Throughout November East Devon based Otter Brewery will be donating a percentage from every pint of its winter beer that is sold.

Poppy Otter is one of several slightly darker seasonal specials made each year by the family owned brewery and is available to the trade as a cask ale up until early December.

For every pint of Poppy Otter that is sold in pubs across the South West, 10p from every pint (or £6.80 from every firkin) will be donated straight to the Poppy Appeal.

Patrick McCaig comments: “Our drinkers really are a great bunch and we were hoping for a great response from them in the run up to Christmas. As a brewery, we couldn’t think of a better way to help those who support our Armed Forces at a time when they could do with a little extra help. The Legion’s own target is to raise £40 million this year so we’ll be doing all that we can to help.”

Bath Ales has announced an ambitious investment plan to see volumes double in the next two years and then be four times its current size in five years time.

The first steps to enable this growth have started with a new bigger facility opened in the last few weeks to house the transport and logistics team.

Other functions will be transferred in the next few weeks and months enabling capacity to be expanded, creating further employment, whilst maintaining service and quality to customers and consumers.

Roger Jones, managing director of Bath Ales said: “This is tremendously exciting for us and presents an opportunity to really kick on and have our beers enjoyed by more people and further afield.

“But what is really important is that we get this right and that we absolutely preserve, even enhance, our reputation for producing great beers of consistent quality.

“Hence in terms of the brewing kit, we will use our existing facility until a new brewhouse is established to our exacting specification – and that might take up to 18 months.”

The new site is less than a mile from the existing premises in Warmley on the outskirts of Bristol. At around 38,000 sq ft it is more than four times the size of the present base at Caxton Business Park.

Roger Jones added: “We are delighted with where we are now and we have the brewery working a treat, however, our success means that we need a bigger site to give us the scale to develop.

“Doing it this way means no disruption to our customers and everyone who loves a pint of Gem. It also enables us to configure a new operation that delivers greater efficiency and means we can integrate more environmental features like renewable energy.

“And – for us as brewers – we will have the flexibility and scope to create different and interesting beers that tempt new drinkers as well as excite those that already enjoy cask ale.

“The investment in new brewing equipment alone will exceed a million, so we are serious about the bright future we see for Bath Ales.”

As the business ramps up operations it is already looking to add another six full-time members of staff to bring the brewery-based personnel to just shy of 60. Across an estate of seven pubs another 110 people are employed.

The market for quality cask and bottled beer has been the one growth area in an otherwise hard-pressed brewing sector in recent years.

Bath Ales is one of a number of quality producers that are driving this resurgent interest in quality beer in both the pub trade and take home sector.

This combined with previous fore-sighted investment in their own bottling facility – which also serves other producers – places Bath Ales in a prime position to exploit the opportunities for growth.

Roger Jones again: “Product quality is vital to us. Delivering on that has enabled the growth we have enjoyed. We must retain that focus as we look to build availability in new areas as well as keeping our product offering fresh and interesting.

“We have the options to be able to commit the right level of investment to sustain what we have achieved to date and to support the potential we clearly have.

“Moving into the new location is a great start, but just the start of what Bath Ales can achieve.”

LYME Regis based micro-brewery, The Mighty Hop, has harvested its first crop of locally grown hops.

The family-run brewery usually gets its hops from Worcester or Kent, the traditional growing areas of England, and some hops come from even further afield. However, this autumn, proprietor Mark Jenkin has been harvesting his own Dorset hops.

The hops were grown in a vineyard in Wootton Fitzpaine, with the space being offered by a friend of Mr Jenkin. They usually take about a year to become established so a crop in the first season was unexpected.

Mr Jenkin said: “Conditions must have been perfect for them, as a couple of weeks ago I was told I had hops and that I’d better come and harvest them quick!”

Hops are usually gathered, dried, pressed and then vacuum-packed. They can then be stored and transported at will. However, these hops were harvested in the morning, and were in a brew by the afternoon. They have been made into The Mighty Hop’s Golden Autumn beer which will soon be available in pubs, restaurants and off-licences in Lyme Regis and across the country, alongside The Mighty Hop’s six other brews.

“We have always tried to source our goods from within England where we can, but to be able to have our hops grown just seven miles away is fantastic,” Mr Jenkin added.

Mr Jenkin is now planning to increase the area of the hopyard to give a wider range of hops and a longer season of locally-hopped beer.

Article taken from View Online

Few would dispute that they “broke the mould” when Skinners Brewery decided to spawn an icon from their best-selling Betty Stogs beer five years ago.

The real-life Betty – Fred Thomas of Sticker in drag – has raised over £23,000 for charity since the character was created to spearhead the Truro-based brewery’s tenth anniversary.  Her cartoon version also appears on many a Skinners bottle, beer mat, poster and website among other manifestations.

But now the hunt is on for someone to work with that mould, literally, to make Betty an even more familiar figure – or rather figurine – in pubs across Cornwall.

A 12-inch sculpture of Betty, complete with her crown as “Queen of Cornish Ales” and clutching a pasty and pint mug – has been created by artist and sculptor Joani Miller at The Old Bakery Studios on Blewetts Wharf in Truro.

A mould has been taken from this by St Ives mould-maker Phil Reed – and the hunt is on for a Cornish potter able and willing to make an initial run of up to 50 replica figurines to adorn bars in the county.

“Skinners would love to keep all the work in Cornwall if possible,” explains Joani,  “so if there is any potter out there who is up for the task of reproducing so many Betties, then I am ready and waiting to help get them started!”

Joani, who can be contacted on 07875 009884, spent almost a month making the original sculpture with a type of modelling clay that is especially suitable for the delicate task of mould-making.

“She’s done a great job and we’re all the more impressed for the fact that Joani has only recently taken up sculpting,” said brewery chief executive Steve Skinner.

“She worked closely with Nick Berringer, of Baldhu, our original artist for Betty, and has certainly captured the cartoon character’s trade-mark befuddled smile!”

Betty Stogs has been Skinners’ best-selling beer throughout the brewery’s history and in 2008 was judged Champion Best Bitter of Great Britain at the Great British Beer Festival.   

The original west Cornwall folklore character of the same name was unkempt and lazy, could never mend her stockings, couldn’t knit or cook – and definitely liked her ale!  Her child was taken from her by the “small people,” washed in the morning dew and returned.  The shock of it is said to have turned Betty into a reformed character.

Princetown based Dartmoor Brewery has launched a campaign to safeguard the future of beers brewed on Dartmoor to stamp out confusion for real ale drinkers.

Dartmoor Brewery is to apply for special status from the EU Commission for Dartmoor beers and is initiating an application for PGI (protected geographical indication) status. The Brewery believes this action will help shield the Dartmoor name from misuse or imitation and ensure that a beer can only be called a Dartmoor beer if it is brewed on Dartmoor.

Mike Lunney, head brewer

Mike Lunney, head brewer at Dartmoor Brewery said: “We’re keen to raise the profile of this issue to ensure that Dartmoor beer is brewed exclusively on Dartmoor and nowhere else. This PGI application is important because it aims to protect and promote regional food and drink products and this is precisely what needs to happen with beers on Dartmoor.

“There is significant confusion for real ale drinkers and the licensee trade surrounding Dartmoor branded beers currently, there are beers such as our own Dartmoor IPA which is brewed in the heart of Dartmoor using Dartmoor spring water and there are other beers available which are also Dartmoor branded which are not brewed on Dartmoor or even in Devon. This is confusing for both drinkers and the trade; we want to remove this confusion and assure real ale drinkers that if it’s branded a Dartmoor beer, it’s been brewed on Dartmoor – it’s that simple. If PGI is good enough for Cornish pasties it must be good enough for Dartmoor ale!” added Mike.

Dartmoor Brewery, reportedly the highest brewery in England, has been brewing Dartmoor IPA (ABV 4.0%) since 1994 from the heart of Dartmoor National Park. The award winning brewery also produces the famous Jail Ale and the highly successful Legend brands. All their beers are produced using traditional brewing techniques, pure Dartmoor water, the finest Devon malted barley and the best English hops.

“We are appealing to real ale drinkers to support our PGI campaign to protect and promote the Dartmoor name and we’ve set up an online Facebook petition page called ‘Petition To Safeguard The Future Of Beers Brewed On Dartmoor’ so real ale drinkers can pledge their support.” concluded Mike.

The BBF are delighted to announce that Bristol beer factory have made the Final 3 in the Best Drinks Producer category of Radio 4′s prestigious BBC Food & Farming Awards.

Final judging happens very soon and the BBF can’t wait to see how they have got on against Bruichladdich Distillery & Chapel Down Vineyard. Managing Director Simon Bartlett said “Wow, we are blown away to have made the finals at this years Food & Farming Awards. It is fantastic that people have nominated us for such an award, and great justification in what we are trying to achieve at the Beer Factory.”

These are just a few of the talented finalists in this year’s BBC Food & Farming Awards. A cook who travels to remote villages with a wood burning pizza oven in a truck, a man who has helped changed the way Britain thinks about bread, a cook who serves food to young offenders in a Scottish institution and a supermarket that grows some of its fruit and veg on its high street roof.

The twenty seven finalists also include a gin distiller on the Hebridean island of Islay, a Kentish sparkling wine producer, one of Britain’s oldest food markets and a marketing executive who switched careers six years ago to become a low carbon farmer. Each year The BBC Food & Farming Awards celebrate the people and organisations behind the best of British food.

The awards – nominated by BBC audiences – set out to find the best if British including Best Food Market, Best Drinks Producer, Best Food Producer, Best Local Food Retailer, Best Retail Initiative, Best Public Caterer, Best Takeaway and the BBC Farmer of The Year. Winners will be announced at the Food and Farming Awards’ ceremony held on November 23rd at the NEC, Birmingham. They will include the 2011 BBC Food Champion, awarded in previous years to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Jamie Oliver and baker Richard Bertinet.

Chef and restaurateur Richard Corrigan chairs this year’s panel of judges which includes farmer and Countryfile presenter Adam Henson, school dinners champion Jeanette Orrey, chef Jeremy Lee and food writer Charles Campion.
Chair of judges Richard Corrigan said: “The finalists on this list are cooks, farmers and food producers who all, in their own way, reflect where Britain is today, and what it can be in the future. “We have young entrepreneurs using food to create exciting new businesses, farmers with radical ideas of how our food can be produced in a more sustainable way, we have school cooks who believe the meals they serve each day are helping to change the lives of young people and drinks producers working hard to save some of our greatest craft skills and artisinal traditions.


”I grew up in a farming family and always understood the power of being connected with the land, with livestock and with people who were proud to play a role in feeding their community. Few of us are lucky to have that connection today and for that reason these awards are invaluable for one simple reason; they help reconnect people with the story of the best of British food, where it comes from, how‘s it‘s made and who makes it.

We boast some of the world’s best farmers, food producers and food entrepreneurs and so I hope when people hear more about the stories on this shortlist they’ll und erstand why it gives me some optimism for our future”. 


The awards will take place on the afternoon of Wednesday 23rd November at the BBC Good Food Show, NEC, Birmingham, and will be hosted by Sheila Dillon, presenter of The Food Programme. She will be joined by some of the biggest names in the food world including Rick Stein, James Martin and Angela Hartnett. 


Adam Henson’s farm in the Cotswolds pioneers rare breed conservation and his expertise makes him a regular fixture on our television screens. He has joined forces with the West Country’s fastest growing Brewery – Butcombe – and together, they have used the finest local ingredients: Maris Otter malting barley, aromatic Herefordshire hops and Mendip spring water, to create this distinctive refreshing and clean tasting golden ale – ‘Adam Henson’s Rare Breed’.

Adam Henson says: “I have a passion for farming as Butcombe has for brewing and I have wanted to produce a beer sourcing local ingredients for a long time. As soon as we spoke with Butcombe I knew we had found the right partner and I’m delighted with the results.”

Guy Newell, managing director of Butcombe Brewery says: “It’s been a pleasure working with Adam – having his name on the beer will appeal to the millions of people who watch him regularly on the television and his endorsement is likely to introduce many new consumer not only to Rare Breed but also the rest of the Butcombe range.”

Rare Breed will be launched on draught exclusively through the majority of Wetherspoon’s eight-hundred and twelve pubs nationally during its popular October 2011 real-ale festival in the on-trade and via Butcombe’s wholesale partner, Booker, in one hundred and fifty branches throughout England and Wales from mid-October. It will be launched through Butcombe’s own estate from January 2012.

For further information on all Butcombe Brewery’s beers, visit http://www.butcombe.com or follow Butcombe Brewery on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Butcombe-Brewery

With the eager step of a man who’s just turned 40 and found his purpose in life, Paul Walker strides in his wellies across the flagstones of the 14th-century Union Inn in Denbury, south Devon, and orders two pints of Denbury Dreamer.

We sip carefully, appreciatively. It’s a fine beer: smooth malt flavours, a lovely light floral hop finish, not a hint of bitterness. A treat. Paul closes his eyes, nods, allows himself a brief smile of intense satisfaction. “I made that,” he says.

He probably deserves his moment of contentment. He’s been up since before six, won’t finish till seven, and will almost certainly have to nip back at least once during the evening. It’s hard work, being a microbrewer, and there was a time two summers ago, a few months after he’d started, when he really thought the whole thing was about to go under.

But this summer Hunter’s Brewery, just up the road from Denbury in Ipplepen, is selling between 60 and 100 nine-gallon barrels of real ale every week to 200-plus pubs across the south-west. Capacity is set to increase sixfold within months. Paul and his wife Eline haven’t yet drawn a salary from it. But the day’s not far off.

Hunter’s is part of a remarkable early 21st-century flowering of traditional British ale. Helped by an increasingly enthusiastic public and a handy excise duty relief that effectively halves your tax bill as long as you make no more than about 3,000 barrels a year (thank you, Gordon Brown), some 50 new small breweries are expected to open around the country this year.

There are now, in fact, more breweries in Britain than at any time since the end of the second world war: well over 800, against half that number, of all sizes, less than a decade ago, and a mere 140 in 1970. And we clearly like what they’re brewing: sales of “live”, cask-conditioned ales, which ferment a second time in the barrel, have surged by 25% over the past five years.

What makes this more striking is that overall, our national drink is in seemingly irreversible decline. The UK beer market, still dominated by the big keg lagers such as Carling and Foster’s – which, for the sake of shelf life, get filtered or pasteurised after brewing to kill off the yeast, then are injected with CO2 in an effort to give them back some semblance of life – shrank by 7% last year. And we’re losing 25 pubs a week.

Real ale, though, is undergoing a spirited revival. One clue as to why comes in the slogan emblazoned on a T-shirt sported by a cheery, bearded and large-bellied man at the Great British Beer Festival at the Earls Court exhibition centre this month. “What’s the matter, Lagerboy,” it demanded, “afraid you might taste something?”

To view the full article go to: The Guardian