Siren Craft Brew - Behind the scenes at Indyman

What is IMBC all about and what part do you play in it?

Indy Man Beer Con is a celebration of beer from everywhere for everyone! My role is brewers liaison at the festival + making sure all the rooms in the baths look great!

IMBC is one of our favourite fests in the calendar. What do you think makes it so great?

I’d be lying if I didn’t at least mention our fantastic venue Victoria baths didn’t pay a part of the festival, however we spend a lot of time thinking about how we can really add extras to the event which set it aside from ‘just being beer’. Also as we’re not a brewery we have no horse in the race! We’re just a bunch of beer fans like our punters!

Victoria Baths is an amazing venue. How did you go about setting up there, and what's it like behind the scenes?

TBH I’m not too sure how we ended up at VB that was a wee bit before my time and a very smart decision made by fearless leader Jonny Heyes. With regards to set up and behind the scenes: we arrive on site the Monday before the festival begins and we run the festival like a slick well oiled machine (with the occasional beer in hand).

What should people look out for this year? Any changes or new additions on the horizon?

We’re using a new space in the baths for the first time so make sure you check out the Filtration Room. It’s this totally wicked building where they used to heat and filter all the water for the baths so has some crazy big vessels & pipes in. Also a little known brewery called Omnip….something are going to be in there, apparently they’re worth checking out ;-)

Lots of our customers like to volunteer at festivals, near and far. What would you say to anyone thinking of volunteering at Indyman?

First of all, big up’s for even considering to volunteer! Our festival wouldn’t be possible without the work of our fantastic volunteers! But if you need a nudge then I would say 100% do it, we obviously try and treat our volunteers great by giving them a wonderful bundle of free beer and merch, but above that it’s an ace way to meet people and become a part of the craft beer family. So many of our volunteers come back year on year so it really is like an extension to our core team.

Where else should people check out while they're in town?

Man-o-man, Manchester is literally POPPIN with good craft beer stuff to do in the city, I think we have over 50 sign ups already of people throwing Indy man beer CITY events so you can’t really put a foot wrong! Personal highlights for me (and a bit bias as they’re part of our group)

• OverWorks showcase + IMBC Collab launch on the Thursday night at Common (some pretty cool dudes made that beer apparently…. it was me & Leanburg from PSBH) ,
• Donzoko 2nd birthday party at Port St Beer House on Friday - if you don’t visit PSBH over the weekend you’re doing something wrong + Donzoko are wicked and Reece is one of the best people in beer.
• Thinman showcase at the Pilcrow (all weekend) - These are an A+Mazing brewery we tried earlier this year at MBCC and are being air freighted over especially!

***MAKE SURE YOU DOWNLOAD OUR INDY MAN BEER CON APP! ALL THE CITY WIDE FRINGE EVENTS ARE LISTED THERE***

Any last message for our readers ahead of the fest?

Stay hydrated pace yourself, and be sure to check out the amazing stuff the city has to offer!

Check out the IndyMan Website.

Indyman is at the Victoria Baths, Hathersage Rd, Manchester from Thursday 3rd to Sunday 6th October. 

We'll be taking pride of place in the Green Room with an incredible bar line-up celebrating the past, present and future of beer. This includes MAIDEN on cask, yes... cask, and some exclusive festival launches... did someone say Paper, Scissors, Rock? 

Look out for DJs playing on the Past vs Present vs Future theme each evening too, along with a few extra surprises!

See you there folks!