Features

Mad Squirrel Brewery in Hertfordshire has developed a new system of serving fresh draught beer from a tank. Its taproom in St Albans has its best-selling Sumo pale ale on sale, stored in Frank the Tank. The beer is unfiltered and unpasteurised and contains live yeast. It stays in drinkable condition for five days

Added: Sunday, January 23rd 2022

Sales of cask beer fell like a stone during the covid lockdowns but brewers feel confident that a revival is underway. Stuart Bateman, pictured with his sister Jaclyn, says his Lincolnshire brewery is doing well but cask must not be priced beyond drinkers' means. Tom Stainer of CAMRA says cask beer must be treated as a pub's Unique Selling Point while James Calder of SIBA argues that many independent brewers are well placed to meet consumer demand for real ale

Added: Thursday, January 20th 2022

Fuller's famous strong ale ESB is 50 years old and Justin Hawke at Moor Beer, working with the Chiswick brewery, has brewed Rebirth, using the original recipe. Today only English hops are used but Justin has a mix of English, American, Australian and Slovenian varieties. He has also brought back maize, which is no longer used by Fuller's

Added: Sunday, December 19th 2021

Christmas is bursting with a fine range of beers with strong ales and even an oak-aged Pilsner. Santa Claus would certainly get stuck in the chimney if he partakes of some of these beers.

Added: Monday, December 13th 2021

In his new book Beer by Design, Pete Brown traces the rise of branding and marketing from the Bass Red Triangle in the 19th century to the use of modern design and typefaces to promote the vast range of craft beers throughout the world. He shows how even ultra-modern breweries such as BrewDog have benefitted from an overhaul and new image

Added: Thursday, December 9th 2021

Phil and Debbie Goacher launched their brewery in 1983 and restored beer-making to Maidstone, which had lost two large breweries, Fremlins and Style & Winch. Goachers concentrates on strictly traditional styles and still makes a mild. Phil and Debbie have retired and the brewery is run by their son Howard. He uses Kentish hops and would like farmers to grow barley in Kent.

Added: Tuesday, December 7th 2021

Pilgrim Brewery in Reigate is Surrey's oldest brewery and it supplies not only pubs in the county but the Oval cricket ground. It was founded by Dave Roberts, who helped SIBA gain Progressive Beer Duty for smaller brewers. It's now run by a trio who have expanded the beer range and upgraded the brewing kit but remain faithful to Roberts' beers that celebrate the pilgrims who made the long trek from Salisbury to Canterbury

Added: Sunday, November 21st 2021

Nottingham was once dominated by two big breweries, now long gone. Today there's a large number of artisan breweries, led by Castle Rock, offering great choice drinkers. And there are some superb pubs, including the Kean's Head in the historic Lace Market.

Added: Friday, September 10th 2021

Fears that cask beer would not recover from the lockdowns have been knocked aside by reports from both regional and smaller breweries that sales are booming. Two family brewers, Charles Wells in Bedford, and Everards in Leicester have downsizes to new plants, Brewpoint and the Beer Hall, where cask ales are central to their plans. Pictured: the Brew Hall.

Added: Monday, August 23rd 2021

In spite of the impact of the pandemic and lockdowns, Thornbridge Brewery in Derbyshire is witnessing record ales of its beers and it retains a strong commitment to cask ale, including its brand leader, Jaipur IPA

Added: Sunday, July 25th 2021