Into the Kitchen

In case you hadn't noticed, I am all in favour of Family Brewers stepping outside their comfort zone and doing something different. We still have quite a few of them, mostly it has to be said noted for safeness in beer, rather than being at the cutting edge. We don't have as many as Germany mind you and though Germany is an entirely different place beer wise, it is one where you can certainly learn salutatory lessons about the dangers of sameness and conformity in brewing.

So what's this leading up to? Last week, my lass agreed to join me in a little beer tasting. E likes what she likes and tends - and I don't think I do her a disservice here - to put things into a "good" or "shite" bracket, with the odd "It's OK I suppose" chucked in. She likes pale and hoppy, dislikes overly malty beers and like me, believes "clean" is what a beer has to be. She has a very good palate and is a leading expert in the vagaries of Marble Manchester Bitter. When she switches to Pint, then you know with the certainty of the coffin lid closing, that it isn't on top blob. She knows her own mind beer wise and has supped many a beer with me over the years. I value her views.

The beers for this little soiree were from Wadworth. Their new Kitchen series in fact, which we first encountered at the British Guild of Beer Writers "do" last year. So we started with that same beer, Orange Peel. We liked it then and we liked it now. Slightly sweet, but with a warming orange peel note, it grew on you, finishing with a touch of Seville orange marmalade and a dab of bitter hops.  Moreish. Next up was Wheat Beer, described by the brewer as "Belgian style". I found it a curious hybrid between German style and Belgian, with clovey bitterness and obvious coriander.  E, a hater of wheat beers, liked it. Surprisingly perhaps, as I recall many a pulled face when she tries my wheat beer in Germany.  We both felt undecided overall and we'll need a second tasting I reckon.  Last up was India Pale Ale at a decent 6.2%. It had a touch of sweetness from the crystal malt - I'd have left that out - a citrus lift from Citra and a good bitter finish from Target hops. E thought the alcohol showed a bit too sharply, though oddly I thought it hid the alcohol fairly well. No concensus there then, but we both liked it, though E surprised me by saying she preferred the Wheat Beer, so maybe a convert in the making there?

I still have two bottles left. Espresso Stout and Whisky Barrel Aged Bitter, so we'll see how they go.  Overall though, these were good, different enough, beautifully labelled and presented and a credit to the brewers.  Most of all, it was great to see such outside the box thinking. 

Others please note.

Declaration of Interest: The beers were sent to me courtesy of  Wadworth.

Sitting Up and Taking Notice

Did anyone see a particularly excellent piece in CAMRA's What's Brewing this month? In case you didn't, it was about how some of Britain's oldest brewers, Family Brewers, are starting to look wider than the house bitter their great granddads brewed, by installing flexible in house micro breweries.

It is fashionable to imagine that the Family Brewers live in an ivory tower and are completely unaware of the changes around them in the beer world. I rather doubt that they are and talking to the ones I have talked to, they are usually pretty smart cookies.  Those that couldn't be bothered, or just wanted the money have, in the main, cut and run already. The rest are in it for the long haul and of course, most have already hauled their companies a long way since their Victorian or earlier foundation. They've seen a lot. But there is a feeling that the world is moving a tad faster these days and that just doing the same won't cut it any more. Those 100 barrel (or more) brewlengths are millstones round the neck of innovation and just doing something different. When you have to get a seasonal beer right first time, there is a tendency just to tweak what you already have and boy, do the customers notice that. The answer to many is a micro brewery within their own existing breweries. This allows the experimentation and small runs of speciality beers that give a point of difference and overcome an almost inbred reluctance to sell any beers but their own. They allow bespoke beers that are genuinely different and give the brewers something to play with. Brewers need something to play with I've found.

So we have Thwaites, Brains, Wadworth, Shepherd Neame, Badger, St Austell, Elgoods and not quite in the Family Brewer's category, Sharps. It is very telling to listen to the reasons given for these "pilot plants". I like these two best: First from Alan Pateman of Elgoods: "It has nothing to do with what the craft brewers are doing. But, as more of our beers are sold into the free trade, we need to be able offer a greater variety of beers. Brewing has become fun again."  And from the ever practical Stuart Howe: “Pilot plants are indispensable ......it allows you to explore your wilder side without the risk of making 30 tonnes of pig food.”

Now whether you think it really is taking on the micros, or avoiding feeding the pigs, this is a good thing, provided they use this flexibility to be bold and different.  Brewers need room to experiment and a 10 (or less) barrel brewery allows just that. I have a self interest of course. Manchester still has four family brewers and lots of their pubs.

Of course I've been beating the pilot plant drum at Lees too.  Fingers crossed on that one.

There are plenty other good arguments for pilot plants, but hopefully you get my drift.

How Much Is It Then?

Beer in the pub is becoming expensive. Anyone disagree? Of course some do. They'll tell you this simple drink should command a top dollar price, but most of us just like an ordinary decent pint at a price we feel is value. 

But what does a pint cost in these inflationary and recessionary times? Goodness knows. Even here in cheap old Manchester, it can be anything from a couple of quid, to double that.  My local, a Lees Tied House) now charges £2.60 for Lees Bitter and it was noticeable to me and to others on Saturday when we toured Saddleworth - an affluent part of my CAMRA empire - that it was the free houses that were cheapest, the PubCo houses the dearest and the Family Brewer's pubs somewhere in between.  I worry about that for Family Brewers - neither fish nor fowl.  No great ranges to attract customers in most cases and no financial advantage for them either.  A double whammy if ever there was one.

So while I'm in London for the next few days, I'm going to note down what I pay for each pint (if I can remember).  Let's see how the big metrollops compares.

And if you fancy joining in, why not record here what you pay for your pint wherever you drink it.  Let's see what we are paying. Pints only please and say what and where.

Also, if you are joining in, please tell us if there was any indication of price, clearly visible to you,  before your purchase.

Hydes Numbers Don't Add Up

You may or may not have noticed that one of the four remaining Manchester Family Brewers, Hydes has decided to close its Moss Side brewery and move to a green field site.  The main point of this being the age and location of the venerable brewery itself.   (I have visited it and it is indeed very cramped and yes, very old.)  The family remain firmly committed to brewing and the new site, though smaller, will produce exclusively Real Ales. It is expected that they will produce a core range plus seasonals and special brews.  The family will remain as owners and will take an active role in the running of the new brewery, though all the free trade business has been sold to Thwaites.

That was roughly the picture in January, though I have omitted some of the more mundane details.  Since then it has been revealed  that the new £2 million brewery will be based in the former Greenalls Distribution Centre at Media City in Salford. This is a modern 20,000 sq foot  industrial unit and it is expected that the new brewery will be fully operational by September / October.  The brewery will be a fully automated, brand-new brewing set -up, with an initial capacity of 5,000 barrels per year.  This is a huge fall from current capacity and production and even allowing for the loss of contract brewing (including cask Boddingtons) is quite astonishing.  The brewery is probably knocking out around 40,000 barrels currently, though it was as much as 88,000 barrels when Boddies was still being bought in quantity.

According to their web site Hydes has 66 pubs. A 5000 barrel brewery would be able to supply each pub with  around six nines a week.  The obvious conclusion from that is that most of the requirements of the Hydes estate are going to be bought in from elsewhere.  A two million pound brewery, producing around 100 barrels a week, just doesn't seem economic.

 I understand the Hydes Production Manager, Paul Jeffries will be guest speaker at Stockport and South Manchester CAMRA Branch meeting this week. The answers to the many hard questions that should arise will be very instructive.

This blog piece draws heavily on CAMRA information. I have also heard the cask Boddies is likely to be discontinued.

Family Brewers to Keep Tie

The Government ended uncertainty about the future of the tie as it pertains to the vertically integrated family brewers - that is - those family owned breweries such as Adnams, Robinsons, Bateman's Lees etc. that both  brew, and own pubs which are tied to their beer.

In a response to the House of Commons Business, Innovation and Skills Committee’s tenth report of session 2010-2012 into pub companies, the Consumer Minister Edward Davey recognised the importance of the tie to the longevity of breweries and success of tenant licensees. It is instructive to my mind at least, that "During this long enquiry, successive Select Committees received no complaints about brewery tenancies." This contrasts somewhat vividly with the complaints received about Pub Companies. Paul Wells speaking for the Independent Family Brewers of Britain (IFBB) was pleased saying (among other things) "In my view, many family brewers will now increase investment into their pubs because of the support the Government has announced for the traditional brewery tenancy agreement and the beer tie."

All well and good - and I welcome the decision - but maybe now that this uncertainty has been removed, IFBB members who have not woken up to the beer revolution around them, in addition to tarting up their pubs, can turn their attention to more vibrant brewing in this new stable environment.   It will be a hollow victory indeed if they have stability for their tenants and future business, only to see it diminished by moribund beer ranges, dull brewing and a "we know best" attitude. As the Government and commercial logic forces PubCos to concede more choice for their lessees and micros offer more and more beery options, IFBB members cannot allow themselves to fall (further) behind the curve.

The beer market is at its most volatile for years.  Innovation and experiment is all around. Beer drinkers are more and more discerning and demanding. This provides opportunity, but it also provides pitfalls. Let's see IFBB members rise to the challenge of the times.

A lot of my drinking is done in IFBB pubs, so I declare an interest. And I care about them.

Be My Guest

From her lofty perch in the Pennine outpost of Delph, an excited Landlady rings me. She has just been to Blackburn - no that's not what she was chuffed by, though it isn't as bad as you might imagine - but her visit to Blackburn was to Thwaites Brewery where she and other leading cask pubs in the Thwaites estate were given some excellent news. Thwaites, who I have mentioned before, are upping their cask game, announced to the agog throng, that in addition to an enhanced seasonal and occasional range, a choice of guest ales from other brewers will be provided by the brewery. The Landlady is delighted. She wasn't sure at the time of speaking, what the guests would be, but Bateman's, St Austell and Champion Beer of Britain, Harvest Pale were mentioned.

Today, as if to confirm, the press release from Thwaites popped into my in box. It will feature 16 artisan ales from Daniel Thwaites’ Signature range of ales. as well as 16 guest beers from a range of brewers. The Landlady can't wait.

It seems that this will be part of a reciprocal arrangement, so Thwaites beers will get greater exposure too. This has become a feature of rather a lot of small brewers and has the potential to increase sales all round. Here in Manchester, Hydes and Holts do it, Robinsons as far as I know don't and Lees definitely don't. Will that change I wonder?

The White Lion

Yesterday I met a CAMRA colleague in the Landlady's new pub, the White Lion in Delph, a picturesque village in the Pennines just on the Greater Manchester side of the border, a fact that has this former West Riding outpost somewhat divided, as evidenced by the White Rose flag flying from the Band Club.

This is still in my CAMRA Branch area, so I'm the local Chairman which is rather nice really and makes introductions pleasant and me feel part of it, in a minor way at least. The White Lion is stone built on a corner and is warm and welcoming, having had the Landlady's 60 Minute Makeover. It has been decided, unlike most Delph pubs, to open all day and it was doing a fair trade when we arrived. One or two were even enjoying the spring sunshine outside on benches. Beers are from Thwaites of Blackburn and were a pleasant surprise, more of which later. The Landlady's first task was to remove smooth beer and install four handpumps and all are on all the time. She is selling them like hot cakes she says.

Thwaites in recent years have a lack lustre record in cask beer. Most of their pubs sell smooth these days, but things are changing. According to the Landlady, it is her record as a cask ale award winner that first attracted Thwaites to her, as they want things to change. Cask beer is booming and they are back in the game. Good for them. Before the pub changed hands the cellar was renovated with automatic tilters and new lines as well as four handpumps installed and the spear extraction used for the lone cask beer removed. I doubt if Thwaites have many pubs with four cask beers on at once, but here they have and they are selling.

What of the beers? Nutty Black is a lovely traditional mild; almost jet black in colour with sweet malt and a slight bitter edge. Very drinkable for a 3.3% beer. The Original Bitter was a surprise, though I only had a sample. Better than I remember, it was though underpowered at 3.6%, its bitterness slightly lost by a touch of wateriness. Wainwrights at 4.1% was pale, bittersweet and quaffable. It is her biggest seller so far and gaining popularity with her new locals. I didn't try Lancaster Bomber, but overall was impressed. Thwaites also do a range of seasonals and the landlady is already looking to have a fifth pump installed for that. She is nothing if not ambitious in selling cask ale.

In addition to cask there is a couple of genuine German imports in the shape of Warsteiner and Koenig Ludwig Hefe Weiss (to be replaced by Paulaner sometime in the future) and even a couple of cooking lagers, Carling and Fosters, so something for everyone, though I'll bet the Landlady will soon have cask as her biggest seller.

So, a good news story. It is early days, but we have a local pub revitalised, traditional beer success and a Family Brewer getting back to cask. See, it isn't all grumpiness and negativity here!

Joseph Holt

Have I mentioned Joey Holt's here? Only as an aside I think, but really I should do. I was prompted to tell you a little about them by a visit to their Old Blue Bell in Bury the other night for a CAMRA meeting. The Old Blue Bell isn't in the nicest area of Bury and for most of us who came by car, the nagging worry was would it still be in one piece when we came out? Still there is nothing wrong with the pub. A big solid red brick bugger with a decent sized vault and two, or was it three, separate rooms off, all comfortably furnished in upholstered benches and of course, a corridor or rather what was left of it before they opened it out a bit.

We had a nice room off the bar at the back where we could hear the mostly female hoots of laughter from the outside smoking area. Hardy lasses those from Bury. It would have frozen a yak outside, but it didn't seem to bother them one bit. The beer of choice for me was Mild. It is 3.2% and is absolutely delicious when on form, as it was on Tuesday night. Others had the bitter which is 4% and pronounced it excellent too.

Ah yes. Back to Holt's. Joseph Holt is a family owned brewer, founded in 1849 and based in the Derby Brewery, just outside Manchester City Centre. There are 127 Joseph Holt's houses. All lie within a 25-mile radius of Greater Manchester. The brewery produces a cask mild, bitter and seasonal beers in a fully modernised and flexible brewery and the company is fiercely independent. Relatively rarely for smaller brewers, they still brew their own lager too; Crystal and Diamond and, in cans only, the delightfully named "Holtenbrau". Alas they don't brew the half-palindromic "Regal" any more.

Holt's have changed over the years. They used to be very cheap, but now are catching up a bit but you'll still get decent change out of £2 for either Mild or Bitter. Mild is usually around 8p less than the bitter too. The beer, well the bitter mainly, has also changed. Once described thus in the GBG "its uncompromising bitterness can come as a shock to the unwary". It is still rather bitter, around 40 or so IBU's though a bit better balanced than it used to be. Holt's still deliver their beer to some outlets in the mighty hogshead or 54 imperial gallons. Full, they weigh in at a hefty 6cwt or 290 kilograms, so don't ever pick a fight with a Holt's drayman!



Holt's also brew a delightful Old Ale called "Sixex" which used to be available in nips, but now comes in the standard 500 ml bottle, as well as a full range of other bottled beers.

One of the Old School

I paid one of my pastoral visits to Lees yesterday. I was invited by the Head Brewer, Giles Dennis, to have a look at the revamped brewery cottage - the hospitality suite. And an excellent job they have done of it too with old Lees bottles in a glass display case, various enlarged photos and awards and a few prizes from brewing, labelling and bottling competitions too.

While having a pint with Giles the Chairman Richard Lees-Jones came in. As he always does, he said hello and then came over for a chat. He is still known in the brewery as Mr Richard in the age old tradition. The new (sixth) generation led by William Lees-Jones have dropped this and I can see why, but in the case of Mr Richard, no other name could ever be more appropriate, though you can get away with calling him Chairman. For someone who has worked at the brewery for well over forty years, his enthusiasm and optimism still burn brightly. He is still in every day, working as usual. He was telling me that the seventh generation now number nine in total, so he is optimistic that the youngsters are in sufficient numbers to take over in due course, though it will be a fairly long time away. He was also very proud of the company's current pub refurbishment programme and mentions that everything they do is to prepare the company for the future. He spoke cheerfully of his confidence that Lees can ride out any recession.

I couldn't help but feel, this family owned company is in very safe hands indeed.


In addition to the bitter which was in great form, I tried the Summer Sizzler which is a lovely refreshing beer.