Beer Today newsletter, July 29, 2016

4 | Beer Today Newsletter | July 29,

Brews in Brief

2016

From the editor’s chair

 Wadworth has created Espirito de Carnaval (4.3% ABV) to celebrate the Rio Olympics. A punchy beer, with a dry malt base, spicy pepper notes combine with fruity citrus hops to give a vibrant citrus taste. It is a well-balanced, easydrinking ale, says the brewer, combining English malt with vibrant hops from the US and Brazilian spices.

Imperial rules at the beer bar

 Working with hydrodynamics and fluid mechanics along with professors at universities including Birmingham and Imperial College, Cobra has created a smooth pour glass with a unique channel in the interior allowing liquid to flow smoothly around the glass to the base. Creating a whirlpool effect, the design helps release flavour and aroma to achieve the perfect head, says the brewer.  Paradigm Brewery in Hertfordshire has created a beer using local watercress.

Chief executive, Neil Hodges, said of Sarratt Watercress Ale: “It tastes delicious. It’s a pale ale, so it’s light and summery but with a nice peppery taste to it.”  Orange Blaze (4% ABV) is a new seasonal beer from St Peter’s Brewery featuring First Gold and Cascade hops. Orange peel is added to the golden brew to give a marmalade note.  Old Dairy Brewery’s Jazz Ale, a 4.6% ABV golden beer created for Rye Jazz Festival, will be on sale in the brewery shop from mid-August.  Online retailer EeBria has new beers from 6º North and Milk Street breweries.  More at beertoday.co.uk/ brews-in-brief/

I know what you’re thinking: late again. Little was I to know that there’s a glitch in Publisher when you switch between two machines running respectively, Windows 7 and Windows 10.

I’ll make sure next week’s newsletter is on time, but the publication date will switch to Saturday as it fits in better with my routine.

As you may know, I have my office in the bottled beer shop attached to Coastal Brewery in Redruth, Cornwall Specialist Beer (do follow on Facebook!) and there’s a bar attached where I do a bit of serving on, generally, Fridays and Saturdays.

This week the go-to beer has been a new brew of Coastal’s Kernow Imperial Stout (9% ABV, pictured), which is in tip-top form. There are big dark fruit and molasses flavours, with coffee and lactose notes. Delicious!

You can see now why I don’t regret leaving a newspaper office with its constant stress and 14-hour days.

So, what’s new on Beer Today this week? As ever, there’s lots of news, from the likes of London Beer Factory, Camerons, Little Valley Brewery and Carlsberg (yes, breweries of all sizes).

Among items of interest is a guest blog by Prof John Colley, of Warwick Business School, on how the protracted purchase of SABMiller by AB InBev is affecting shareholders in the latter.

There’s also the tale of how a bottle of Innis & Gunn Vintage beer has been placed in a time capsule, to be opened in 100 years’ time, and a mass collaboration brew at Hawkshead Brewery, involving 13 big name brewers.

As ever, Beer Today is updated every day, often several times a day. Uploads generally take place first thing in the morning, at lunchtime and at the end of the afternoon, although important

July 29, 2016  Issue 4  website: beertoday.co.uk  e-mail: darren@beertoday.co.uk

breaking news is always added to the site immediately. Please visit regularly and do tell your beer-loving friends!

Job vacancies A new jobs section launched last week within the trade and professional section on the site. Brief job listings are free, with a small charge for longer descriptions. For a media pack, e-mail darren@beertoday.co.uk

Diary dates The event listings have been updated until the end of October, with mainly beer festivals all over the country.

Event listings are free and can include links to event websites. Again, e-mail darren@beertoday.co.uk

Most popular on Beer Today 1. Drygate to can small-batch beers: tinyurl.com/h475mvt 2. Concern over Camden licensing proposals: tinyurl.com/zhornfn 3. Carlsberg launches Crafted beer range: tinyurl.com/j4rwb8e

The London Beer Factory has launched its entire range of beer in 360-degree can technology, a design that enables the drinker to completely remove the lid of the can, allowing for the full spectrum of flavours and aromas to leap out. The unique ring-pull is easily pulled away from the curved lip, instantly turning the can into a cup. Read the full story at http://tinyurl.com/jalu2an

Beer sales up says BBPA Buoyant British beer sales in the second quarter of 2016 showed further signs of reversing a long period of decline, with sales up 1.5%, it was announced this week.

The rise means Britons enjoyed 31 million extra pints from April to June, compared with the same period in 2015.

The figures are published in the British Beer & Pub Association’s Quarterly Beer Barometer.

Buoyant off-trade sales during the European Football Championships were a big source of the boost, with sales rising by 4.8%. On-trade sales (pubs, bars and restaurants) fared less well, slipping by 1.9%, although this was one of the lowest second quarter drops for the on-trade in recent years.

Beer sales have risen by 1.2% over the past year, and have been relatively stable since early 2013 following years of decline.

The marked change in trend coincides with reductions in beer duty, which began with a pioneering one penny cut in the March 2013 Budget.

Confidence This was followed by two further 1p cuts and a freeze this year, putting an end to years of steep beer tax hikes.

Increased confidence in the sector has been accompanied by greater investment and campaigns.

BBPA chief executive, Brigid Simmonds, said: “These are yet more

encouraging figures, and the football has given a real boost to sales.

“It is quite clear we owe a huge debt of thanks to the cuts in beer duty from 2013.

“I hope the Government continues with this pioneering change in approach, and we continue to see support for fairer taxes for British beer.”

David Cunningham, programme director at the There’s A Beer For That campaign, added: “We can see that the campaign messages of quality, diversity and versatility of beer, and our focus on encouraging people to pair different styles of beer with their meals, is beginning to have a positive impact on consumer perception behaviour.

“This, in turn, is playing a part in the recovery of the category.”

2 | Beer Today Newsletter | July 29,

2016

July 29, 2016 | Beer Today Newsletter | 3

Events

Diary

July 31-August 2: Beer Festival at Grayshott Cricket Club, The Sportsfield, Beech Hanger Road, Off Headley Road, Grayshott GU26 6LS. Real ales, lagers and ciders sourced

by Hogs Back, Hop Art, Frensham, Little Beer Corp and Thurstons breweries.

Details: tinyurl.com/zrmowcc August 2: Beer and food pairing with Estrella Galiacia at Tapas Revolution, 58 Bethnal Green Road, Shoreditch, London E1 6JW. Details: tinyurl.com/h6rkjec August 3-6: Grantham Beer Festival Huntingtower CP Academy, Huntingtower Road, Grantham NG31 7AU, 11am-11pm. 40 real ales, plus cider, perry and live music.

August 4-6: Worcester Beer, Cider and Perry Festival at Worcester Racecourse, Grand Stand Road, Worcester WR1 3EJ. More than 170 real ales, over 100 ciders and perries, plus fruit and grape wine, food and soft drinks. Details: tinyurl.com/fese6 August 4-7: Countryfile Live at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire.

The event includes acoustic music sets, poetry readings, comedy and traditional dance in an authentic beer garden. Details: tinyurl.com/hjhebmh August 6: Durham Brewery’s second birthday party at Unit 6A, Bowburn North Industrial Estate,Durham DH6 5PF, noon-5pm. Six real ales and four keg beers available, plus bottleconditioned beers and mini-kegs to take away. £3 entry includes a pint glass and a pint of 5% ABV or under beer.

August 6: Porters, Peers and Pilgrims: A Beer Heritage Walk, starting at Old Street Underground Station, London, 10.30am-1.30pm.

Details, tickets: tinyurl.com/gob7lt7  More at beertoday.co.uk/events/

Have you ever had that problem where you’re trying to get away from the office on a Friday evening, determined to join your mates for a pint of Kozel, when you get waylaid by various obstacles – the colleague who wants to discuss a proposal, perhaps, or the train to the pub that’s been cancelled?

No, me neither.

Still, the fact that the problem doesn’t exist hasn’t stopped Kozel coming up with a solution in the form of the Tap Out button. Utilising beacon technology, the button, which can be situated in one’s office, automatically sends a taxi direct to your location, picking up a friend along the way. Then upon arrival at the pub, you will find two pints of the freshly poured Czech beer waiting for you both.

I checked the calendar when I received this press release. No, it wasn’t April 1. And Kozel’s PR firm insists it’s for real. I’m waiting to hear of the first incidence of this button being taken up. Those who want to give it a try should visit the @Kozel_UK Twitter page, tagging a friend in a Tweet

On Video

using the hashtag #PushForPub. Anyone not lucky enough to get the chance to trial the button themselves can still get hold of pint of Kozel using the Pint Finder App – it can be downloaded from https:// kozelpintfinder.co.uk/  As I speak, I suspect my Coastal Brewery colleague Reuben is adding to his collection of Pokémon Go captures. No, I’ve no idea what it’s about either.

What I do know, though, is that it’s possible to use the craze to drive brewery and pub visits, and no matter what the marketing route, that can’t be a bad thing, can it?

For instance, when Norfolk’s wonderful Grain Brewery was advertising its recent open day on social media, it said: “Come grab a beer, a hot dog, catch and Pokémon or two and enjoy the vibe.”

American magazine All About Beer noted: “Some breweries, like Mad Fox Brewing Co, Bell’s Brewery, Anchor Brewing, Real Ale Brewing Co and Carton Brewing, won the lottery in having Nintendo

Beer Reviews

Eden Brewery, in Cumbria, has teamed up with Japanese brewery Hakuba to create Tokyo Express Match pale ale, made with Matcha green tea.

One of Hakuba’s partners is Dan Cockburn, originally from Ambleside, Cumbria, who moved out East nine years ago.

He met Eden’s Jason Hill when the latter was in Japan earlier this year and

when Dan said he was visiting the UK this summer the collaboration plan was hatched. Jason suggested a green tea IPA. Dan said: “I was tasked with bringing the green tea, which is not very hard as I live in Japan.”

Dan wanted to use the Amarillo hop as he reckoned it would work well with the green tea, while Jason suggested an addition of Chinook.

Some of the beer vloggers I follow are also enthusiastic home brewers, and Grant Walker is no exception.

In a recent video he has got hold of a box of the home brew version of Tiny Rebel Brewery’s Cwtch, the current champion beer of Britain.

He talks through how to put the kit together, then cuts to a later stage

where he is able to review the beer. He can’t, unfortunately, compare it to a commercial bottle of Cwtch as he wasn’t able to lay hands on one. But it looks like his version turned out well and pretty faithful.

Worth a subscription for the regular beer reviews.

Visit tinyurl.com/js6pydn

Ruhstaller: The Captain (7.6% ABV) This passes Norbury’s Black IP test with flying colours, ie if you close your eyes, sniff and taste you wouldn’t know this wasn’t golden beer. There’s a big hit of resinous, slightly dank hops on the aroma which carries through to the palate.

There’s the slightest hint of dark malt, and the more one drinks the more a light, milk coffee note becomes apparent. Very enjoyable.

Lacons: Affinity (4.8% ABV) My first Lacons beer has left me definitely wanting more. Affinity is a cracking, very tasty bitter, almost IPA-ish to me. Orange notes are balanced by candy sweetness and there’s a nice dryness on the finish. Well executed — I could have drunk a lot of this!

Spencer: Trappist Ale (6.5% ABV) New to the UK, this is a beer from the United States’ only Trappist brewery.

Well balanced, with a nice mouthfeel the malt works well in this seemingly Belgian -inspired brew, with spicy warmth, some resinous notes and some orange pith flavours.  More at beertoday.co.uk/reviews/

Beer sales still steady

Canning for Drygate brews

Norfolk hop festival

Punch to sell 400 pubs

Buoyant British beer sales in the second quarter of 2016 showed further signs of reversing a long period of decline, with sales up 1.5%, it has been announced today.

The rise means Britons enjoyed 31 million extra pints from April to June, compared with the same period in 2015.

Craft brewery Drygate, in Glasgow, which saw volumes more than double to 4,700 hectoliters last year and is on track to pass 10,000hl in 2016, has started canning.

The brewery has moved its small-batch studio range to cans to meet consumer demand, while highlighting the

All Day Brewing is staging an inaugural hop-picking festival in its own hop garden, the only one of its kind in Norfolk, in September.

The festival will bring together the local community, beer lovers, and those interested in traditional farming,

Punch is looking to sell 400 pubs over the next four years, chief executive Duncan Garrood has revealed.

In an interview with the Morning Advertiser, Mr Garrood said the pubs were more likely to be sold one by one than in packages.

He said Punch had already

The figures are published in the British Beer & Pub Association’s Quarterly Beer Barometer.

Beer sales have risen by 1.2% over the past year and have been relatively stable since early 2013, when the Government announced the first of two duty cuts.

relationship between art and brewing by featuring psychedelic artwork by former Drygate van driver turned freelance artist, John Felix.

The four beers in cans comprise Chimera India Pale Lager, Crossing the Rubicon IPA, Orinoco Breakfast Stout and Disco Forklift Truck.

to get involved with the picking and use of hops at Norfolk’s first and only hopyard, says the brewer.

The picking is spread over two weeks or so because the brewery has varieties ripening at different times.

More details at www. norfolkhopfestival.co.uk

completed the sales it needed to make to pay down debt.

“We are going to continue to dispose of the 400 noncore pubs at around about 100 a year, but that’s not to pay down debt, it’s for capital investments.”

He added: “I don’t see any big deals.”