouldn't Marsden have one.. a Jazz Festival! There are now 56 events happening throughout the weekend from Friday to Sunday compared to the 15-20 bands in the first year. Mainly local artists play to partly keep the cost down but also to keep the intimacy and solidity of the village. The whole of Marsden is encaptured with the spirit of Jazz, all the pubs in the village have bands playing all kinds of jazz from mainstream to cutting edge, there is even jazz on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal. The event has such an electric atmosphere it is very much worth a visit!

Riverhead Reservoir Walk

The annual Riverhead Brewery reservoir walk is held on the Saturday of the bank holiday at the end of May.

All the Riverhead beers are named after Marsdens reservoirs, and being in one of the countries most beautiful, picturesque areas it seemed inevitable for this walk to be invented. Almost 90 walkers take part in this strenuous 16 mile walk, which takes you up on to Marsden moor and around the reservoirs. The walk is run in conjunction with The National Trust Marsden Moor Estate, each group has its own guide to give a short talk at every reservoir, the finale is at the Riverhead Brewery Tap where the tired walkers can sample the pubs fine ales.