In a letter to The Times, published today before next week’s Budget, the heads of companies including Anheuser-Busch InBev UK, Heineken UK and Enterprise Inns claim that the industry’s ability to participate in the economic recovery is being jeopardised by “the blunt instrument of tax”. Publication of the letter comes on the same day that John Healey, the newly appointed Minister for Pubs, unveils a 12-point action plan to support community pubs. Backed by £4 million of funding, the initiative aims to stem the pub closure rate, currently running at 39 a week, amid fallout from the smoking ban and the recession.

To view the full article go to:  Timesonline

The brewery’s Big Chief Bitter, which is five and a half per cent alcohol, was judged champion beer in the strong bitter category of a national competition.

Big Chief Bitter was one of just nine beers to win a national title, from the 1,400 that entered the initial stages of the competition.

The bitter was judged in seven regional heats, followed by a final judging in Nottingham last month before being short-listed as one of 63 beers to be judged at the National Beer Competition held by the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA).

To view the full article go to:  Rochdale Observer

Marston’s will launch Fast Cask during Cask Ale Week (29 March-5 April) with the aim of attracting thousands of new pubs to real beer.

Fast Cask involves a form of yeast treatment that allows beer to drop bright quickly — the process whereby yeast is cleared from the beer — while still undergoing a secondary fermentation.

It has undergone trials in 70 pubs since November 2009 and there has been no adverse consumer reaction.

Marston’s will seek a patent for the yeast “beads” used in the process, but will consider sharing the technology with other brewers.

Finings made from fish bladders will not be needed to clear the beer under Fast Cask — so it will be acceptable to vegans.

To view the full article go to:  Morning Advertiser

This Easter CAMRA, Cask Marque, Britain’s brewers and pub operators and are uniting to celebrate Britain’s national drink - cask ale.

Hook Norton will be playing its part in the World’s largest real ale festival during National Cask Ale Week - 29 March-5 April – with a week of activities at the brewery and in its pubs.

Highlights during the week include a ladies Bring and Beer night at the brewery and an open day when visitors can see Hook Norton’s 100 year old steam engine in operation.

In Hook Norton pubs there will be tutored beer and food tastings, a chance to meet the brewery team and ladies nights.

Hook Norton Managing Director James Clarke said: “A key aim of National Cask Ale Week is to encourage people who have never tried real ale to give it a go in local pubs.

“Research shows that 44 per cent of women who actually taste cask ale go on to become regular or occasional drinkers of it, which is why we are calling all female drinkers to swap their regular tipple for a taste of real ale.

“Hook Norton is hosting a number of events at the brewery and in our pubs for women in a bid to convert them to the joys of cask ale.

“We want our loyal customers to try and covert a friend or family member to the pleasures of drinking cask conditioned beer.

“Research by the Campaign for Real Ale shows a staggering 65 per cent of adults have never even tried our national drink, yet of those that do, 40 per cent are converted.

“Hook Norton drinkers are marvelous ambassadors for real ale. We are calling on all our fans to go out and recruit other people to the wonderful world of real ale. After just one or two sips of a Hooky beer, most people are amazed at the flavour and never look back.

“Unlike tea, coffee, wine and lager, Hook Norton beers are hand crafted here in the Oxfordshire village of Hook Norton, usually using only four raw materials – hops, malted barley, yeast and water – which are often source locally.”

Hook Norton Brewery Cask Ale Week plans include:

Monday 29 March - Ladies Night at the Brewery Visitors Centre

“Bring and Beer” - why not bring a friend who does not drink Cask Ale?

An evening of tutored tastings, beer with food and an education into the wonderful world of Cask Ale!

There will be stands from the Body Shop, Hook Norton Florist, Handmade gifts, jewellery and Aloe Vera for you to enjoy.

Male representatives from the brewery will be serving the ladies for the night - prepare to be pampered!

If you’d like to join us for this event, please register with Elizabeth Holmes at the Brewery on 01608 737210, there is a cost of £5.00 per person. All proceeds from the evening will go to Leukaemia Research.

Tuesday 30 March

Ladies Night at the Coach & Horses, Banbury.

Meet the Brewery at the Cap N Gown, Worcester

Tutored Tasting and beer with food matchings with representatives from the brewery.

Meet the Brewery at the Red Lion, Ilmington

Wednesday 31 March

Ladies Night at the Eagle Tavern, Witney

Meet the Brewery at the Volunteer Inn, Grove

Meet the Brewery at the Fox Hotel, Chipping Norton

Meet the Brewery at the New Inn, Abthorpe

Thursday 1 April

Meet the Brewery at the Reindeer Inn, Banbury

Meet the Brewery at the Kings Head, Napton on the Hill

Meet the Brewery at the Coach & Horses, Shipston-On-Stour

Saturday 3 April

Open day at The Brewery - come along for impromptu tastings, quiz around the museum, a chance to see the Steam engine at work and the dray horses in full regalia.

All of the events listed will be from 7.30pm except for Saturday which will be from 10am - 4pm

Go to www.hooky.co.uk for more on Hooky beers, pubs and the Visitor Centre or to book a brewery tour.

Go to www.caskaleweek.co.uk for the latest news on the week.

Brewery tours happen daily, but only by prior appointment and they must be pre-booked, either by telephone on 01608 730384 or via www.hooky.co.uk. Tours cost £9.50 per person.

“Poker has become extremely popular in our pubs” says Rob Jones, Profit Partnership Director, Batemans Brewery. “Participants do not play for money, but for points and prizes, ensuring the tournaments do not infringe gaming laws, our first tournament which we held in 2009 was a great success with fourteen pubs participating – twenty-two pubs are taking part this year.”

Participating Batemans pubs put forward competing teams, pub teams play each other for points (with players also able to collect points on an individual basis), to decide on the pub team champion. The top twenty-four players then make it to the final tournament. The 2009 finals were held at Batemans Brewery in Wainfleet where the winner of the overall competition won a £300 cash prize. Defending the individual title will be Alan Powell of the Napoleon pub, Fishtoft Road, Boston.

To participate in the 2010 Batemans Poker Tournament sign-up at your local participating Batemans pub. For further details on pubs taking part visit Batemans Brewery on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Batemans-Brewery/297597310685

The growing popularity of Purity Brewing Company’s award-winning ales has led to two well-known Birmingham venues now stocking them, including one that came as a result of the micro-blogging site Twitter.

The Electric Cinema, which is famous for being the oldest working cinema in the UK, sells Pure UBU, while all three brands, Pure UBU, Mad Goose, and Pure Gold, are available in the Great British Eatery, named England’s Best Fish & Chip shop at 2010 Seafish Awards.

The sale of Pure UBU at The Electric Cinema occurred as a result of appeals by a number of Purity’s Twitter followers. Among those who campaigned for The Electric to stock Pure UBU were Tania Nexust (@tania_nexust) and Ade Bradshaw (@ade_b), both from Birmingham.

Tania said: “The Electric Cinema has a great bar for cocktails but I’ve always thought it could do with selling some good local beers and ales, so I’m delighted that it now stocks Purity. I also think the cinema’s customer base is the right kind of demographic for Purity’s products.”

Tom Lawes, owner of the Electric Cinema, said: “Pure UBU has won legions of admirers with its rich texture. By offering Pure UBU to our customers we further enhanced the unique Electric experience, which includes luxury sofa seating and waiter service.

Meanwhile, Conrad Brunton, who runs the Great British Eatery with Andrew Insley, said: “We all know that different wines enhance the dining experience by bringing out mouth-watering flavours, but we’ve found that you can definitely also match ales with foods. Pure UBU, Mad Goose and Pure Gold are a great match for the delicious items on our menu.”

Visit http://www.greatbritisheatery.co.uk/ or http://www.theelectric.co.uk/ for further information about the Great British Eatery or Electric Cinema.

National Cask Ale Week 2010 runs from 29^th March – 5^th April (up to and including the Easter Bank Holiday weekend).  It is backed by SIBA, Camra, Cask Marque and many of the regional cask brewers and is a great focal point for everyone who cares about our national drink. 

For cask ale brewers, Cask Ale Week is an opportunity to capitalise on the increased interest among licensees, drinkers and the media to increase interest in, and sales of, your own beers.  So, if you haven’t already made plans to capitalise on this celebration of cask, read on for ideas, advice and a template press release. 

Cask Ale Week – background

The first National Cask Ale Week ran last year, with POS, tastings, ‘meet the brewer’ evenings and other events taking place in 8,000 pubs. This year, the organisers are aiming to reach 10,000 pubs, with the same goal of encouraging new drinkers to try cask ale.

SIBA is one of the main sponsors of Cask Ale Week 2010. 1,000 DDS customer pubs have taken one of our SIBA-branded Cask Ale Week kits, which means our logo will be on display on bunting, flags, drip mats, pump clips, posters and banners. 

Cask ale – the ‘rising star’ of the UK’s beer market

Recent years have seen a revival in cask beer’s fortunes and it is now the only sector of the beer market in growth. The Cask Report, published last October, showed:

·         1.5 million new cask ale drinkers in 2008  (around half of them women)

·         Distribution in 3,000 new pubs between June 2008 and June 2009.

·         CAMRA membership hit the 100,000 mark

·         A record 64,000 people visited the Great British Beer Festival  in August 2009

·         71 breweries opened in the UK last year, taking the total up to 660 – the highest level since World War II

What you can do for Cask Ale Week

• Open your brewery for brewery tours – perhaps a group from your local CAMRA branch, or one of the pubs selling your beers might like to offer it to a group of interested customers?
• Talk to local pubs that sell your beers about activities that could be good for both of you - driving traffic into the pub and raising awareness locally of your beers.
• Suggest a ‘meet the brewer’ evening, or perhaps some simple beer and food matching, working with a local food supplier?
• April 1^st is FemAle Day – an opportunity to introduce women to cask ale. According to Camra’s research, the number of women drinking cask ale doubled last year. And it’s a topic that always attracts media interest.
• Contact your local CAMRA branch to see what they have planned for Cask Ale Week as there might be opportunities for you to get involved.

Information sources

• The Cask Ale Week website: www.caskaleweek.co.uk has a list of all pubs that are marking Cask Ale Week in some way.
• You can find contact details for your local Camra branch on their website: http://www.camra.org.uk/page.aspx?o=100283
• For cheering facts and figures on the renewed consumer interest in cask ale, visit www.caskreport.co.uk

For the template press release Click here

We need Ministers John Denham and Harriet Harman to decide to give the Bill extra Parliamentary time so that it becomes law before the General Election. Your help is vital.

It is crucial that the Bill becomes law before the General Election as it will ensure the Sustainable Communities Act’s ‘bottom up’ process is ongoing, and so continue to allow communities and councils to submit proposals for government action to promote thriving communities. Proposals from last year’s ‘first round’ are already being granted - this Act is seeing results!

VERY URGENT ACTION - please help

Please ask your supporters, activists, members, groups, branches etc to email Harriet Harman and John Denham in the next 24 hours urging them to ensure the Sustainable Communities Act Amendment Bill receives the time it needs to become law before the General Election. A sample email is below.

Harriet Harman’s email address is harmanh@parliament.uk

John Denham’s email address is contactus@communities.gov.uk

Some Local Works coalition organisations have already put this action up on their campaign facebook pages and blogs etc. E.g. the Woodland Trust here:

http://bit.ly/afPdm3

and the new economics foundation here:

http://neftriplecrunch.wordpress.com/2010/03/16/urgent-action-save-the-sustainable-communities-act/

Years of campaigning effort have gone into this process and this really is the eleventh hour to ensure it continues. Please help.

Sample email:

Dear Harriet Harman / John Denham,

The Sustainable Communities Act Amendment Bill is vital as it will ensure that the democratic involvement seen in the Sustainable Communities Act continues. I ask that you please do all you can to ensure the Bill receives the Parliamentary time it needs in order to become law before the General Election.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely

[your name and your address]

Best wishes

Steve Shaw

National Co-ordinator

Local Works