Brewers Journal Podcast

This year RedWillow Brewery is raising a glass to 15 years of brewing bold, balanced beers. They’re marking the milestone with a packed calendar of collaborations, reimagined classics, and monthly giveaways — as well as a recent haul of prestigious awards. Starting out in 2010, RedWillow Brewery has long since established itself as a leading light in UK brewing. Founded by Toby and Caroline McKenzie, the business has grown and evolved without ever undermining its core values. To mark this prestigious anniversary in 2025, RedWillow is launching a year-long series of collaborations with some of the UK’s most respected breweries, including DEYA, Lost and Grounded, The Kernel, Thornbridge and more. These limited-edition beers will roll out throughout 2025, showcasing the creativity and community spirit that continues to drive the UK craft beer scene.And for Toby, the occasion gives him and the team the opportunity to reflect on a job well done. A brewery that was inspired by their early peers is now one that is revered and regarded by countless others. In this episode we take a whistle stop look back on the brewery’s journey to-date and discuss the creativity, passion, and friendships that make this industry so special.

Securing important early listings is a milestone of any new business. And earlier this spring, Red Fin Cider did just that by sealing a listing for both its Fresh Apple and their Meloncherry styles at Waitrose. 44 Waitrose stores now stock Red Fin Cider, a product launched by three industry veterans and friends, Freddie Rouse, Dave Tugwell and Graeme Baldwin, who saw a need for a new and vibrant brand in the category that was both independently craft but also accessible and a real celebration of Somerset apples, delivering a cider that stacks up in the world of craft beer. This follows on from the business quickly establishing itself in the on-trade, already gaining a significant national presence and loyal following since its launch in June 2024, becoming one of the fastest-growing cider brands and drinks brands in the UK. So what better time to revisit our conversation with co-founder Dave Tugwell. In this episode we reflect on how launching a new business is always an exciting time and a challenging one, too. He talks through the company’s journey so far. We also discuss the trio launching into a competitive category, its place in the wider world of craft beer and its commitment to showing consumers that cider can, and should be, fun.

Changes to off-sales, Martyn’s Law, amendments to smoking rules and introduction of Digital IDs are all key developments that those owning and running taprooms need to be aware of. So with that in mind, we welcomed Piers Warne of TLT to our Brewers Lectures in Bristol last month. Piers has 20- plus years’ experience licensing premises for the sale of alcohol and other licensable activities. This includes licensing breweries for direct sales to customers, online sales and for tap rooms. He has acted on the licensing around sale and purchase of major breweries and small start-ups across the country and on registrations for AWRS and other relevant certificates. As well as breweries, Piers has licensed major events, such as the King’s Coronation, large event spaces and festivals and every kind of pub, bar and nightclub you can think of.

Earlier this month Lost Cause Brewing, the independent brewery, founded in 2024 by Vik and Colin Stronge, completed a crowdfunding campaign help to bring beer production home to Castleford. So what better time to hear from one of the excellent brewery’s founders. Whie Lost Cause Brewing might be new, its founders are no strangers to making great beer. Head brewer Colin Stronge has spent over 20 years crafting beers at some of the UK’s most celebrated breweries, including Marble Beers, Buxton Brewery, Northern Monk, Black Isle, and Salt Beer Factory. His beers have poured at the most prestigious craft beer festivals around the world, earning him Brewer of the Year 2022 at our Brewers Choice Awards as well as a dedicated following among beer enthusiasts. And last year we were thrilled that Colin used our Brewers Lectures at the excellent Wiper and True in Bristol to showcase these debut Lost Cause beers for the first time. During his talk, Colin talked us through his career to-date. But more importantly, he outlines his goals for Lost Cause Brewing Co and why sometimes you need a little bit of discomfort to give you that push in life.

Opening your own brewery, at any point is time, comes with its own challenges and hurdles to overcome. Just ask the team at Great Beyond Brewing Company, and many of their peers. But John Driebergen, Ollie Parker and Nick Walsh have shown that with hard work, determination and a wealth of brewing skill you can succeed. Their ever-popular taproom in Hoxton, London, is testament to just that. And in their formative first years they have sealed a trio of awards at our very own Brewers Choice Awards – winning accolades in 2024 for ‘Beer of the Year‘, ‘New Beer of the Year‘ and ‘New Brewery of the Year‘. In this episode, recorded live in Bristol, John Driebergen stresses the balance between structure and creativity, the significance of sensory analysis, and the impact of leadership and delegation on brewery culture. He concludes by also underscoring the need for breweries to adapt, listen, and empower their teams to thrive.

Tim Weaver, founder of The Brand Weaver, specializes in transforming brewery branding and marketing. He discusses the urgent need for breweries to innovate their marketing strategies to stay relevant for future generations. Tim emphasizes that traditional SEO methods are losing effectiveness and advocates for engaging storytelling to forge personal connections with consumers. His insights reveal how compelling narratives and memorable experiences can significantly boost a brewery's presence and profitability in a rapidly evolving industry.

Next month the Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America takes place in Indianapolis. From April 28th to 1st May, America’s largest gathering for the beverage alcohol industry will bring together countless figures from across the drinks sectors. And for Ann Obenchain, she lovingly likens it to a ‘taproom on steroids’. Because as we all know, such events are the perfect opportunity to learn, and to reconnect. Ann Obenchain is the vice president of marketing and communications for the Brewers Association. Here she develops and leads the strategic direction of the association’s marketing and communications activities, and serves as spokesperson with the media for events, including the Great American Beer Festival, Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America, World Beer Cup, and Homebrew Con. In this podcast, we discuss that a time why it is more important than ever to engage with our consumers, our peers and the wider industry. The latest trends taking hold across the USA, why diversification remains key and by taking a little time out of our taprooms, events such as CBC and BrewExpo America represent the perfect opportunity to partake in a taproom environment of a different kind.

“What Did You Post That For?“ That’s the question asked by Charlie Harding, founder of Bonne Vivante Marketing. And in Bristol recently she shared her top tips and insights designed to help improve your social media presence. At Bonne Vivante, Charlie works with hospitality venues and businesses in a freelance capacity. She does marketing, PR, copywriting and currently works with two breweries, Basement Beer and RedWillow, running their social media, general marketing and a touch of PR for good measure. In her talk, she shares her expertise on what businesses owners should post online, what they shouldn’t, engaging with your audience and why content is queen.

Every so often a beer comes along and things just click. A combination of brilliant branding, a brilliant brewery and, of course, a brilliant beverage are essential ingredients for a beer that resonates with the consumer. And with London Black, the 4.4% Nitro Porter from Anspach & Hobday, you’ve got just that. The brewery, founded by Paul Anspach & Jack Hobday back in 2013, has gone from strength to strength in recent years and much of that growth can be attributed to their flagship beer. London Black has fundamentally changed and redefined the brewery and business with approximately 70+% of their output the popular Nitro Porter. With that in mind, we invited brewery co-founder Paul to speak at our Brewers Lectures in Bristol last week. In his lecture, Paul outlined the importance of the brand and how crucial factors such as an authentic, believable story coupled with clear messaging have helped elevate the beer. He also explained how the team are striving to establish London Black as The beer of London and to forge the association between London and London Black such that for a beer drinker, any visit to the city would not be complete without a pint of London Black.  Image Credit: Anspach & Hobday

Off the back of his most recent address at this week’s Brewers Lectures in Bristol, we revisit Piers Warne’s talk from February 2024 where we asked him to share his experiences and expertise from the licensing world, the opportunities that can arise and the potential pitfalls to avoid. Piers is a licensing lawyer at TLT and has 20- plus years’ experience licensing premises for the sale of alcohol and other licensable activities. This includes licensing breweries for direct sales to customers, online sales and for taprooms. He has acted on the licensing around sale and purchase of major breweries and small start-ups across the country and on registrations for AWRS and other relevant certificates, too. He has also licensed major festivals such as Glastonbury, pubs, bars – oh and the King’s Coronation, too…