Brewers Journal Podcast

It’s nearly a year since Boris Johnson, the UK Prime Minister, took to the airwaves informing viewers that life, as we knew it, was about to change. From that point on, you could only shop for basic necessities. Exercise was limited to one form a day, travel was restricted for essential work only and ultimately, people of the UK were told to stay at home. The perfect time, then, to be opening your own brewery. But that’s exactly the situation that Danny Tapper, owner of Lewes-based Beak Brewery, found himself in. In this podcast, we speak to Danny and Beak’s head brewer Robin Head-Fourman, about building a brewery during lockdown, their approach to the beers they produce, engaging with the community and the invaluable role bottleshops have played in Beaks’s journey during the last 12 months.

For Allan Rice and Sarah Thackray, starting Atom Beers back in 2014 meant founding a business that represented science, education, transparency and simplicity. And in the years since, they’ve undertaken scientific projects with the University of Hull, held science classes with school groups ands achieved great success with its beers across the UK and further afield. They’ve also navigated the chop waters that is owning a brewery, too. In this podcast we chart the brewery’s journey, why they’re proud to call the 2017 City of Culture their home and the ongoing desire to help inform and educate the brewers and scientists of tomorrow. 

As January comes to an end that can only mean one thing. What, you may ask? It means New Zealand Beer Month is on the horizon, of course! New Zealand Beer Month, or February for the uninitiated, is a celebration of the fine, fine beers produced on the beautiful island country. While nearly 19,000km may separate New Zealand and the UK, that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy and appreciate its excellent beverages. As Waitangi Day approaches, it’s time to dabble in a Sour Kiwi Fruit Gose. If that doesn’t take your fancy, maybe you’d prefer a Hazy IPA packed with Nelson Sauvin, Mosaic, Citra and Galaxy. Failing that, then perhaps an Imperial stout designed to recreate the coffee-based dessert Affogato appeals. There is something for everyone and in this episode we speak to Todd Nicolson and Aidy Fenwick, the founder and brand manager of New Zealand Beer Collective. Since 2014, the collective has been busy promoting and showcasing some of New Zealand’s finest breweries to patrons in the UK and Europe. We discuss the changing beer scene in New Zealand, its parallels with the UK, the newest beers the collective is importing and their plans for the future. For more information on New Zealand Beer Month, check out Facebook and Instagram: @NZBeerCollective and on Twitter: @NewZealandBeer. Photo: Todd Nicolson and Becky Donald of NZBC

Around 2 ½ years ago when Brewers Journal Podcast visited Stuart Elkington and his online low-to-no bottle shop, his warehouse seemed to consist mostly of malty German beers. Sure, there were a couple that were passable but…on a thirsty day, water was just as good of bet. Now, it’s a whole new game out there with craft IPAs, stouts, sours, lagers and ales that would do any brewer proud. But, If you’re thinking of entering the low-to-no alcohol beer market, are you entering a real market, with solid, sustainable growth or is it all a roller-coaster ride? How many people go dry in January and then get plastered in February?  In this episode of Brewers Journal Podcast, we revisit Stuart Elkington of DryDrinker and we’ll tell you about the one growing group that is going to transform to the low-to-no market. Long after Dry January, they’ll still be drinking your beer.

It’s the most wonderful time of year. Thirsty beer fans have had to wait a little longer than usual but from today, they can get their hands on the annual release of Goose Island’s venerable Bourbon County Brand Stout. So for the latest episode of the Brewers Journal podcast, we thought it was only fitting to sit down with Andrew Walton, the brewmaster at Goose Island’s brewpub in London. Following in the footsteps of the brewery’s founder John Hall, Andrew has used travel to broaden his horizons and create new opportunities in the wonderful world of beer. So to coincide with this year’s Bourbon County launch, we spoke to Andrew about the beer, but also his personal journey in brewing and how he’s now making his very own mark in the world of barrel ageing with the brewpub’s excellent Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine.

We all come into the beer industry from different angles, with our own perspectives and from diverse origins. Phil Sisson, the founder of Simple Things Fermentations, in Glasgow, Scotland, is no different. Leaving a career in music studio management within London, to move to Scotland for a new life, he would find his true calling in brewing. Starting Simple Things Fermentations, he has set out with desire to focus on British and European brewing heritage and culture, with a modern and innovative approach. Finishing his first full-year in business that’s largely been consumed by a global pandemic was always going to be different than he envisaged, but here we are. In this podcast we speak to Phil about life in London, his move to Scotland, changing careers and the whirlwhind that has been 2020.

Located in London, but drawing on global expertise, Mondo Brewing Company has shown how beer transcends cultural and geographical boundaries. Founded by Todd Matteson and Tom Palmer in 2015, the American natives have been creating great beers that span the style spectrum for the last five years. Bonded by a love of Alt beer, the duo also call upon their experiences in Germany, Japan, Spain and beyond. And in doing so, have caught the eye of major restaurants, institutions and global sporting giants. In this podcast, we discuss how these experiences inform their outlook in London, their plans for the future and how they’re constantly striving to do better – in beer, in business and for the wider community. This episode was produced with support from QCL.

Many of us, if we’re fortunate to do so, will travel in our lives. Often it’ll be for holiday and sometimes it will be to live or work elsewhere. Travel, as they say, broadens the horizons. And it’s this mentality that Julia Huber subscribes to, the German native is the head brewer at ORABrewing in London. Founded in 2016, ORA started with the aim to create beers that marry the quality of the best Italianingredients with contemporary beer styles. Limoncello IPA? No problem. Balsamic Milk Stout? Sure thing. And although they started in 2016, the brewing story started some eight years before that. The trio of Daniele Zaccarelli, Pietro Rubbianesi, Emanuele Poletti decide to start making craft beer for fun in their garage, using the equipment provided by a friend. But fast-forward to 2020, and ORA Brewing in London is guided by Julia Huber, Working in Eng-land’s capital isn’t her first experience working abroad though, far from it. There’s the small matter of her time in New Zealand and Greenland, too. All by the age of 23. In this podcast, we speak to Julia about growing up in Germany, finding a love of beer from an early age and the different cultures she’s been part of throughout her journey in brewing.

The UK is blessed with breweries of all shapes and sizes. Some are tight-knit, modest operations while others operate out of facilities that could be mistaken for an aircraft hangar.  That doesn’t mean that one is good, and one is bad, or vice-versa. They’re just different and of course, variety is the spice of life. And while Mike Deal and his team are unlikely to come across many spices in the vast greenery that surrounds their brewery, working with locally-foraged produce has been a major part of Wildcraft Brewery’s ethos since its formation. The former teacher turned head brewer at the Buxton, Norfolk-based business takes pride in the beer he makes and the role the brewery plays in the local community. In this episode, he talks us through his journey, the brewery’s expansion plans and the ways Wildcraft has worked with the wider world during a challenging 2020.

Bottleshops are such an important part of the fabric of the brewing industry. In a Venn diagram they’re sitting in the middle, fulfilling an invaluable role connecting the breweries with the consumers that enjoy the fruits of their labour. In this episode, we speak to the founder of one such bottleshop – Marius Andrici. On 1st January 2007, Bulgaria and Romania became member states of the European Union in the fifth wave of EU enlargement. It meant the people such as Marius Andrici, a Romanian hailing from the country’s Banat region, could realise his dreams of seeing and working somewhere new. For the young Romanian, the the only destination on his mind was London, England. And 13 years on, Andrici is now busy looking after thirsty drinkers at his own bottle shop. Based in Acton, West London, A Pint of Hops opened its doors in the April of 2019. In this episode, we speak to Andrici to learn about the A Pint of Hops’ first 18 months trading, catering for the community during lockdown and the challenges of running your own business.