Matthew Curtis
@totalcurtis.bsky.social
A writer and photographer obsessed with beer, pubs and their culture. Founding editor @pelliclemag.com. He/Him.
More about me and my work: www.totalales.co.uk
More about me and my work: www.totalales.co.uk
Pinned
Matthew Curtis
@totalcurtis.bsky.social
· Sep 10
In February 2024 I visited French & Jupps, the UKs oldest existing maltster, and roasted malt specialist. I’d never heard of them before, despite them being in operation since 1689. It’s story fascinated me, so I wrote it for @pelliclemag.com here:
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/9/...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/9/...
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
Gale beer, #Yorkshire bog myrtle beer. No, we hadn't either.
"Gale beer provides an example of how radically changing lifestyles and environmental conditions can alter our food and drink in only a few decades of historical change." www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/9/...
"Gale beer provides an example of how radically changing lifestyles and environmental conditions can alter our food and drink in only a few decades of historical change." www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/9/...
The Going Through — Gale Beer, Saison’s Lost Yorkshire Cousin — Pellicle
It pours from an unmarked swing-necked brown bottle, a clear liquid with a light effervescence which disappears quickly in the glass. It smells like gingerbread, but tastes either sweet when young or ...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 12, 2025 at 7:05 AM
Gale beer, #Yorkshire bog myrtle beer. No, we hadn't either.
"Gale beer provides an example of how radically changing lifestyles and environmental conditions can alter our food and drink in only a few decades of historical change." www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/9/...
"Gale beer provides an example of how radically changing lifestyles and environmental conditions can alter our food and drink in only a few decades of historical change." www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/9/...
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
Can’t argue with most of these - and the list is making me want to go to the pub @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
The Essential Guide to Pub Etiquette — Pellicle
It was the writer and politician Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953) who famously said, “ Change your hearts or you will lose your inns and you will deserve to have lost them. But when you have lost your inns ...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 12, 2025 at 7:50 AM
Can’t argue with most of these - and the list is making me want to go to the pub @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
Go for the photos, stay for the words. (Or vice versa -- I don't mean to be pushy.)
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle
Greenwood Street, at the centre of the Greater Manchester suburb of Altrincham, is the beating heart of the market town’s revival. On any given evening the air is filled with the smell of wood-fired ...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 12, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Go for the photos, stay for the words. (Or vice versa -- I don't mean to be pushy.)
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
My mum and her friend came into work yesterday and said "you'll know the answer to this... What's a bap?"
"It's very complicated..."
Lucky I could her this from @katiematherkm.bsky.social & @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2021/2/...
"It's very complicated..."
Lucky I could her this from @katiematherkm.bsky.social & @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2021/2/...
Bun! A Taxonomy of the British Bread Roll — Pellicle
A review for William Rubel’s Bread says: "In discussing bread one can find oneself talking about some of the largest issues of history and society." I hope so. When I messaged William to talk about...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 12, 2025 at 8:09 PM
My mum and her friend came into work yesterday and said "you'll know the answer to this... What's a bap?"
"It's very complicated..."
Lucky I could her this from @katiematherkm.bsky.social & @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2021/2/...
"It's very complicated..."
Lucky I could her this from @katiematherkm.bsky.social & @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2021/2/...
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
In a pub on Teesside and was asked if I wanted a regular pint or a "banker". One of the bar staff had to interpret
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2022/4/...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2022/4/...
I Want To See Mountains Again — The Banked Beers of Teesside, North East England — Pellicle
Unique and beautiful things rarely come from boring places. In the industrial glow of lower North East England, along the banks of the River Tees, a tiny handful of pubs still serve beer the way my g...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 13, 2025 at 7:52 PM
In a pub on Teesside and was asked if I wanted a regular pint or a "banker". One of the bar staff had to interpret
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2022/4/...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2022/4/...
This is soup and sandwich weather if ever I saw it
November 14, 2025 at 10:26 AM
This is soup and sandwich weather if ever I saw it
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
There is, incredibly, a new @londonbeercity.bsky.social tomorrow. It features Guinness' belated arrival in Covent Garden, London pubs owned by London breweries, the new venue for LCBF, The Lady magazine and lots more. Sign up here: www.willhawkes.net/london-beer-...
November 13, 2025 at 2:25 PM
There is, incredibly, a new @londonbeercity.bsky.social tomorrow. It features Guinness' belated arrival in Covent Garden, London pubs owned by London breweries, the new venue for LCBF, The Lady magazine and lots more. Sign up here: www.willhawkes.net/london-beer-...
We are so BACK
Vine reboot called diVine has been launched 📱
• Funded by Jack Dorsey
• Includes over 100K videos from Vine's archive
• Users can upload 6-second videos
• AI-generated content is not allowed
• Funded by Jack Dorsey
• Includes over 100K videos from Vine's archive
• Users can upload 6-second videos
• AI-generated content is not allowed
November 13, 2025 at 8:06 PM
We are so BACK
If you are wise enough to subscribe to @craftbeerbrew.bsky.social you can now read what I've chosen as my top ten beers of the year. Plus I have a fascinating article in there all about the beer-wine/not wine hybrids being brewed by Dan Wye at Fyne Ales.
November 13, 2025 at 7:08 PM
If you are wise enough to subscribe to @craftbeerbrew.bsky.social you can now read what I've chosen as my top ten beers of the year. Plus I have a fascinating article in there all about the beer-wine/not wine hybrids being brewed by Dan Wye at Fyne Ales.
I'm pleased to announce that, after some considerable effort on my part, I'm now really into Lankum.
November 13, 2025 at 3:27 PM
I'm pleased to announce that, after some considerable effort on my part, I'm now really into Lankum.
Seymour, the house is on fire!
November 13, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Seymour, the house is on fire!
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
I'm determined to keep @pelliclemag.com sustainable which for me means:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
An Important Update About Our Subscription Fees (And How To Support Pellicle) — Pellicle
When Jonny and I started working on Pellicle in earnest at the very start of 2019, we spent a long afternoon discussing how we hoped to fund it. From day one, we were dedicated to paying every contrib...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 11, 2025 at 1:18 PM
I'm determined to keep @pelliclemag.com sustainable which for me means:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
Five years on, still the definitive word on buns, baps, barms, rolls, stotties, breadcakes and cobs.
My mum and her friend came into work yesterday and said "you'll know the answer to this... What's a bap?"
"It's very complicated..."
Lucky I could her this from @katiematherkm.bsky.social & @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2021/2/...
"It's very complicated..."
Lucky I could her this from @katiematherkm.bsky.social & @pelliclemag.com
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2021/2/...
Bun! A Taxonomy of the British Bread Roll — Pellicle
A review for William Rubel’s Bread says: "In discussing bread one can find oneself talking about some of the largest issues of history and society." I hope so. When I messaged William to talk about...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 13, 2025 at 7:45 AM
Five years on, still the definitive word on buns, baps, barms, rolls, stotties, breadcakes and cobs.
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
💜Midweek Muse💜
Last Saturday we were honoured to be invited to @salfordbeerfest.bsky.social to be on a discussion panel featuring independent beer retailers including Sam at Keg Cask Bottle / Greg & Rosie at RG Beer Vault l, hosted by @totalcurtis.bsky.social from @pelliclemag.com .
#ISBFX
Last Saturday we were honoured to be invited to @salfordbeerfest.bsky.social to be on a discussion panel featuring independent beer retailers including Sam at Keg Cask Bottle / Greg & Rosie at RG Beer Vault l, hosted by @totalcurtis.bsky.social from @pelliclemag.com .
#ISBFX
November 12, 2025 at 4:12 PM
💜Midweek Muse💜
Last Saturday we were honoured to be invited to @salfordbeerfest.bsky.social to be on a discussion panel featuring independent beer retailers including Sam at Keg Cask Bottle / Greg & Rosie at RG Beer Vault l, hosted by @totalcurtis.bsky.social from @pelliclemag.com .
#ISBFX
Last Saturday we were honoured to be invited to @salfordbeerfest.bsky.social to be on a discussion panel featuring independent beer retailers including Sam at Keg Cask Bottle / Greg & Rosie at RG Beer Vault l, hosted by @totalcurtis.bsky.social from @pelliclemag.com .
#ISBFX
Is there a better modern video game soundtrack than Octopath Traveller? If there is I don't want to know.
November 12, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Is there a better modern video game soundtrack than Octopath Traveller? If there is I don't want to know.
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
Belgian beer in Altrincham. A huge part of the town's local culture, actually, says Joel Hart. Join him on a trip to Mort Subite, and revel in the underground glory of it all.
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle
Greenwood Street, at the centre of the Greater Manchester suburb of Altrincham, is the beating heart of the market town’s revival. On any given evening the air is filled with the smell of wood-fired ...
share.google
November 12, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Belgian beer in Altrincham. A huge part of the town's local culture, actually, says Joel Hart. Join him on a trip to Mort Subite, and revel in the underground glory of it all.
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
Great to see Mort Subite celebrated here. We went for James Campbell's 40th birthday do, aroubd 2007, I think with @beer4john.bsky.social too. Had a lovely evening. Halfway through the next year James realised he was only 39, so we did it all again the year after.
Belgian beer in Altrincham. A huge part of the town's local culture, actually, says Joel Hart. Join him on a trip to Mort Subite, and revel in the underground glory of it all.
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle
Greenwood Street, at the centre of the Greater Manchester suburb of Altrincham, is the beating heart of the market town’s revival. On any given evening the air is filled with the smell of wood-fired ...
share.google
November 12, 2025 at 8:11 AM
Great to see Mort Subite celebrated here. We went for James Campbell's 40th birthday do, aroubd 2007, I think with @beer4john.bsky.social too. Had a lovely evening. Halfway through the next year James realised he was only 39, so we did it all again the year after.
At one point Alty had three Belgian bars within about 200m of each other (now it’s down to just two). In this piece we meet Wyn Rhys, who worked for Whitbread in the 90s, opened his first Belgian bar in 2002, and for the past 18 years has been running another, the weird and wonderful Mort Subite.
Belgian beer in Altrincham. A huge part of the town's local culture, actually, says Joel Hart. Join him on a trip to Mort Subite, and revel in the underground glory of it all.
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle share.google/pXgYh7gMvo17...
Much Against Everyone’s Advice — Mort Subite in Altrincham, Greater Manchester — Pellicle
Greenwood Street, at the centre of the Greater Manchester suburb of Altrincham, is the beating heart of the market town’s revival. On any given evening the air is filled with the smell of wood-fired ...
share.google
November 12, 2025 at 9:35 AM
At one point Alty had three Belgian bars within about 200m of each other (now it’s down to just two). In this piece we meet Wyn Rhys, who worked for Whitbread in the 90s, opened his first Belgian bar in 2002, and for the past 18 years has been running another, the weird and wonderful Mort Subite.
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
My storyette about drinking beer in a petrol station during the Isle of Man TT Races is up for a @britbeerwriters.bsky.social award.
You can find it in my zine, along with five other mini stories, all of while are about drinking in unusual places!
www.pelliclemag.com/shop/a-place...
You can find it in my zine, along with five other mini stories, all of while are about drinking in unusual places!
www.pelliclemag.com/shop/a-place...
A Place To Be — A Zine About Drinking In Liminal Spaces by Katie Mather — Pellicle
A Place To Be is a brand new zine and the first work published in print by Pellicle Magazine. Written and designed by Pellicle’s deputy editor Katie Mather, A Place To Be is a collection of found s...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 11, 2025 at 2:07 PM
My storyette about drinking beer in a petrol station during the Isle of Man TT Races is up for a @britbeerwriters.bsky.social award.
You can find it in my zine, along with five other mini stories, all of while are about drinking in unusual places!
www.pelliclemag.com/shop/a-place...
You can find it in my zine, along with five other mini stories, all of while are about drinking in unusual places!
www.pelliclemag.com/shop/a-place...
Photographer @seanislegend.com has compiled this fantastic look at UK green hop season. Some really stunning shots in this:
www.seanislegend.com/green-hop-beer
www.seanislegend.com/green-hop-beer
From Bine to Glass: Brewing with Green Hops | beer photography by Sean McEmerson
A behind-the-scenes look at the 2025 hop harvest, following fresh green hops from Hukins Hops in Kent to breweries like Five Points and Beak as they brew with them only hours after picking.
www.seanislegend.com
November 11, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Photographer @seanislegend.com has compiled this fantastic look at UK green hop season. Some really stunning shots in this:
www.seanislegend.com/green-hop-beer
www.seanislegend.com/green-hop-beer
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
IT’S FINAL GRAVITY ISSUE 10 RELEASE DAY!!!
Our latest issue is now available at the link below.
Here are all the details: 🧵
www.beantobarstool.com/shop/p/final...
Our latest issue is now available at the link below.
Here are all the details: 🧵
www.beantobarstool.com/shop/p/final...
Final Gravity, A Beer Zine Issue 10 — Bean to Barstool
Final Gravity, A Beer Zine Issue 10, with articles about Our Culture Brewing, Almaza Lager, Cusqueña lager, queer beer boycotts, the Hasta La Raiz benefit beer, and much more.
www.beantobarstool.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:25 PM
IT’S FINAL GRAVITY ISSUE 10 RELEASE DAY!!!
Our latest issue is now available at the link below.
Here are all the details: 🧵
www.beantobarstool.com/shop/p/final...
Our latest issue is now available at the link below.
Here are all the details: 🧵
www.beantobarstool.com/shop/p/final...
I'm determined to keep @pelliclemag.com sustainable which for me means:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
An Important Update About Our Subscription Fees (And How To Support Pellicle) — Pellicle
When Jonny and I started working on Pellicle in earnest at the very start of 2019, we spent a long afternoon discussing how we hoped to fund it. From day one, we were dedicated to paying every contrib...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 11, 2025 at 1:18 PM
I'm determined to keep @pelliclemag.com sustainable which for me means:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
- Better rates for contributors
- Fair remuneration for our team
- The ability to plan bigger projects (like print!)
To do this we need to grow our subscribers, and you can read more about why this is important here:
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
News!
We have plans for a print Pellicle in 2026 but we can only do that with your help. Become a Patreon subscriber now and support our b̶i̶d̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶l̶d̶ ̶d̶o̶m̶i̶n̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ writers, artists and editors, and keep Pellicle free to read for all 🫶🏻
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
We have plans for a print Pellicle in 2026 but we can only do that with your help. Become a Patreon subscriber now and support our b̶i̶d̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶l̶d̶ ̶d̶o̶m̶i̶n̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ writers, artists and editors, and keep Pellicle free to read for all 🫶🏻
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
An Important Update About Our Subscription Fees (And How To Support Pellicle) — Pellicle
When Jonny and I started working on Pellicle in earnest at the very start of 2019, we spent a long afternoon discussing how we hoped to fund it. From day one, we were dedicated to paying every contrib...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 10, 2025 at 9:08 AM
News!
We have plans for a print Pellicle in 2026 but we can only do that with your help. Become a Patreon subscriber now and support our b̶i̶d̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶l̶d̶ ̶d̶o̶m̶i̶n̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ writers, artists and editors, and keep Pellicle free to read for all 🫶🏻
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
We have plans for a print Pellicle in 2026 but we can only do that with your help. Become a Patreon subscriber now and support our b̶i̶d̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶l̶d̶ ̶d̶o̶m̶i̶n̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ writers, artists and editors, and keep Pellicle free to read for all 🫶🏻
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/11...
Turin Breaks 'The Optimist' remains one of the best albums of the early 2000s. In fact I'd say it sounds even better now than it did when it was released.
November 10, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Turin Breaks 'The Optimist' remains one of the best albums of the early 2000s. In fact I'd say it sounds even better now than it did when it was released.
Reposted by Matthew Curtis
I’ve been saving this until I had time to relax and enjoy it. Where better than Fell NQ with a pint of Tinderbox
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
The Essential Guide to Pub Etiquette — Pellicle
It was the writer and politician Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953) who famously said, “ Change your hearts or you will lose your inns and you will deserve to have lost them. But when you have lost your inns ...
www.pelliclemag.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:09 PM
I’ve been saving this until I had time to relax and enjoy it. Where better than Fell NQ with a pint of Tinderbox
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/10...