News.
KIRKSTALL BREWERY TO HOST THE GREAT EXHIBITION OF PRIZE ALES AT THE TETLEY FOR THE FIRST TIME
17th April 2026
LEEDS BASED BREWERY TO CONTINUE STEWARDSHIP OF LEGENDARY BREWERY SITE THROUGH SUMMER 2026
KIRKSTALL BREWERY PRESENTS:
THE GREAT EXHIBITION OF PRIZE ALES 2026
29-31ST MAY
THE TETLEY
LEEDS
Award-winning independent brewery Kirkstall Brewery have shared details of The Great Exhibition of Prize Ales 2026 as the beer festival moves to the city centre and its new home in the iconic Tetley Brewery site. Now in its fourth year, the Great Exhibition celebrates the innovation, variety and flavour of Britain’s brewing heritage as breweries from across the UK are challenged to recreate beers that transport drinkers to a different age.
The Great Exhibition will kick off Kirkstall’s summer plans at The Tetley as they mark two years at the site and announce that their stewardship of the legendary building will continue through Summer 2026 and beyond. Operating the Tetley Brewery building since May 2022, Kirkstall will make use of the whole historic building for this year’s Great Exhibition alongside the large outdoor space in the city’s Aire Park area with bars, food & live music to transform the city centre sun-trap.
Over 200 years since Tetley’s was first founded and 15 years since Tetley closed and Kirkstall Brewery was re-founded, the Tetley building will become the heart of Leeds’ brewing history once again.
By hosting traditional titans like Timothy Taylor beside forward-thinking contemporary craft brewers like DEYA, Kirkstall are bringing brewing scenes past and future together to delve into local history and exhibit beers with a link to the past. Breweries including Armley’s own Anthology, Marble, DMC, DEYA, Lost Cause, Kirkstall, Allsopp’s, Timothy Taylor, Leeds Brewery and more still to be announced will be uncovering rare and local recipes, some hundreds of years old, and bringing them into the present, especially for The Great Exhibition.
Throughout the event, a select panel will be awarding a range of Prize Medals to the beers they deem to be the best of the best. Last year’s winners include Best Lagered Beer Winner Braybrooke Keller Lager, Best Pale/Bitter Rooster’s Yorkshire’s Best and the Best Barleywine/Old Ale and Overall Champion Theakston’s Old Peculier ‘from the wood’; a truly special opportunity to sample the iconic 5.6% dark ale served directly from its traditional 9-gallon wooden cask.
As well as special pours from the brightest and best of the UK’s brewing community, The Great Exhibition will welcome some of Yorkshire’s finest independent food and drinks vendors including Niko’s Comfort Kitchen, Flavour Fleet, Once Upon A Vine, The Aire Fryer and The Pud Inn whilst there will be live music and entertainment from Elsie Franklin, The Old Time Rags, Alligator Gumbo and Louis Louis Louis.
Each ticket purchased gives unlimited entry to the festival for the designated session as well as a commemorative glass, festival programme and a complimentary beer token. Further tokens will be for sale on the day and can be exchanged for a half pint of beer under 7% ABV, or a third of beer 7% and above. Each session will be followed by an official After Party at a nearby Kirkstall Brewery venue where showing the official programme will take 20% off your first round and, thanks to the event’s new home, The Great Exhibition will be dog friendly for the first time.
A proudly independent company with good beer and good people at its core, Kirkstall Brewery’s unique Great Exhibition beer festival reflects their commitment to collaboration in their home city alongside sites including The Black Horse in Otley in collaboration with The Brudenell Social Club, The Three Swords in Horsforth in partnership with Karobar, the recently restored Victoria & Commercial with Whitelocks and the soon to open The City Tap with food favourites Little Bao Boy.
Tickets are now available here.
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Chris Hall, Brand Manager Kirkstall Brewery said:
“Bringing The Great Exhibition of Prize Ales to The Tetley feels very fitting indeed. The wonderful news that our lease of The Tetley has been extended offered an amazing opportunity to bring a celebration of historic beer to the home of brewing history in Leeds. Now in its fourth year, we are thrilled to bring this festival of beer, food and live music to the centre of Leeds, and shine a light on amazing brewers from across the UK who are bringing their A-game this year.”
*Images Chris Hall