The Spirited Traveller: Spoilt for tippling choice in Manchester
When cotton was king, Manchester was best known for its thriving mill industry. These days, it might be argued that in England's Great Northern City the cocktail reigns supreme, with many of its old mills and warehouses now converted into bars and clubs.
With so many drinking outposts, from traditional pubs to sports bars, and even a sprinkling of tiki lounges, Mancunians are spoilt for choice.
For a glimpse into tippling Manchester, I turned to Chas Ayres of Ice Cubed, a high-end supplier of ice to the city's bars. While the pale ale known as "bitter" is perhaps the most "Manchester-centric drink," he opines, a peek at cocktail menus around the city reveals an extraordinarily wide range of options.
Executive travellers might be likely to bend elbows at one of the "perfectly adequate" business hotels in town serving gin and Champagne cocktails.
According to Ayers, better options include the bar at the boutique Great John Street Hotel and Cloud 23 at the Hilton Beetham Tower , which boasts a 23rd-floor view over the Pennines.
Meanwhile, seekers of chic might opt for the eponymous bar inside the Malmaison Hotel .
However, Ayers urges travellers to venture to Spinningfields, a relatively new city centre development dotted with banks and insurance companies, to sample an establishment with more "chutzpah."
Here, The Alchemist is known for its lush décor and whiskey drinks, such as the Smokey Old Fashioned (Woodford Reserve bourbon, maple syrup, Jerry Thomas' Bitters, oak smoke, chilled with an ice ball).
Meanwhile, the Northern Quarter is known for its roster
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