Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants

Polly Checkland Harding
Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants
Creative Tourist

This venue is permanently closed. Find other nearby venues.

This curiously named wine shop in Manchester’s medieval quarter takes a sociable approach to drinking.

The story behind Manchester’s Hanging Ditch can be told in two ways. In one version, this cobbled street running alongside the Cathedral was once a trench where medieval cloth makers hung out their linen. In another, more apocryphal, version it was a place where sinners, instead of sheets, were hung out to dry. Whatever the historic truth, there’s little chance of staying dry today, at least in the alcoholic sense: nearby Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants has a supply of bottles extensive enough to lead many a customer astray.

Choosing wine can be intimidating when a shop’s stock is large and your credit card, if not your neck, is on the line. Ranging from around ten pounds to several hundred, Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants has a daunting collection. Seen through the wide front window of the shop, the bottle-stacked shelves run floor to ceiling and all the way along the back wall. The assortment also includes some more esoteric options, such as Portuguese Orange wine (a white that is made, unusually, with the inclusion of the grape skins). Enough rope to hang yourself with, you might think.

Your credit card, if not your neck, is on the line

But Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants’ website states that it “aims to take the fear factor out of wine”, while Managing Director Ben Stephenson has arranged the wines by style rather than country, thereby offering customers a lifeline. Stephenson explains that the system tries to “answer people’s questions on the shelves”. His argument is that dividing wine up geographically isn’t a helpful reflection of the buyer’s requirements. The idea is that this layout doesn’t demand extensive knowledge in order to successfully navigate it.

That said, Stephenson is reluctant to provide the tasting notes that can offer sanctuary when you can’t recall the distinction between a Rioja and a Rueda. When the sheer number of variables – grape, region, producer, vintage – unfold before you like a slippery slope into perdition, indications of a wine’s flavour can offer a welcome foothold. As an alternative, Stephenson encourages detailed conversation with his well-versed staff.

This is just one of the ways that Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants approaches wine as an accessible, social drink: expanding the usual remit for such a shop, buyers can also enjoy their purchases on the premises. The shop is a pleasant space in which to share a bottle or try wines by the glass (£6-£7.50). High stools are spread along the front windows, with chairs and tables arranged outside for the summer.

Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants refuses to present its specialist knowledge in a cloistered or excluding way. So, whatever the accurate explanation behind Manchester’s Hanging Ditch, the calibre of the wine shop that takes its name can be relied upon.

42 Victoria StreetManchesterM3 1ST View map
Telephone: 0161 823 8222 Visit Now

Admission Charges

Free

Services and Facilities

Wine shop, bar

Opening Hours

  • Monday12:00pm - 8:00pm
  • Tuesday12:00pm - 8:00pm
  • Wednesday12:00pm - 8:00pm
  • Thursday12:00pm - 8:00pm
  • Friday10:00am - 10:00pm
  • Saturday10:00am - 10:00pm
  • Sunday12:00pm - 8:00pm

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Walking Stock Image
TourManchester
Bombed and Besieged: Manchester at War

Marking the anniversary of the Christmas Blitz, this walking tour explores Manchester’s history of conflict, from the English Civil Wars to the World Wars and beyond.

from £20.00

What's on near Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants

Walking Stock Image
TourManchester
Bombed and Besieged: Manchester at War

Marking the anniversary of the Christmas Blitz, this walking tour explores Manchester’s history of conflict, from the English Civil Wars to the World Wars and beyond.

from £20.00
The Kings Arms - Bloom Street
TourManchester
Secrets of Chapel Street, Salford

Uncover the fascinating stories that lie beneath two vibrant Salford areas, packed with a history of pioneering achievement in art, architecture and absurdity.

from £20.00
Image of Rich(ard) Dawson
MusicManchester
Richard Dawson at The Stoller Hall

Declared “Britain’s best songwriter” by The Guardian, folk experimenter Richard Dawson performs two special shows at The Stoller Hall.

from £22.50

Where to go near Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants

Proper Tea Cathedral Quarter Mancheste
Cathedral Quarter
Café or Coffee Shop
Proper Tea

Proper Tea sits opposite Manchester Cathedral, serving up artisanal teas (with instructions on how long to leave them brewing), sandwiches, soups and excellent cake.

Harvey Nichols
City Centre
Shop
Harvey Nichols Manchester

Harvey Nichols department store showcases a range of designer brands; be guided to the perfect outfit (or wardrobe) by a style concierge. The second floor brasserie is rather good.

Manchester
Restaurant
The Cosy Club

Elegant and welcoming restaurant and bar in the Corn Exchange, with an attractive domed ceiling and plenty of original features like the staircase and tiles.

Manchester
Restaurant
Döner Haus

This authentic Berlin kebab and bier haus is the latest addition to the ever-growing Corn Exchange food family.

Culture Guides

A woman sits in a car with hands holding the steering wheel.
Cinema in the North

Vintage Alfred Hitchcock and a family friendly film festival are amongst our highlights this May.

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in the North

Dynamic dance, party-performance, high-energy stand-up and a site-specific show set in a pub. All this and more in our newest theatre guide.

the artist
Music in the North

The outsiders, the oddities and the outrageous – we’re keeping it weird with a hot new batch of underground gigs about to hit Manchester, Leeds, and Liverpool.

A large sphere floats in a dark room with an ornate wall pattern, flanked by two arched windows and a checkered floor.
Exhibitions in the North

From precarious ceramics to photography festivals, spring is here and brings with it a breath of fresh air in visual art and exhibitions.

Poet Imtiaz Dharker. Photo by Ayesha Dharker
Literature Events in the North

It's like the Woolies pick'n'mix counter this month in live literature land – so much choice, we're not sure where to start digging in.

Classical Music in the North

Read our latest highlights from the live classical music offer in Manchester and the North, taking in a number of the region's most cherished orchestral forces and venues.