Hop Hideout, Sheffield

Part of Kommune, and situated just around the corner from the main bar with the iconic staircase of the old Co-op visible behind, this is the new home of the former bottle shop and tasting room (of the same name) that was situated for five years on Sheffield's Abbeydale Road. The new location has an ad hoc feel about it, but one of the owners told me they are finding their feet having only moved in here about three weeks ago. There is a small bar counter with a few high stools and five keg taps on a tiled wall behind, plus a couple of fridges holding bottled beers. They need to develop a separate identity, with some tables and chairs of their own, because the vibe with Kommune is that the various food outlets and the main bar all provide food and drink that people can take to one of the multitude of communal tables. A bottle shop and bar needs to distinguish itself from the others, it seems to me, and I'm not sure that the 7pm closing time is going to help them in that regard. The beers (four were available) were all pretty pricey with the cheapest around £5 a pint. My third of an 8.5% double IPA (a collaboration between Neptune and Wishbone, neither of them breweries that had ever appeared on my radar hitherto) cost me £3, almost the same as a pint of real ale in many parts of Sheffield. When asked how it was, I had to honestly say it was too cold for me to tell, which was not what I was supposed to say, apparently. It improved a little as I warmed the glass with my hands, but apart from the expected glow of an 8.5% beer, there was nothing outstanding about it. I evidently need to try harder.

Official site of Hop Hideout - www.hophideout.co.uk

Official site of Hop Hideout - www.hophideout.co.uk