News Round-up
Added: Sunday, February 26th 2012
Acorn opens brewery tap in Barnsley as sales soar
Acorn Brewery in Wombwell, South Yorkshire, has re-opened the historic Old No 7 pub in Barnsley city centre as a showpiece for its cask ales. Sales of its beers increased by 15% in 2011 and the brewery – founded by former chef Dave Hughes and his wife Judi – have taken on David Broadbent as sales manager to drive sales further. Broadbent has wide experience of the brewing and pub business.
The opening of Old No 7 was marked by the launch of a new golden ale, Yorkshire Pride (3.7%), and a new version of its IPA using American hop varieties.
Acorn has also installed a 50-barrel fermenting room at the brewery to develop sales of bottled beer. Bottles are currently available in Asda, Tesco, Waitrose and Rhythm & Booze in Yorkshire. The brewery also supplies more than 400 pubs nationwide, with strong links to the J D Wetherspoon chain.
Dave Hughes says: “More and more young people are enjoying beers with quality and provenance. Re-opening the Old No 7 in Barnsley is a move to boost the brewery’s profile in Barnsley, where we’ve seen strong growth in the local area.”
Wye Valley rescues the Old Pelican
Wye Valley Brewery in Herefordshire has ridden to the rescue of a historic pub in neighbouring Gloucester. The Old Pelican is a traditional city-centre pub off Cathedral Close. It will now offer the full portfolio of Wye Valley beers such as HPA, Butty Bach and the Dorothy Goodbody range.
Vernon Amor, the brewery’s managing director, says: “We are passionate about pubs as they are at the heart of communities and sell our national drink, cask-conditioned ale. We are excited by the prospect of reviving the fortunes of the Old Pelican, a historic Gloucester pub.”
Marston’s records booming bottled ale sales
Leading brewing group Marston’s has reported a big growth in bottled ale sales, with its own brands up by 11% in 2011 over the past year. The group says an additional 450,000 drinkers are now buying bottled ales for the first time.
The bottled version of Marston’s Pedigree was the group’s leading performer in the 13 weeks leading to Christmas 2011. Total sales of Pedigree were up by 66% year-on-year in 2011.
