Sunderland’s Music City status celebrated with new Vaux craft beer ‘Music Sippy’

Sunderland’s status as a Music City is being celebrated with a new craft beer brewed by Vaux. The brand-new 4% pale ale has been officially named Music Sippy and is inspired by the city’s official status as a global Music City.

The beer will launch exclusively this weekend at the Sunderland Craft Beer Festival on keg and in can, and aims to shine a light on the city’s past, present and future music scene. The Music Sippy branding has been unveiled today in a red can, with the campaign’s “Sunderland is a Music City” slogan circling the badge, a subtle nod to a spinning vinyl.

On the rear of the can are the words: “A pour to celebrate Sunderland’s status as an internationally recognised Music City. Raise a glass to the past, present and future of our music scene.”

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Music Sippy will be available in keg and can format, making it possible for live music venues, bars and shops across the city and beyond to stock and pour. As part of the partnership, Vaux will also support emerging local artists and DJs at the Sunderland Craft Beer Festival, with a Sunderland Music City-curated stage featuring new talent and established DJs from the city.

Andrew Dipper, Marketing Director for Sunderland Music City, said: “We’re always looking for new ways we can shine a spotlight on the brilliant music scene we have here in Sunderland. This new collaboration with Vaux helps us tell Sunderland’s story to more people, not just in music venues but in bars, pubs and bottle shops across the North East and beyond.

“Working with the team at Vaux, we wanted to create something that reflected our music scene – quality, creative, fun and undeniably Sunderland – and we certainly got that with Music Sippy.” The Sunderland Craft Beer Festival will feature a wide array of breweries, food traders, and a music programme—offering the perfect backdrop for the launch of the beer.

The beer festival takes place during the Sunderland Year of Music and builds on Sunderland’s official designation as a global Music City in January 2025, recognising years of grassroots development and cultural success and ambition.

The formal recognition by the Music Cities Network places Sunderland among a global powerhouse of cities like Berlin, Manchester and Sydney, committed to harnessing music as a tool for social and economic transformation, and marks a bold new chapter in the city’s creative future. Final tickets for the Sunderland Craft Beer Festival can be purchased from The Fire Station website.