A HOTEL will play host to a Craft Gin and Beer Festival next month with in excess of 50 gins and 40 beers.

The event will take place on Friday and Saturday, February 23 and 24 at Roker Hotel, Sunderland. There will be two main gin bars – one focusing on London Dry-style gins and the other on flavoured gins. On the beer side, there will be cask and kegged beers as well as craft bottles and cans. There will also be a cocktail bar, live entertainment and a hog roast.

On arrival, festival-goers will receive a ‘what’s on the bar’ guide to help them decide what they want to try on their tasting expedition as well as a glass to fill with gin or beer as they chose. The drinks will be served by redeeming tokens which are purchased from their kiosk on arrival, meaning drinks are paid at a flat rate

The full selection of Poetic License gins and Sonnet 43 beers will be available. Their teams will be on-hand sampling along with a few other producers, so drinkers can try before they buy, and masterclasses will also be held to give keen-beans a further insight into their favourite tipple. Bottles from Poetic License and other exhibiting distilleries will then also be available for festival-goers to buy to continue the gin journey at home.

Mark Hird, MD of Roker Hotel owner Tavistock Hospitality, said: “It has long been an ambition of mine to put a festival of this kind on in my flagship venue with products from my own brewery and distillery and now seems to be the right time. We recently launched a range of gin liqueurs on the distillery side and brew a range of 9 beers so we have lots for people to try, not to mention the drinks we’ll have from other top producers. We’re hopeful the event will offer a great experience for gin lovers and beer boffins alike.”

Talking about the event style, Mark added: “We’re aiming to conjure up a summer festival vibe during these cold winter months. There hasn’t been anything like this in the Wearside areas before; it’s a fantastic opportunity to try new drinks, not to mention it’s a great social gathering. It’s sure to be a great weekend.”

There will be sessions on Friday night, Saturday day and Saturday night. Tickets are £12 and there are only 300 tickets for each session. Book on 0191-567-1786 or via hotel reception.