A MINSHULL Street beer bar has been named pub of the year by the region’s CAMRA branch.

Tap & Bottle, owned by Rick Hoskins, was handed the gong just a year after being named pub of the season by the Campaign for Real Ale’s Macclesfield and East Cheshire department.

Rick says the bar’s success in its first two years in Knutsford has led to plans of expansion, and he is setting his sights on further awards in the future.

Rick, who previously worked as a brewer at Tatton Brewery, said: “To get pub of the season early last year and now this, it’s quite an achievement - we’ve been open less than two years.

“I knew the industry and it’s just a case of getting a presence – we don’t do a lot of advertising and it’s largely word of mouth really.

“All premises get blind judged by CAMRA. It’s about quality of beer, range of beer, ambiance - things like that.

“It gets very full down here very quickly. It’s good beer and it’s always changing.”