We're delighted to announce that from this year, we're extending our support and partnership with LeeStock!

From 2026 onwards, we’ll be the sole and exclusive drinks partner for LeeStock Festival at Melford Hall - and we're bloody chuffed about it!

It didn’t happen overnight. This has been a few months of conversations, planning, and plenty of “what if we…?” moments with Andy, Peter, Matt and the team.

For most of you locally, LeeStock hardly needs explaining. It’s already marked in the diary every late May Bank Holiday for this year, next year and the next 5 years!

For those who’ve yet to experience it, it’s become one of Suffolk’s standout weekends. Big-name bands, brilliant food, thousands of visitors, a safe and welcoming atmosphere, and that unmistakable festival buzz in the heart of the Suffolk countryside. So, as you can imagine, it's pretty big news for us!

Held in memory of local musician Lee Dunford, it’s raised more than £200,000 for the Willow Foundation and other local causes since it began in 2008. Every ticket, every pint, every weekend wristband contributes to something that genuinely matters.

We’ve been involved for years and years - supplying real ales and the kit to make sure proper cask beer flows as it should. As the festival has grown, so has our support. But much of the wider drinks setup has traditionally come from a national wholesaler. And at some point, we found ourselves asking a simple question. Why don't we do it?

We’re a local brewery with deep roots in our community. We run busy beer festivals of our own. We know what it takes to serve thousands of people quickly and well. We’ve got the equipment, the team, and a strong network of producers around us. Many of the familiar faces in our taproom are the same ones who spend the whole LeeStock weekend in front of the main stage. So, we threw the idea at Andy and the team, and after quite a few long conversations, we're delighted that to have signed on the dotted line and come to an agreement that we hope benefits everyone - us, the organisers, the charities and the festivalgoers!

So from 2026 onwards, we’ll be building and running the main festival bar alongside Andy, Matt, Peter and the rest of the LeeStock crew. We’ll be supplying the full drinks range — from real ales and craft beers to lagers, ciders, wines and soft drinks — and working closely with the organisers to make sure everything runs as smoothly as it should.

We’re not reinventing the wheel, don't worry. There’ll be no dramatic overhauls or sudden surprises. It should feel reassuringly familiar - the same great festival bar setup you’ve known for years - just with a few thoughtful small improvements from us behind the scenes - an expanded and refined Nethergate range (cask and keg!!) - a better choice across the board of wines, softs and spirits. Hopefully quicker pours. Less queueing. More time in front of the stage and soaking in the festival.

We’re already deep into the practical bits - we've agreed the layout, we're finalising the full drinks list, sorting the logistics and all the unglamorous (but essential) details that make a weekend like this tick. Once that’s nailed down, we can turn our attention to the more exciting stuff. Competitions. New product launches. Exclusive festival pours and offers. Some brand-new merchandise. Some thoughtful sponsorship touches. Maybe a few surprises along the way. If you’d like to follow how it’s shaping up, keep an eye on our social channels. We’ll share updates as plans progress towards the gates opening.

We’re genuinely excited about this partnership - and we hope you are too. To have our name more closely tied to an event that means so much to Suffolk is something we’re hugely proud of.

We can’t wait to see the bar in full swing, to pull that first pint of the weekend, and to watch you enjoying a Nethergate in hand while soaking up everything LeeStock has become so well known for.

A special thank you to Andy, Matt, Peter and the whole team behind the festival. Their openness, their trust, and their commitment to involving a local business have given us this opportunity - and we won’t be letting them (or you) down.

Roll on May 2026. 🍺