Historic Leeds pub Whitelock’s to host four-day beer festival celebrating local breweries

Whitelock’s Ale House has announced the return of its annual Beer Festival, taking place across the historic pub and neighbouring The Turk’s Head in June.

The festival will celebrate independent brewing in Leeds, with beers sourced exclusively from local breweries including Northern Monk, Kirkstall, Anthology, Amity and more.

Over four days, a range of local beers will be pouring across both venues, with further breweries and festival details set to be drip-fed on social media in the weeks leading up to the event.

This year, the free-to-enter festival aims to shine a light on the strength and diversity of the city’s brewing scene.

Speaking about this year’s festival, Whitelock’s general manager Beth said: “Beer has always been at the heart of Whitelock’s, so this felt like the right year to celebrate both the breweries on our doorstep and the city we’ve called home for more than 300 years.

“Leeds has a brilliantly strong independent beer scene right now, and we’re looking forward to showcasing some of the best breweries the city has to offer across the weekend.”

Whitelock’s and The Turk’s Head Beer Festival takes place from June 18 to 21.

Dating back to 1715, Whitelock’s is believed to be one of Leeds’ oldest watering holes. Known as The Turk’s Head in its early days, it adopted its current name in 1867, when John Lupton Whitelock took over the licence.

Features from his 1886 refurbishment, including the marble-topped bar and mirrors, can still be seen today.

The pub is regularly named among the city’s must-visit venues and remains a firm favourite with Yorkshire Evening Post readers.