In a British beer market that has expanded rapidly over the previous couple of decades (before grinding to a halt during the current cost of living crisis), finding a point of difference has been vital for these small businesses to succeed. For some it has meant focusing on particular styles, like Hazy IPA, or crisp, refreshing lager. While for others it could have been producing a rock solid hospitality offering, and direct-to-consumer sales via a bar, or taproom.
For Oxford’s Tap Social Movement, which was established in 2016, that point of difference has been about making—well—a difference. Social justice is a part of this brewery's core ethos, and at the heart of this are the efforts to work with individuals exiting the prison system, and finding them employment. In fact, around a third of Tap Social’s employees have been hired through this system, and you’ll hear plenty about this from two of the company’s directors, Tess Taylor and Matt Elliot, in the first of two interviews in this episode.
In the second interview, we’ll learn all about the other side of the business—the beer—as we chat to head brewer, Jason Bolger. Our visit coincided with us producing a collaboration beer with Tap Social, a modern British bitter, which we called ‘Wake Up’ after the song by Rage Against the Machine—a little nod to the social justice this brewery was founded upon.
Speaking of beer, there’s also plenty of time at the beginning of the episode for our host to talk about some of the things he’s been enjoying lately, and about his recent trips to Edinburgh, and Fort Collins, Colorado.
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