The Brewers Journal September~October 2022, iss 5 vol 8

THE MAGAZINE FOR THE PROFESSIONAL BREWING INDUSTRY BREWINGABYSS Loving life in Lewes BREWERS JOURNAL SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | VOLUME 6, ISSUE 6 ISSN 2059-6669 15 | FOAM PERFORMANCE: GETTING AHEAD IN BEER 26 | DEAR CONSISTENCYJOHN:IS CRITICAL 40 | POWDERKEG: DOING THINGS THEIR WAY IN DEVON

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SSV Brewhouse installation at Salt Beer Factory.

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With that in mind, it has been a pleasure to take an early glance at the wealth of entries we’ve had for the 2022 Brewers Choice Awards. I look forward to meeting with our fantastic judges in the coming weeks to help decide who will take the accolades at this year’s ceremony. And this year, the ceremony takes place at a new venue, the Business Design Centre in LocatedLondon.on

to avoid the threat posed by the rise in the consumer energy price cap to pubs and breweries across the UK. You’ll no doubt have read reports of countless businesses witnessing hikes upwards of 300%. You might, indeed, be one of these.

To secure your table, please just email:

We also have the results of the leadership election, the winner of which will be known by the time this edition lands, along with the government policies the new leader will hope to implement.

So as we celebrate the incredible talent the brewing industry boasts, why not enjoy some escapism and join us for your brewery Christmas party? You can book tables at the event for you and your team, catching up with peers and toasting the night’s winners.

best of luck in all that you do,

LEADER brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 3

In this time we’ve hosted some 30 live events and also published nearly 100 episodes of our Brewers Journal Podcast.

Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of The Brewers Journal. Putting together this new issue, it swiftly dawned on us that it marks the start of our eighth year. That means this is the 55th edition of the magazine, a figure nearer 80 if you include our Canadian sister publication.

AND ON TO YEAR EIGHT

Upper Street not far from Kings Cross, the centre boasts more than 2,500 square metres of space to entertain, educate and celebrate the very best of brewing.

H

It is clear that this is a testing time for all facets of the beer and brewing sectors, and here at The Brewers Journal we will continue to champion these fantastic industries at every corner.

Thanksjosh@reby.mediaagainand

At the end of August, business leaders from across the brewing and pub industry signed an open letter to the government and leadership candidates warning small businesses will close and jobs will be lost if immediate action isn’t taken on energy bills for businesses. They’ve warned about the ‘real and serious irreversible’ damage the energy crisis will cause if the government does not implement an urgent support package that effectively caps the price of energy for businesses.

The last few years have obviously been challenging for the brewing industry, like many around it, so it remains a genuine privilege to be working in such a sector and your support is never taken for It’sgranted.impossible

Taking place on the evening of the 8th December, we will crown the winners of the 2022 Brewers Choice Awards. The awards ceremony will also feature a three course Christmas dinner alongside some truly excellent beer.

Tim EditorSheahan

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The Bruges Beer Festival returned earlier this year, and Paul Davies was straight out of the blocks to take in the great and the good it had to offer.

Staff training and development in hygiene and cellar management is crucial for running an efficient ship. here Jeff Singer of Beer Piper and Hance McGhie help explain why.

Comment | Licensing

What constitutes a sale of alcohol in England and Wales. are there grey areas? and why does it matter? Piers warne, a legal director specialising in licensing at TLT Solicitors and part of their specialist hospitality team, explains all.

SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 67622926221915 BREWERS JOURNAL6 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022

Dear John Striving for consistency is a goal for any brewer. Because producing, and providing, a reliable and consistent product is how brand loyalty can be built. And John keeling, guardian of Fuller’s London Pride for many years, knows exactly that.

CONTENTS

Comment | Hospitality

Science | Warm maturation

Tim O’Rourke outlines foam’s role in the beers we brew, the impact it has on appearance and what we can do to improve foam performance.

37

Talking Point

Why the transition to digital communications is easier than you think.

Friends for nearly 30 years, Andy Bridge and Andrew Mellor have always shared that creative flair. And in Abyss Brewing, lucky patrons in Lewes and beyond are enjoying their excellent beers, too.

In his latest article, Tim O’Rourke, technical editor at The Brewers Journal, investigates warm maturation and cold stabilisation.

Digital technology

Meet The Brewer | Abyss Brewing

Brewing in Bruges

+44velo@reby.media(0)1442780591

Packaging

CONTACTS

SUBSCRIPTIONS

tim.orourke@reby.media

A pioneering brewery in the heart of Scotland’s Speyside whisky country is back in business after a Covidinduced break.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without the express prior written consent of the publisher. The Brewers Journal ISSN 2059-6650 is published bimonthly by Reby Media, 42 Crouchfield, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, HP1 1PA. Subscription records are maintained at Reby Media, 42 Crouchfield, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, HP1 1PA.

Speyside Brewery

Jon Young Publisher

Tim O’Rourke Technical Editor

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The Brewers Journal accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of statements or opinion given within the Journal that is not the expressly designated opinion of the Journal or its publishers. Those opinions expressed in areas other than editorial comment may not be taken as being the opinion of the Journal or its staff, and the aforementioned accept no responsibility or liability for actions that arise therefrom.

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Meet the team championing freethinking beer in Devon.

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The Brewers Journal is a published 1six times a year and mailed every January, March, May, July, September and November. Subscriptions can be purchased for six issues. Prices for single issue subscriptions or back issues can be obtained by emailing: subscribe@reby.media

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40

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The content of The Brewers Journal is subject to copyright. However, if you would like to obtain cop ies of an article for marketing purposes high-qual ity reprints can be supplied to your specification. Please contact the advertising team for full details of this service. The Brewers Journal is printed at Manson Group, St Albans, UK.

How St Austell has revamped and revolutionised the packaging operation at its Bath Ales brewery.

Velo Mitrovich Deputy Editor

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brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 7

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CONTROL.BREWERSPUTSBACKIN Our new short-term rental product − the same containers with added benefits: RFID technology, transparent billing, flexible delivery options and you only pay when you’re using them. To find out more call 01425 485421 or visit ekegplus.com Close Brothers Brewery Rentals is a trading style of Close Brewery Rentals Limited, which is a subsidiary of Close Brothers Limited. Close Brewery Rentals Limited is registered in England and Wales (Company number 5826492) and its registered office is Unit 1, Kingfisher Park, Headlands Business Park, Blashford, Ringwoord, Hampshire BH24 3NX.

PARTYCHRISTMASBREWERS8DECEMBERATTHEBDC,CENTRAL LONDON, UK SUPPORTED BY BRING YOUR TEAM TO CELEBRATE THE FESTIVE SEASON WITH THE BREWERS JOURNAL. A THREE COURSE CHRISTMAS DINNER, UNLIMITED BEER, LIVE MUSIC AND A TWO DAY PASS TO THE BREWERS CONGRESS FOR £139 PER PERSON (INC VAT) SCAN HERE FOR TICKETS

MAGIC ROCK AND ODYSSEYACQUIREDFOURPUREBYINNS

platform to do great things.

Cox said: “This is an incredible opportunity to take two exceptional brands, Four pure and Magic Rock, to the next level. Combined with an excellent hospitality proposition, fantastic people and state of the art breweries, we really have the

St Austell Brewery has announced changes to its senior leadership team, to help deliver on its growth plans for the Thefuture.independent

Paul has had a distinguished career in the hospitality sector spanning over 20 years, having held senior roles including chief operating officer and commercial director for JD Wetherspoons plc, managing director of Bermondsey Pub Company, and group commercial director for Ei Group plc.

Lion’s UK managing director, Gordon Treanor, added: “Odyssey brings together a great team with a clear passion for brewing and hospitality and is ideally placed to take Magic Rock and Fourpure forward.

ion has announced the sale of its domestic UK-based operations, in cluding the Magic Rock and Fourpure brands to Odyssey Inns Ltd.

The company has also appointed Paul Harbottle as its first Commercial Director.

“I’d like to thank our brilliant team for their commitment and dedication, especially over the past two years. With some great sales and brand momentum, the busi ness is well placed for the future ahead, under new ownership.”

The County Durham craft brewery have been working with Darlington-based brand consultant and designers Brandd to create a positive and welcoming new

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | NEWS11

company has also completed on its first acquisition in over two years today, the Wellington Hotel in Boscastle – a step towards its ambition of expanding its 175-strong estate to over two hundred pubs, inns, and hotels in the West Country.

Following a strategic review, Odyssey represented the right team of UK beer and hospitality industry experts to lead the Fourpure and Magic Rock brands into their next chapters. The sale also includes the brewer ies and taprooms in London, Huddersfield and Holmfirth and Little Creatures craft beer hospitality venue in Kings Cross, London.

St Austell Brewery’s new commercial function will provide the essential servic es – including distribution, procurement, property, and technology – to support operational teams, enabling them to de liver the best possible customer experi ences across all areas of the business.

McColl’s Brewery has revealed a rebrand of their range and logo.

L

As a result of the new venture, Cox steps down as non-exec chairman to help lead Fourpure and Magic Rock with business partner Brian Bolger.

ST LEADERSHIPSTRENGTHENSBREWERYAUSTELL

The sale will see Lion focus future investment towards its businesses in Australia, New Zealand and the United States, where Lion has made significant craft beer investments and is a leading craft brewer in each market.

REBRANDSBREWERYMCCOLL’S

“We’re excited to get started and get to know the team. We bring bags of energy and enthusiasm, entrepreneurial spirit and strong industry experience, and we hope to bring joy to many more customers with these great beers.”

As part of the company’s new leadership team structure, Andrew Turner – who joined the company in March 2020 as managing director of Beer & Brands – has been promoted to the newly created role of chief operating officer. He will oversee all of St Austell Brewery’s day-to-day operations, across its beer business and pub estate.

The Odyssey team is led by Stephen Cox. Cox is an industry leader and brings with him more than 20 years of experience in the world of hospitality and the UK pub sector. He also co-founded Devon’s Utopian Brewing and has worked with, as well as pioneered, a number of brands within the hospitality and drinks sector.

With a 0.5% ABV, this light and refreshing lager is the perfect drink for the summer season, the brewery said.

“Astro-Nought will join Beavertown’s collection of no/low alcoholic beers, including Lazer Crush, the alcohol-free IPA with a 0.3% ABV and Nanobot, a low calorie IPA with a 2.8% ABV.”

Loungers is serving chilled Curious Session IPA in 330ml bottles. Neil Webb, drinks operations manager of Loung ers said: “IPA is a hugely popular style amongst craft beer drinkers, and with so much choice out there, it’s important that we serve brands that offer a genuine point of difference

“As a distinctive, British craft beer, Curious IPA is a great fit with Loungers, as well as delivering on the all-important flavour and refreshment our customers expect.”

It added: “The new alcohol-free lager offers a clean flavour with a hint of lime freshness and a crushably light cereal character. This 0.5% marvel is the perfect thirst quencher for any spacewalk, space-run or space-sit-down. Is there anything better to stock your fridge with for the remainder of summer?

“Speaking on behalf Paul [Halsey] a lifelong Villa fan and the wider Purity Group we are all truly honoured we can continue to build and grow this highly successful relationship with one of the countries longstanding and well-respect ed football clubs.”

DISTRIBUTIONEXPANDSBREWERYCURIOUS

BREWERS JOURNAL12 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 NEWS

Purity Brewing Company, the mul ti award-winning sustainable brewer announced today a two-year extension of their three-year supply agreement with English Premier League side Aston Villa Football Club.

Danny McColl, owner and managing director at McColl’s Brewery said: “The brewery is now five years old, and the idea of a rebrand had been raised for some time; a positive consequence of the pandemic allowing us time to breathe, reassess and plot a path for ward.

ALCOHOLLAUNCHBEAVERTOWN0.5%LAGER

PURITY VILLAWITHPARTNERSHIPEXTENDSASTONFC

Wirth Curious Brewery currently seeing MAT sales growth above 50%, Loungers joins other hospitality businesses includ ing Coppa Club restaurants and bars, which stocks both Curious Session IPA in keg and Curious Apple in bottles; Italian casual dining brand Prezzo, stocking Curious Apple in bottles; and expanding Indian street food brand Mowgli, stocking both Curious Session IPA and Curious Apple in bottles.

Matthew Koep, brand manager of Goose Island Beer Co. said: “The Aldi Goose On The Loose IPL is a chance for us to show case the flavourful craft beers that have made us famous whilst doing it in a new way that will invite more beer drinkers into the world of Goose Island.

Wasps Rugby and Championship Cov entry RFC, alongside high-profile events in the Coventry Building Society Arena and festivals such as, Moseley Folk, 2000 Trees, BlueDot and Kendal Calling. Newly appointed Purity Group CEO Andy Maddock, said on the new agreement: “We are absolutely thrilled to announce our contract extension with Aston Villa and Compass Levy.

Beavertown has launched its first ever alcohol-free lager, Astro-Nought.

ALDI TO STOCK GOOSE SPECIALISLAND

Curious Brewery is enjoying strong sales growth following the launch of its new Pilsner, as well as building significant ontrade listings for its range.

Supermarket Aldi and Chicago’s award winning Goose Island have teamed up to launch an exclusive special edition lager Dry-hopped with Mosaic, Cascade and Amarillo, Goose On The Loose IPL oozes aromas of peachy-pine and malty biscuit. Refreshing and full of flavour, this combination of a crisp, fruity lager and the hoppy taste of an IPA is the perfect accompaniment for summertime sipping and al fresco dining.

“After focusing on elevating the quality of our beers over the past 12 months – and we do feel we’ve created a great founda tion to build on – a consistent and quality look was the next logical step, to now represent the quality of the beer”

look that celebrates where they are from and the communities they are part of while hopefully appealing to people beyond the craft beer bubble.

The agreement will see Warwickshire based brewer’s unique Aston Villa brand ed Purity Pale [developed at the start of 2019/20 season] continue to be sold across Villa Park as the Official Ale for all match days and events through to May Since2024.

He continued: “We’ve wanted to create something positive, fresh, and easy on the eyes – something that will appeal to everyone from your mother to your mates, whilst celebrating where we are from. We have also endeavoured to make the brand and packaging reflec tive of the easy-drinking beers that we produce.”

Curious Session IPA is now stocked in all 164 café bar venues operated by the award-winning Loungers group.

2005 Purity have become re nowned as the market leaders in the Midlands for great quality modern day craft beer. In the last seven years the brewer has established themselves as lo cal brewer of choice to partner with elite sporting stadia including Premiership

2,0002,5001,5001,0005000 2017/18 2017/18 2017/18 2017/18 2017/18 1,489 brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | NEWS13

“Some UK brewers that were startups only a few years ago are now major play ers worldwide. They now have access to

James Simmonds, partner at UHY Hacker Young, said: “It is remarkable that Britain’s craft beer boom is entering its second decade and is still registering significant growth in startups.”

BREWERY

SLOWS

distribution in both the on and off-trade that younger brewers cannot yet match. Startups can still grow quickly through lo cal and online sales if they have the right product and branding, however.”

The data comes from a Freedom of Infor mation request made to HMRC by UHY Hacker Young.

200 new breweries opened in the UK last year, meaning that there are now 2,426 breweries in operation across the UK, shows a new study by UHY Hacker Young, the national accountancy group. UHY Hacker Young said that the growth in brewery startups has started to slow as the craft beer market becomes increas ingly competitive. Growth in the number of breweries, while still impressive at 9.1% in 2021/22*, fell for the third consecutive year (see graph right), having stood at 17.7% in 2018/19.

1,753 1,985 2,223 2,426

lenge of making a success of a startup in the sector is now greater than it was.”

UK NUMBERS UP BUT GROWTH

“The attraction of starting a craft brewery still remains for many. However, the chal

Gravity Systems was formed to meet the growing demand in the craft beer market for a single source for all brewhouse, fermentation, services generation and distribution. It is our aim to be the most complete partner in the brewery industry by building long term partnerships with our customers. +44 (0) 1733 834264 | www.gravity-systems.co.uk www.evolution-cooling.com01218208946 Providing quality cooling solutions and support to enable your brewing processes to run smoothly andWeefficiently.canoffer: Ø Nationwide support Ø Emergency call outs Ø Routine maintenance/ service Ø Innovative design solutions to support your individual requirements Ø A wealth of experience and knowledge in the brewing sector

IN HIS LATEST COLUMN, TIM O’ROURKE, TECHNICAL EDITOR AT THE BREWERS JOURNAL, OUTLINES FOAM’S ROLE IN THE BEERS WE BREW, THE IMPACT IT HAS ON APPEARANCE AND WHAT WE CAN DO TO IMPROVE FOAM PERFORMANCE.

irst impressions count. Most consumers drink with their eyes and appearance is often more important than taste, the beer you make should be presented nicely. One of the key visual impacts comes from good foam. Flat beer with no foam looks like cold tea and is not appetising.

When considering beer foam, it is necessary to look at two complementary conditions to ensure a satisfactory foam performance:

In the case of lager this is carbon dioxide, but in the case of ales it is a mixture of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. When the beer is poured out (either from bottle or draught) the gas bubbles break out from solution and rise to the top. This

Adequate head formation is required to make sure that sufficient foam remains during the consumption of the beer.

u The head retention, which is the ability of beer to retain a head once it has formed, after dispensing.

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effect is called “tracing” and many beer glasses have roughened bases to act as nucleation sites to encourage tracing.

POINTTALKING GETTINGAHEADINBEER

In some markets bottle beer is drunk directly from the bottle and head has no impact on the quality perceptions of these beers.

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 15

The structure of beer foam and is breakdown occur in four stages:

Beer is a supersaturated solution of gas.

To serve good draught beer requires a partnership between the Brewer and the Pub; there is a lot of things a Brewer can do to ensure his beer looks great in the glass and that there is a lot of things that happen in a pub to frustrate this!

u The head formation, which is the ability of beer to form a head when poured.

These proteins form a ring around each bubble reducing the relative surface tension and stabilising the foam.

LARGER LACING

u Lager beers – between 5 and 6 g/l carbon dioxide

Diagrammatic representation of how hydrophobic proteins and iso alpha acids help in stabilising beer foam

u Ales – (usually but not always lower) at between 2.5 and 5 g/l. The carbon dioxide content is often supplemented by 15 to 20 ppm nitrogen gas for mixed gas dispense.

u Coalescence occurs as the beer drains away, bubbles grow larger by combining and reducing internal gas pressure and surface tension.

Bubble formation will also be influenced by external factors such as temperature. The solubility of carbon dioxide in particular increases with a decrease in

u Drainage, after bubble formation drainage of beer from the foam by gravity starts to occur and the bubbles shrink and collapse. The rate of drainage can be reduced by factors such as small bubble size, the number of hydrophobic interactions, reduced surface tension, and increased liquid viscosity. Other components, such as lipids from food or brewing materials, dirty glasses and some cleaning fluids disrupt the bubble film causing the foam to collapse

Different gasses behave differently, with mixed gas dispense a combination of car bon dioxide and nitrogen giving a much crisper foam and smaller bubbles. Since the bubbles are smaller there is less entrained beer producing a whiter foam.

GAS AND FOAM

The foam in beer is generally considered to be the head on the top of the glass. There are also other important visual effects from the foam adhering to the side of the glass called “Cling” or “Lacing”. This effect is particularly noticea ble in beers, which form larger heads and have better foam performance. In mainland Europe most draught beers can be served with large heads without attracting the wrath of Weights and Measures. Unfortunately, in the UK the pint glass is a legal unit of dispense and unless over-measure glasses are used, this limits the amount of head permitted on a glass of draught beer.

u Bubble formation occurs where bubbles are formed at nucleation sites in the glass in a supersaturated beer. Gentle pouring and low surface tension encourage the formation of smaller bubbles, which produce more stable “creamy” type foam.

u Disproportionation is when large bubbles get larger and small bubbles get smaller as the small bubbles pass their gas to the large bubbles. The pressure, not the volume, equalizes between bubbles, so the small bubbles shrink as they lose gas, and the large bubbles grow as they gain gas.

Bubbles must be created in order to form a head. This requires a minimum level of dissolved carbon dioxide or mixed gas (mixed carbon dioxide and nitrogen).

which encouragers the formation of gas bubbles and gas breakout improves the stability of the gas bubbles and will consequently improve the presentation and foam stability of the beer.

BREWERS JOURNAL16 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 TALKING POINT

Relativefragments.surface tension is reduced in beers by hydrophobic proteins and isoacids interacting with the bubble walls to form a protective film around the bubble.

temperature, and hence beers dispensed at low temperatures (for example very cold lager dispense) will produce less foam unless the carbonation level is increased proportionately Different gasses behave differently, with mix gas dispense which is a combination of carbon dioxide and nitrogen giving a much crisper foam and smaller bubbles. Since the bubbles are smaller there is less entrained beer producing a whiter Anythingfoam.

The main factor which reduces the surface tension in the foam and stabilizes the bubbles is hydrophobic (water hating) protein or polypeptides. These hydrophobic proteins come from the raw materials principally the malt. Foampositive proteins can be divided into two fractions based on molecular weight: u high molecular weight (HMW, 35–50 kDa) fraction containing mainly protein Z 23 u low molecular weight (LMW) fraction containing LTP1 (lipid transfer protein 1) and a mixture of hordein and glutelin

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Hance McGhie says: “With recent reports showing that hospitality staff are working longer hours to keep venues afloat, and the staffing crisis still rumbling on after

CRUCIALHYGIENEDEVELOPMENTANDINANDCELLARMANAGEMENTISFORRUNNINGANEFFICIENTSHIP.HEREJEFFSINGEROFBEERPIPERANDHANCEMCGHIEHELPEXPLAINWHY.

“It’s been said that a well-kept cellar can directly increase profits - and we

“Staff should be trained up properly, and time should be invested in these training sessions. It’s all very well to learn on the job for some aspects of hospitality; drinks creation, service and even the usage of tech in some cases- but hygiene, cellar management and beer line cleaning are all aspects of the role that need special attention and cannot be done “on the job” or picked up during a shift.”

“Having engaged, proactive and happy members of staff can make the difference between success and failure, and will have a profound effect on team member retention levels. The most important way to ensure staff members feel this way is with training and support, and considering much of bar work takes place behind the scenes, ensuring that your team is well trained and knowledgeable on cellar management, hygiene and cleanliness and beer line maintenance will result in a tight ship that runs smoothly with no issues.

COMMENTSTAFF

STAFF TRAINING

Jeff Singer from Beer Piper, the UK’s leading beer line cleaning firm, and Hance McGhie from Chemisphere UK, which manufactures and sells a wide range of top quality cleaning products for the hospitality industry, look at why staff members can make the difference that is required to stand out from the crowd and run a tight yet effective and welcoming ship.

s the country and its hospitality industry began its post-pandemic recovery, we breathed a collective sigh of relief as punters were able to head back to their local bars and pubs, restriction free, for the first time in many, many months. The cheery optimism for the hospitality sector, however, was short lived, as - in the first few months of 2022 alone - the industry faced a series of new challenges that were somewhat unforeseen by bar and pub operators, managers and landlords.

“The cellar is the true engine room of the pub or bar, and should be treated as such” continues Hance.

STAFF: THE KEY TO SUCCESS?

Covid, it’s more crucial than ever to invest in your team members and ensure they are valued and appreciated.

RUNNING A TIP TOP CELLAR

INPRODUCTIVITYHOSPITALITY

A

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 19

“Cleanliness is absolutely king, and the cellar needs to be cleaned thoroughly at least once a week with the correct sanitising products and kept clean throughout the day - much like a commercial kitchen. Regular cleaning will prevent the build up of bacteria and also help the air quality to remain tip top. Both of these things can affect beer quality, as dirt and unclean air can make beer go off and increase wastage - or, even worse, produce sub-standard pints for punters.

Rising energy costs, soaring inflation, co2 issues, staff shortages and supply issues have conspired together to present a harsh playing field for many, which is bolstered even further by varying levels of consumer confidence and the tightening of purse strings as a nation. After several lockdowns, Brits are well versed at entertaining themselves at home and creating premium drinks and special occasions for friends and family, so - with such a rocky outlook - what can our much loved and unique pub and bar sector do to run as efficiently as ever, while attracting consumers and ensuring they are always served great quality ales and beers?

“Our latest BP4 machine uses high tech systems to clean beer lines to perfection - eliminating the need for manual cleans altogether. What’s more, it enables you to sell the beer in the line as it’s being cleaned, saving waste and - criticallysaving money.

“It can be hard to find the time for these kinds of endeavours, but it will absolutely result in the saving of time and money in the long run.”

BEER LINE CLEANING

“For millennial or GenZ staff members, the tech aspect may appeal, as the system uses cloud based technology and a mobile app to run, log and provide real-time information on the cleans. As this age group is usually comfortable

Jeff Singer comments: “If you think of beer line cleaning and immediately sigh at the thought of arduous, time consuming manual cleans that take staff members out of the picture for hours, you need to consider installing a system that takes care of this aspect of cellar maintenance and does it to the highest standard.

with tech and adept at using apps and systems, training them up to use the mobile tech is a great way to keep them engaged and capitalise on their personal

wholeheartedly endorse this notion. But how do you empower staff to keep this side of the business running smoothly?

“Firstly, take the time to train staff in how to clean the cellar itself, maintain the coolers and clean the beer lines. Write up a rota and a day to day guide for what has to happen, and by what time. Make it easy to understand so anyone starting a shift can understand where they are up to and hit the ground running.

“Again,skills.

“On top of this, tell them WHY the correct cleaning products need to be used and WHY clean beer lines are so crucial. Explain WHY coolers need to be maintained and the temperature needs to be constant. Topping up knowledge will help staff members to feel engaged and to understand the reasons why certain tasks need to be completed.

BREWERS JOURNAL20 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 COMMENT

as Hance said, taking the time to explain WHY clean beer lines are critical for drinks quality is a good way to keep staff members interested and engaged. Beer from unclean lines can be fobbed, flat and taste awful, and - considering cask and craft brewers pour their hearts and souls into their creations - serving sub-par pints is a huge no no and will directly affect sales and customer Howsatisfaction.”toinspire productivity in hygiene and Hancecleanlinessadds:“As we have said, hygiene and cleanliness is one aspect of the job, together with customer service, front of house management, food service, drinks creation, the usage of tech/machinery

“Lastly, for all aspects of staff training and development, don’t forget about rewards, praise and encouragement. Having a monthly meal out, free drinks at the end of a shift or even a weekly/monthly “star” with a small prize can do wonders for morale and productivity.”

“Including cleanliness procedures in this introductory session will set out your stall from the word go, communicating the importance of running a tight ship when it comes to hygiene.

“Considerscenes.producing a handbook or document that can be emailed and

“When it comes to hygiene and cleanliness behind the scenes, nominating one staff member per shift to be the “clean genie” could be a good way to inspire productivity and empower team members to embrace accountability and responsibility.

“The best way to train staff and ensure they are engaged and productive - in all aspects of the job - is to have a dedicated “orientation” procedure, or live introductory training programme. This could take the guise of a two/three hour or longer session where a senior manager or the landlord takes the new staff member or members for a tour of the venue and takes them through all aspects of the job that they will need to know straight away.

Firstly, take the time to train staff in how to clean the cellar itself, maintain the coolers and clean the beer lines,” Hance McGhie

presented in person with information and procedures that all staff members will need to know. And ensure any needto-know information is easily accessible within your venue and cellar.

“As stated earlier, cellar management is worthy of its own training, so carving out the time for a dedicated session will ensure that you run a tight ship behind the

“For any specific aspect of the job, e.g. Beer Line cleaning, consider outside training sessions or educational courses that can help staff members to learn the intricacies of each element.

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | COMMENT21

and systems and more.

As a small aside, and given the rise in popularity of low alcohol and zero alcohol beers and ciders, it is worth noting that any drink below 0.5% ABV at the time of sale falls outside of the definition of an alcoholic drink and therefore would be exempt from what follows.

As a basic principle, it is illegal to sell alcohol in the vast majority of the universe, outside of licensed premises.

L

So, a sale will only ever be a sale if it is to a consumer. But we still have not clarified what a ‘sale’ in this context is. For instance, if you buy a ticket to an event

WHAT CONSTITUTES A SALE OF ALCOHOL IN ENGLAND AND WALES. ARE THERE GREY AREAS? AND WHY DOES IT MATTER? HERE, PIERS WARNE, A LEGAL

which includes a ‘free’ drink, would this be a sale? What if you give alcohol away to customers, but ask for a voluntary donation, or perhaps, make it necessary for the person receiving the free drink to buy a beer mat, for, say the price of a pint? All of these have been tried in the past. Most have fallen foul of the law.

BREWERS JOURNAL22 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 COMMENT

This is because the first offence set out in the legislation relating to sales of alcohol makes it illegal to ‘carry on to attempt to carry on’ a sale of alcohol from any premises not licensed to do so. This includes premises with a licence where the sale is outside of the scope of that licence. This is why the old fashioned ‘lock-in’ is illegal. The offence, if there is deemed to be a sale, can occur Soanywhere…whywould it be a sale, for instance, to give away free drinks as part of an event where customers buy tickets to attend? Sales, in this context are broadly defined. Where there is a requirement to purchase a ticket before receiving any ‘free drinks’, this would be considered a sale as there is a clear value assigned to the gift of the alcohol, whether your guests take you up on the offer or not.

But matters are not quite that simple. Sales of alcohol are defined in S1 (a) Licensing Act 2003 as relating solely to ‘sales by retail’ of alcohol or, for completeness, supply of alcohol in the context of private member’s clubs. So, firstly, wholesale of alcohol is not regulated. This is explicitly set out in the Licensing Act (s.192(2), for those who are interested) as an exemption from the definition of sale.

et’s start with the basics: Licensing legislation in the context of alcohol is concerned with selling it from regulated premises. Therefore the world, according to law, is neatly divided into two: premises where alcohol can be legally sold; and the rest of England and Wales.

Therefore a ‘sale’ to a trader, a personal licence holder, a premises licence holder or a premises user in relation to a temporary event notice permitting sales of alcohol- where that person is then selling the alcohol on, is not a ‘sale’ in the eyes of licensing law. The reason is this: only the person selling the alcohol to the consumer needs to hold a licence. In practical terms, a brewery does not need a premises licence to sell alcohol, so long as the sales are wholesale. This is well understood, of course.

BEER SALES AND CAUTIONARY TALES

SOLICITORSLICENSINGSPECIALISINGDIRECTORINATTLTANDPARTOFTHEIRSPECIALISTHOSPITALITYTEAM,EXPLAINSALL.

Other enlightening examples of how this works in practice would be where a hairdresser or bridal boutique offers beer or Champagne to their customers. Where you are incentivised to purchase something, or you are offered a drink once you are in the barber’s chair or trying on dresses, you have value for the drink. This would therefore constitute a sale. To be a genuine give-away, and therefore not a sale, you would technically have to offer the same drinks to anyone passing by who asked, irrespective of whether they then committed to a bit off the top or to tie the knot, or not.

It is worth noting that the offence of selling alcohol without a licence, can lead to unlimited fines and potentially up to 6 months in prison for those found guilty of offences, so there can be serious consequences for trying to grift the

Onsystem.thepositive

However, some caution is needed to ensure that, if you are providing samples in public spaces, you have the relevant permissions from the council to do so. It is also worth bearing in mind that samples should be exactly that. Also, putting in place measures to ensure you are not giving away alcohol to minors and that samplers are not relying on your largess to get merry makes good practical and legal sense.

of the give-away. This is, of course, so long as there is no requirement for the sampler to buy anything.

As a principle,basic it is illegal to sell alcohol in the vast majority of the universe, outside of

Some people have attempted to get around having to hold a premises licence by offering drinks to anyone who asks, but then suggesting a ‘voluntary’ donation to keep the premises going, or a ‘voluntary’ purchase of a beer mat at a suggested price more akin to a cost of a pint than a circle of printed card. If the ‘voluntary’ element is in fact more like a ‘wink wink voluntary’ donation, again, there is value for the alcohol and this would not be legal. It is irrelevant whether you make a profit or not.

What is the key take-away here? Well, it can be summed up nicely by reference to the ‘sniff test’. If it smells like a scam, it is likely to be a scam. If you start with the premise that giving something away should come with no strings attached, you are unlikely to go wrong but if in

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side, let’s look at what

» Hop sinceProcessors2012

(and much earlier!)

» Hop development and sincebreeding2009

» Hop sinceGrowers1984

The company was purchased by a hop growing family. This same family are still the owners today, and have been growing hops since the early 1800’s.

Charles Faram Farms was formed to extend our grower family and share contracts equally and fairly amongst the members.

CFAA21UK_190x125_HFAMS1865_Oct21_v7 | 13/10/21 | PDF/X-1a © 2008-2021 j6c21.arr info@jammz.co.uk

» Hop Grower Group since 2020

To reduce time between the harvest and processing, we installed our own pelleting facility. This added to the freshpak whole leaf packaging we had pioneered in the 1990’s.

Helping brewers to create great beer since 1865

www.wellhopped.comHopFactors&MerchantsSince1865 Charles Faram & Co Ltd, Monksfield Lane, Newland, WR13 5BB Tel: + 44 (0) 1905 830734 Email: sales@charlesfaram.co.uk

To enhance the range of hop varieties available to brewers and to excite beer drinkers with new flavours and aromas.

accept that all great beer has a complex range of flavours, then the problem is that due to the biological nature of brewing, the intensity of any particular flavour is variable. The issue is to keep any variance within bounds. If you

You could argue that for a hop-forward beer than the hop becomes hugely important too. If your beer depends on one or two hop varieties then you had better be good at securing a good hop supplier and form a close relationship with them. You should also bear in mind that the storage of hops is very important because they will rapidly deteriorate and ultimately change the flavour of your

STRIVING FOR, AND

Thebeer.same

If we consider raw materials depending on the type of beer - so for a bitter/ pale ale I would say yeast is the most important. Brewing with different yeasts would leave you with massive inconsistencies. The ultimate disaster for London Pride would have been to lose our Fuller’s yeast.

I

could be said for malt, I always believed that meeting the farmers and the maltsters was hugely important. I do think that our maltsters in Britain produce very consistent malt. Malt was therefore the least of my problems at Fuller’s and we did change varieties several times during my 38 years at the brewery. Never once did we get a reaction from our drinkers.

I always thought that the hardest beer for me to make was London Pride. That was because of its popularity, and for so many beer lovers it was their favourite. I was also acutely aware when I became head brewer that despite brewing and drinking London Pride for 18 years, many drinkers had been drinking London Pride for longer and were expert on what they expected from the flavour. Something I believe all brewers should do is respect the consumer and actively seek their Nowopinions.ifwe

PROVIDING,BREWER.CONSISTENCYACHIEVING,ISAGOALFORANYBECAUSEPRODUCING,ANDARELIABLEANDCONSISTENTPRODUCTISHOWBRANDLOYALTYCANBEBUILT.ANDJOHNKEELING,GUARDIANOFFULLER’SLONDONPRIDEFORMANYYEARS,KNOWSEXACTLYTHAT.

have always said that making good beer consistently is the hardest job for a brewer. If you think about it for more than a few seconds as I have (well I spent the ten minutes before I started this article thinking about it) you might even agree with me.

So, how can you manage to make your beer as consistent as possible? Raw materials and process are hugely important also but don’t forget the cellar and distribution aspect. The last one is very hard to control because it is usually not the brewer’s direct responsibility.

Why would a biological product be 100% consistent? How can one field of hops be identical to the next field? Why does a living organism like yeast ferment the same way every time? Why does a field of barley grow identically each year? The answer is of course they don’t. So how can a brewer make their beer consistent. I would answer that a beer can only ever be consistent within a range of flavours, but it can never be 100% consistent. The trick is to tighten that range of flavours so that the drinker, when taking their first sip, instantly recognises the beer - especially if it is one of their favourites.

JOHNDEARTHE QUEST CONSISTENCYFOR

do this then in my opinion, the variation becomes a positive attribute and is the main factor in what we call the character or personality of the beer.

BREWERS JOURNAL26 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 27 DEAR JOHN

To me, going into a pub and meeting your best friend, who just has happened to have had a haircut, does not change the fact that they are your best friend. Equally going to the bar and drinking your favourite beer and noticing that it is little bit more fruity today does not change that you still enjoy the characterful flavour of that particular beer.

The production process needs to be controlled, measured and all data must be recorded. Only with that data can you keep refining the process to produce the consistency you desire. That is a neverending task. The feedback loop from final product tasting/consumer reaction back to the analysis and records of the brew is invaluable.

I have always said that the first few sips of London Pride should reassure you that it is London Pride, the next several sips should delight you with its flavour, some of which might be more intense than the last time you tasted it. That is the character of the beer.

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Along with Harvey’s Brewery, some 400 metres away and the somewhat newer Beak Brewery a mere mile down the road, Abyss Brewing is part of a growing and buoyant beer scene in this East Sussex county town. And while the duo’s Lewes-based brewery will soon celebrate that significant first milestone, the Abyss story started long before.

FRIENDS FOR NEARLY 30 YEARS, ANDY BRIDGE AND MELLORANDREWHAVE ALWAYS SHARED THAT CREATIVE FLAIR. AND IN ABYSS BREWING, LUCKY PATRONS IN LEWES AND BEYOND ARE ENJOYING THEIRBEERS,EXCELLENTTOO.

“They initially allowed us to open until 8pm during the week and 10pm at weekends, but over time they’ve extended that, as well as expanding the area we can offer as seating for visitors, too” smiles Mellor.

“Andrew was a great chef, even back then. He even had dreads!” recalls Bridge. “And let’s not forget Andy’s jazz goatee,” laughs Mellor.

Mellor meanwhile had embarked on a variety of chef roles, including one at The Prince George, a venerable establishment famed for its vegetarian menu on Brighton’s Trafalgar Street. Differing schedules failed to prevent the duo from meeting up every couple of weeks all in the aid of a great beer.

Bridge adds: “I was thinking, what?! This is Lewes you’re talking about. Andrew already runs a successful pub on the other side of town and there’s never once been a problem!”

The pair had met in 1993 while studying at art college in the Yorkshire city of Hull. “We lived together for two years and swiftly became adept at relaxing and cooking good food,” says Bridge. Despite the course coming to its natural conclusion, Bridge and Mellor found themselves independently gravitating back towards to the south of England. By the late 2000s, Bridge was involved in the world of DJing and promoting concerts, bringing over Balkan gipsy groups from Romania to play at Brighton venues such as Komedia and The Dome.

SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 29brewersjournal.info

The purpose of the call was simple. The duo had been given the platform to allay local fears, and answer any questions, regarding plans for the taproom operation that would be so integral to the identity of Abyss Brewing.

“And everyone that was on that call are now our best pals” says Bridge. And they’re just some of the amazing friends we’ve made along the way!”

T

ABYSSALEAP OF FAITH

Andy Bridge, co-founder of Abyss Brewing, remembers the day in 2020 with both a sense of humour and a semblance of anxiety.

Thankfully common sense prevailed and calm heads would rule the day. The local councillor on the call posed the question of whether Abyss could run without the premises license to serve alcohol that they were seeking. Explaining in great detail of why the taproom was such a focal point of their plans for the brewery, they would eventually win them over.

“We were getting pummelled right off the bat!” smiles Mellor. “We were told there would be vomiting in the streets and people doing drugs if this taproom was to open.”

“It got to the point where we were actively after a great pint,” says Bridge.

here we were, both dialled in on a Zoom call and boom - out of nowhere - 20 or 30 faces pop up.”

In early October, Abyss Brewing will celebrate its first birthday trading from its facility in Davey’s Lane. The Davey’s Lane area of Lewes is steeped in brewing history. The Abyss Brewery + Tap is inside an old Maltings building that used to serve the South Downs Brewery, which still proudly standing next door in Thomas Street.

East Sussex, like the rest of the UK, was in a state of lockdown. But Bridge, and his co-founder Andrew Mellor, were pressing ahead with plans for their exciting new brewery in the town of Lewes. They just had to go online to progress certain parts of it.

“I’ve always had something of a DIY punk attitude. When it comes to getting something done, I feel that if nobody can help me then I’ll do it myself. I had never really brewed before but I didn’t want that to stop me.”

BREWERS JOURNAL30 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 ABYSS BREWING

By 2008, Mellor had decided to pursue his passion for pubs by taking on The Pelham Arms, a 17th-century pub located on Lewes High Street. “Around the same time I visited my brother who had just moved to Brooklyn. Trying ‘Brooklyn Ale’ on draught was my first taste of US craft beer. It was revelation and, with those other beers I was enjoying, it really showed me what hop-forward beer could Mellorbe.”had

“So that meant Bengal Lancer from Fuller’s, Hophead from Dark Star and then beers such as Thornbridge Jaipur in Hebottles.”adds: “I also used to organise trips with my mates. There would be 10-12 of us heading to places like France or Spain under some sort of daft narrative. Once we had an epic visit to the Peak District and we found ourselves in a pub on the doorstep of the Thornbridge Brewery. “We were in this beautiful stone-walled pub that served great food, surrounded by countless cask lines of the freshest, most delicious beers you could ask for. It was the ultimate odyssey.”

Mellor had asked the pub’s owners if he could make a requisition of a room in the cellar of The Pelham Arms. Almost tunnel-like, the cellar leads through to the cellar of the adjacent St Pancras R C Church next-door.

“It was almost subterranean. But the nice chap from next door showed me around the similar space they had, too,” he says. “I thought I could use the space in the

“After a few years I found myself feeling a little frustrated with the range of beers I could offer our customers,” he remembers. “But we get on really well and they are very supportive, so late in 2014 I wrote them a letter suggesting that their beer range needed extending.

taken on the lease for The Pelham Arms from Hall and Woodhouse, famed for such brews as Badger Best Bitter, Tangle Foot and The Fursty Ferret.

Andy Bridge and Andrew Mellor, Lewes, August 2022.

It’s about taking that leap of faith and having belief in Andrewyourself,”Mellor

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 31 ABYSS BREWING

Early brews focused on hop-forward styles. A series of Pale Ales; Uno, Dos, Tres would reach Cinco, before hitting the taps at The Pelham Arms. Positive feedback followed. Mellor also discovered a love of Sorachi Ace, which formed a central facet of the hop backbone in its Tropical Thunder IPA.

Before long, patrons would be visiting the shuttered pub to pick up their pre-paid bottles of Abyss beer. Queues would form while locals would partake in brief, socially-distanced conversations.

“The people that gave us that early confidence in what we were doing were there once more, reconnecting with us. It was a real home crowd,” says Bridge. “The ability to pour from the pub taps, and our three Lindrs were saviours. Those little machines really helped us steer our business through a very challenging time.”

pub’s space to pop in a small brewery set-up. They said: ‘Go for it, as long as you’re not making cask beer!’” Mellor would procure an insulated Coleman water cooler, a mash tun, an electric boiler for the kettle and some plastic fermenters. Ingredients would come from businesses such as The Malt Miller and Brew UK.

“We had a cold store full of kegs and then the pubs shut,” Mellor grimaces. “We found ourselves asking what do we do? But we already had the framework online to sell merchandise and thankfully, I had already planned to offer beer to take-out, both from The Pelham Arms and the brewery, so we had a pallet of reusable bottles sitting in the yard. It somehow started to come together.”

Adam Hardie, head of food and drink at Johnston Carmichael and a judge of the Brew Accelerator, said at the time: “We knew Abyss was a worthy winner but the speed at which it adapted and implemented its business model following COVID-19 has been impressive.

“It’s about taking that leap of faith and having belief in yourself. We consider the abyss for its positive

While one possible location in Brighton had merits, there were fears surrounding the ability to expand. However the decision would soon have been taken out of their hands either way with Getir, an on-demand delivery service for grocery items and a courier service for restaurant food deliveries, showing an interest in the space - with the quoted rent swiftly doubling in the process.

“It’s been a tough time for brewers, who almost overnight lost their on-trade custom, but we predict big things for Abyss and its great tasting beers. We are already working closely with Andy, providing accountancy and tax expertise and input to the company’s growth plan.”

And Daniel Rowntree, co-founder of BrewLDN, which launched the Brew Accelerator, added: “Abyss has an embarrassment of riches; a great brand and product story, they brew awesome and consistent beer and have one eye on the future. They also have a charismatic and coachable founder in Andy Bridge and I look forward to working with him to take Abyss to the next level.”

While 2020 presented hurdles, it presented opportunity, too. With its eyes already set on further expansion, Abyss Brewing won the inaugural Brew Accelerator, from the creators of BrewLDN and supported by Johnston Carmichael. In doing so, the brewery secured the top prize of a year of mentoring and guidance, valued at £50,000. With the pandemic hitting shortly after, they worked with Johnston Carmichael to navigate the choppy waters that lay ahead.

the ability to carbonate in tank, early beers were conditioned in KeyKeg before additional fermentation capacity was added in the form of conical FVs.

“It was a time of slow, organic growth,” says Bridge. “We weren’t a brewery that was canning our beers straight out of the blocks, so we took things a little slower than Businessothers.”was

growing steadily, with an increased number of local on-trade customers opting to serve delicious Abyss beer. And then, you guessed it, COVID-19 hit. Like so many other businesses the team had to act, and they had to act fast.

BREWERS JOURNAL32 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 ABYSS BREWING

Bridge was being kept busy with his day job as well as various acting roles alongside his passion for live music. “But I was bang into the idea of a brewery. It felt like a good thing to do,” he recalls. But before Bridge could stomp the boards of East Sussex selling their wares, the new brewery would need a name. “In eastern philosophy, the abyss is viewed as a positive place,” adds Bridge. In the darkness, you will find the light. And we were born in a dark cellar here in Lewes, so there’s almost a physical abyss there, Mellortoo.”adds:

The positive qualities of Abyss Brewing’s beers certainly resonated with the patrons of The Pelham Arms, and by late 2017 the duo would outgrow those humble beginnings and move into new premises. This came in the form of a site on Palehouse Common in Uckfield, a spot vacated following the closure of Black Cat brewery. Brewing on a 2.5BBL kit, Bridge and Mellor had the confidence to take their beers to a wider customer Withoutbase.

“Hall and Woodhouse released me from the beer tie, something they had never done before in any of their other pubs,” he says graciously. “So I registered as a brewery with HMRC and secured my brewing license so I could sell some of these beers through the pub!”

connotations, and we hope others do as well.”

While Abyss successfully managed to continued to sell its beers through collection and online sales, plans remained afoot to move to a bigger, better facility. That involved assessing possible sites in Brighton and Lewes.

Come February 2017, following Hall and Woodhouse approval, Abyss Brewing’s beers were selling well on tap, and Mellor was gaining increased confidence in his abilities. Which is handy then because several months prior, a call to Bridge had “Ibeckoned.toldhimI wanted to start a brewery and asked if he’d like to join me. I knew I needed someone who could go and talk to people while selling our beer,” says Mellor. “He’s more extroverted while I’m the opposite, I guess.”

Image credit: Catherine Benson

It was the perfect fit, with contracts signed in October 2020. With the new space, the team would be able to expand production with the on-site brewery as well as welcoming visitors with a taproom, a permanent Mexican Street Food kitchen curated by Carlito Riestra (a pioneer in Mexican cuisine from Guadalajara) and a regular programme of events. And to help enable the fit-out of their bar, they turned to a crowdfunding “Ourcampaign.dream was always to have a brewery and taproom offering like so many of the great breweries in the US,” says Mellor. “It enables you to build connections with the community, host events and bring people into your world.”

“During this journey we’ve learned even more about the value of personal relationships and communication,” says Bridge. “We found ourselves going directly to the building merchants that we are lucky to call neighbours.

“We were frank and honest about the help we needed, and all they wanted to know was when we can pay for the goods and services. We gave them dates, stuck to our word and now have a fantastic community of local merchants that can call Abyss their local. They were far more helpful and practical than going through various hoops of finance.”

brewery, tap and retail unit took place from April to October 2021, with the first brew taking place that month. And a myriad of beers have been brewed and poured in the 11 months since. Both on-site and at guest breweries, collaborations have also seen the duo team up with outfits such as Salt Brewing, Saint Mars of the Desert, Atom beers, Arundel Brewery, and Play Brew Co.

“The taproom has really been integral to this business. It’s why we were so insistent on having one in the first place,” Bridge says. “It’s a foundation to this brewery that can hopefully only get better and better.”

Turning Unit 3, also known as The Malthouse, into a fully-functioning

An initial target of £15,000 was hit within several days, with a stretch goal of £30,000 met by the end of the campaign.

“Call us naive but we didn’t know the funds were treated as income so in the end HMRC would take their cut,” Bridge smirks. “I only say that as a word of advice to other breweries that want to embark on Thesimilar!”teamwould call on Johnston Carmichael for advice as part of their prize from the Brew Accelerator win, while also exploring other modes of funding and finance.

Mellor adds: “One comment we always get is how warm and welcoming the brewery feels, despite it being a warehouse on an industrial estate. Abyss is just not a place for us to make and sell beer. It’s somewhere for us to host events and give people a sense of belonging. From day one we wanted this space to be an inclusive, welcoming environment and I think we’re doing just that.”

“Our future is to build on the solid new base we have built adding more capacity and possibly more retail. And if the right site presents itself we shall act! There are also more possibilities to add to our site in Lewes, so lots to get excited about.”

The Abyss Brewery + Tap has become a focal point for the Lewes community.

“Brighton is obviously a great location but Lewes was by far the better option for us. We didn’t want to get lost in the noise of Brighton and for a business like Abyss, word-of-mouth is everything. That is a real quality of the community here,” says TheirBridge.search included a unit in The Davey’s Lane area of Lewes. A stone’s throw from the River Ouse, the historic splendour of Harvey’s and the centre of town, the spot is adjacent to Tigermoth coffee roastery and a sleuth of building merchants.

BREWERS JOURNAL34 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 ABYSS BREWING

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DIGITALISATIONDIGITAL

The ME43 communicates with the PLC via the vendor-specified protocol, while supporting digital communications with field devices through the reliable Bürkert EDIP (Efficient Device Integration Platform) network. EDIP is based on

KIERAN BENNETT, BÜRKERT’S INDUSTRY

Data communicated by digital sensors is also crucial to improve maintenance and minimise downtime. Diagnostic data, as well as information such as the total number of lifetime cycles, can be used to plan preventative maintenance, lowering the prospect of breakdown. Instead, using analogue devices, the alternative is reacting to faults, as well as the prospect of downtime for repair and replacement.

While PLCs are based on digital communications, at the field device level, many networks still rely on analogue Forcommunications.systemslikethis, from the control of steam temperature to liquid flow rate, the PLC sends analogue signals to field devices, such as valves and sensors, that return signals as required, also via analogue communications. Meanwhile, the PLC communicates with the human machine interface (HMI) via Ethernetbased, digital signals.

SIMPLE CONVERSION

MANAGER FOR FOOD, BEVERAGE, CHEMICAL &

saving time and costs for wiring and Evencommissioning.ifyoudon’t

BEVERAGEMAKESPETROCHEMICAL,EXPLAINSWHYTRANSITIONINGSENSEWHENUPDATINGDEVICESINYOURFOOD&OPERATIONANDALSO,WHYTHETRANSITIONTODIGITALCOMMUNICATIONSISEASIERTHANYOUTHINK.

immediately plan to add devices, transitioning to digital communications enables significant operational improvements as a result of improved data availability. Unlike their analogue counterparts, information from digital devices can be logged and analysed to optimise the process. This can achieve cost savings, productivity improvements, and higher product quality. The data from digital devices is also more reliable compared to analogue, with higher measurement accuracy and repeatability.

To enable analogue communication, additional output and input (I/O) modules that convert digital signals to analogue and vice versa, are added to a PLC. Each analogue-enabled field device requires its own I/O module, adding cost incrementally. While existing users have already invested, expansion to the system will increase the cost burden. Alternatively, digital communication reduces costs in the long-term. Taking a new installation, with a Siemens PLC and six field devices connected via analogue I/O modules, nearly £1,000 can be saved in hardware by converting the network to industrial Ethernet.

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 37

I

Converting to digital communications can be as simple as adding a fieldbus gateway in connection between an existing PLC, Ethernet-ready mass flow controllers (MFCs) and sensors. This removes the cost and complexity of the PLC’s multiple analogue I/O modules, replacing them instead with a single gateway device, like our ME43. A single gateway can connect up to 256 inputs, all with licence-free integration.

For existing systems, multiple new devices can be added at no extra cost once the initial, modest investment for an industrial Ethernet gateway has been made – with no extra PLC vendor licencing costs to add. Connecting devices via digital communications is also far simpler to manage compared to traditional analogue connections,

ANALOGUEOVER

n today’s food and beverage sector, even relatively small sites such as microbreweries use PLCs (programmable logic controllers) to manage their operations.

COST AND COMPLEXITY

To immediately transition without the cost of replacing valves, you can convert them to digital-compatible communications. Our 8681 control head acts as an adaptor to convert third-party actuators for integration with various Ethernet protocols, saving significant cost, especially for applications with high valve Howevercounts.the transition is managed, digitally connected devices will provide a cost payback over time. Most significantly, the information they provide will create a more profitable and efficient operation for the future.

BREWERS JOURNAL38 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 DIGITALISATION

Digitally connected devices will provide a cost payback over time and most significantly, the information they provide will create a more profitable and efficient operation for the future.

An alternative is to use the IO-Link protocol, although the IO-Link master gateway can only integrate a maximum of eight devices. Of course, you can integrate field devices directly compatible with your choice of PLC vendor without using a gateway. However, this adds a significant licence cost per device, and in reality, doesn’t add a practical performance benefit. Gradual transition

It’s also possible to interoperate field devices with a mix of analogue, fieldbus and digital communications. Adding an ME44 module to the ME43 fieldbus gateway integrates analogue I/O

alongside digital. As a result, you can gradually transition your field devices from analogue to digital as they reach the end of their service life.

CANopen, the industrial communication protocol used in millions of cars around the world.

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BREWERS JOURNAL40 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022

make cheese, or make beer. Thankfully, he opted for the latter…

S just what is Free-Thinking Beer?

Positions at breweries such as, ironically, Cheddar Ales in Somerset helped John build on his experience with both he and Jess increasingly enamoured with the world of independent craft beer and the innovation that came with it. “We were both excited by those early days of craft and felt it was something that we wanted to do. So he left his then job and spent a year writing a business plan while we raised finance to make this thing a reality,” she recalls.

And for someone with a microbiology degree, he had two ideas. He could

opinions to revolutionise a style and create something fresh, interesting but always outstanding.

For establishedstrivePowderkeg,Devon-basedtheysaytheytolookbeyondtheideasand

“We officially incorporated the business name on the fifth of November 2014, because we thought that was a great date for a business called Powderkeg Brewery to come into existence, on fireworks night!” Jess Magill smiles. “John was a market research executive when we were living in Australia together. When we moved back to the UK, he didn’t want to continue with a life of suits, offices and presentations.”

And in starting out, even in those formative weeks and months, they recognised the importance in creating accessible, flavoursome beers that wouldn’t alienate the consumer.

POWDERKEG THE ART BALANCEOF WE ALL COME INTO BEER FROM DIFFERENTPERSPECTIVES,WITHBACKGROUNDS,DIFFERENTDIFFERENTWITHGOALS.ANDWHENJESSANDJOHNMAGILLRETURNEDFROMSEVERALYEARSSPENTLIVINGINAUSTRALIABACKINTHEMID2000S,THEYHADANINKLINGTHATTHEWORLDOFBREWINGWASFORTHEM.INDOINGSO,THEY’DEVENTUALLYGOONTOSTARTPOWDERKEG,ATEAMOFFREEDOM-LOVINGBEEROBSESSIVESCARVINGOUTTHEIROWNPATHWITHCURIOSITY,CREATIVITYANDDEFIANCE;ASTHEYSAY-THISISFREE-THINKINGBEER..

“So when it came to making beers that we wanted to make, and we wanted to drink, we knew we needed to strike a balance and not alienate local consumers. The question was how do you straddle tradition and the styles

In Cut Loose, one of the UK’s very first dry-hopped pilsners, they’ve reimagined a classic German-style Pilsner by pepping it up with New Zealand hops; additions they explain that move past traditional techniques to elevate a beer beyond expectations. And taking influences from craft beer across the globe, they tell us they are on a mission to create flavour-packed, easy-drinking session beers that excite craft aficionados and the casual drinker alike.

“All of this while juggling two toddlers while I carried out self-employed event management work. It was quite a crazy time with us selling our house to put that money into the pot. Imagine those games of poker where the player puts all of their chips into the middle, going all in. That was us. It felt like the right thing to do and the right time. So why not go for it?”

“When the idea of Powderkeg was becoming a reality, the beer scene in Devon was heavily focused on cask beers, with real ale far and wide. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still hugely popular, but it wasn’t the direction we wanted to go,” says Magill.

They’re a small, dedicated team who have spent years honing their skills, giving them the expert brewing knowledge to break the rules with a bit of style, making the beers that really satisfy their curiosity, creativity and thirst. But before the team started their journey making award-winning beers, they were on a journey on a different kind on the other side of the world.

Imagine those games of poker where the player puts all of their chips into the middle, going all in. That was us, Jess Magill

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | POWDERKEG43

Jessway.”

Powderkegproduce.”

came out the blocks brewing on a 20bbl kit, equipment they knew they could grow into, and have added more FVs along the way. And in 2022, a new significant investment has arrived in the form of a canning line setup supplied by Vigo, a Devon-based specialist in drinks equipment. Aided, in part by local grant funding, the kit, an ABE Craftcan 35 with an auto depalletiser, twin Z-rinse, in-line labelling and inkjet date coder, can fill both 330 and 440ml cans, at a rate of up to 35 per minute.

“When it comes to beers like Cut Loose, it’s a case of respecting brewing traditions and the tech-niques involved but also allowing ourselves to put our own twist on things,” says Magill. “We’ve never been overly interested in replicating beers, following the trends and just being a cover act for that brewery or that beer. We much prefer to put our own stamp on the drinks we

“This year we will prioritise canning our own beer and gaining industry accreditation, then in 2023 we will look to offer a contract canning service.” says John. “It’s a really exciting move for us to have full quality control over our end product and develop the business in this

that make sense to this demographic, while introducing people to beers you are confident they will like, given the Andchance?”that meant introducing said drinkers to flagship beers like Cut Loose, a 4.7% Pilsner lagered for 50 days featuring a dry-hop of Herbrucker, Motueka, Wai-Iti, and the tropical double dry-hopped Green Light Quarter IPA, which comes in at 1.2% and has won legions of fans and multiple awards for it’s ‘anytime, anywhere’ possibilities and full flavour.

echoes this, outlining that the team are taking their time to ramp up production. “We’ve only done a couple of runs so far, with the plan this year to concentrate on in-house packaging before going out to trade in 2023 with a contract offering. So it just means that actually it’s a very low pressure way of going into it, with the grant funding

“We feel that you should give people something interesting to immerse themselves in when enjoying your beer, and Jem has helped us do just that,” she says. “He is able to translate ideas into images and we’re lucky to have his creativity featured on the beers we make.”

In offering those contract services, Magill sees the brewery being able to work with more of the Devon community, a community it has long been proud being a part of.

Jess, John and the team at Powderkeg that also includes head of sales and marketing Dan Poulson and lead brewer Josh Pitts are understandably looking forward to canning more of those very beers on their new canning line. And for Jess, she’s hoping they can just continue getting on with business after a rollercoaster few years.

community, providing patrons with locally-made beer remains a point of satisfaction for Jess, John and the team. And when they enjoy those beers, they can also appreciate the striking branding from Jem Panufnik that adorns them, too. Jess worked with Panufnik at Finger Lickin’ Records, a London-based record label, during the late 90s and recalls his “insane imagination” which, in 2022, now embellish Powderkeg’s branding.

She explains: “For us, running a brewery is making this business the best it possibly can be. And I don’t mean one that is solely chasing profit. It’s about how we conduct ourselves, being a welcoming space for people and playing a small part in people’s lives. The Devon scene feels healthy, and thriving. And we’re happy and proud of the role we play in it.” Playing their own part in the Devon

“It’s a case of finding a new rhythm because the last couple of years have been all over the shop for so many of us,” she says. “I think most breweries would probably be saying the same. We just want some normality, if such a thing exists.”

And while the machine will offer a raft of benefits you get from in-house packaging, that contract offering to other breweries was an important a factor in pressing ahead with the investment

allowing us a bit of breathing space to find our stride and hopefully grow more organically.”

BREWERS JOURNAL44 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 POWDERKEG

“We have struggled to find anybody locally who was doing what we wanted in the way we wanted,” says Magill. “So we know that there’s obviously going to be a demand for that service. And we believe it’s important to promote local business, especially at a time where more people want to buy local. Not only that but by bringing canning in-house, we are helping cut our carbon footprint, too.”

We feel that you should give people JessusJemyourwhenthemselvestointerestingsomethingimmerseinenjoyingbeer,andhashelpeddojustthat,”Magill

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | POWDERKEG45

Devon-based Powderkeg has recently brought its canning in-house with a contract offering to the trade launching next year.

CANNING BREWERS JOURNAL46 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022

BATH PACKAGINGALES’PROCESS ST AUSTELL IS ONE OF THE UK’S LEADING BREWERIES. SO WHEN IT MADE THE DECISION TO INVEST MAJORLY IN THE PACKAGING OPERATION FOR ITS BATH ALES BUSINESS, THEY TURNED TO A COMPANY THAT COULD HELP ENABLE THIS EXCITING NEW CHAPTER IN THE BREWERY’S HISTORY. SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 47brewersjournal.info

A single common accessway reaches to the secondary packaging area with two packing machines opposite each other with one operator for both machines. A second operator has a work area off

he South Gloucestershire village of Warmley is home to approximately 9,289 people. Located not far from Bath, the village is home to such intriguing sights as a 250 ton ice house from the 19th century, the tallest, oldest and most complete industrial ore-crushing windmill tower in the country, William Champion’s Zinc and Brass Works which was, in the 18th century, probably the largest industrial site in Europe, The “Warmley Giant” and Bath Ales who are part of St. Austell St.Brewery.Austell Brewery, based in Cornwall, purchased Bath Ales in 2016 and set about building them a £7 million stateof-the-art production site that opened in Warmley in 2018. Bath’s award-winning

And why Warmley? The latest investment in the Warmley site has seen the installation of a flexible world class canning facility. The project was some time in the planning and Enterprise

range of beers includes Gem amber ale, Lansdown IPA, and Wild Hare gluten-free pale ale.

BREWERS JOURNAL48 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 CANNING

PACKAGING ACCESS

St. Austell Brewery established in 1851 have been instrumental in making “Cornish Beer” famous in its own right and almost an AOC (Appellation d’Origine Controlée). Their beers have very strong following both in Cornwall and around the UK and include such iconic brands as Tribute, “Proper Job”, Korev lager and specials such as Baobab, Cardinal Syn and Divine Intervention, a Belgian Quad brewed at 13%.

T

Tondelli as specialist suppliers of canning and bottling equipment were selected as one of the line suppliers. The space allocated for the project was compact, so line design was a challenge. Enterprise Tondelli provided a number of line designs which were optimised until revision 12 was selected allowing good materials access, third party equipment, common working areas and an efficient use of space whilst still giving an efficient operation.

The label material performs the same as a standard PP self-adhesive material and is highly durable, and can be supplied in clear or white faced material. The BRB labeller is able to handle both these and other types of labels without any difficulties.

SUSTAINABLE APPROACH

A full length high level platform supplied by Enterprise allows full access to both the depalletiser and all empty can conveyors. Open electronic architecture allows Bath Ales to adjust the machine as required. A VPN provides remote

Craig Wilson, managing director of Enterprise Tondelli, added “It was a great pleasure to work with Bath Ales and the team who were very collaborative. Despite some challenges given by covid, customs, shortage etc the final result is a tribute to Bath Ales and St. Austell and we look forwards to working together on any future projects that may arise. I now know where Warmley is and what it is really famous for.”

Conscious of their environmental footprint, ionised air is used for can cleaning saving around 8,000 litres of water per shift. A fully enclosed can drier from Eurosistemi with adjustable drying nozzles remove any water prior to coding and packaging. Empty and full can conveyors from depalletiser to packer were manufactured by Eurosistemi and supplied and managed by Enterprise

As a sustainable business the company wanted to ensure that smaller runs of non-printed cans can be labelled with ‘Wood Film’ labels which were developed in conjunction with the large papermills of Scandinavia. Tese oils are extracted as a by-product of the paper making process and converted into a chemical structure which forms the basis of a white and clear Polyolefin Wood Film self-adhesive material.

Enterprise Tondelli have been working in the industry since 1977 and supplying equipment in over 40 countries. The Bath Ales project is just one of the latest projects by Enterprise that have ranged in scope from Kombucha bottling, nitro beer canning and turn key beer bottling. Suppling canning lines 1,500 to 72,000 cans per hour , bottling from 600 to 60,000 bph and kegging lines too. This wealth of experience ensures Enterprise add something to all their projects.

Brewing director, Georgina Young said: “Over the years I have worked with many suppliers in this industry and had not worked with Enterprise Tondelli before and found it a positive experience. Their continuing attention to the project throughout the process and unfailing willingness to adjust to our requirements has been refreshing.

the central accessway for the selfadhesive labeller and filler and lid feeder magazine. A link conveyor allowed the use of an existing robotic palletiser to maximise utilisation of assets. On the project there were four other suppliers contributing to the overall success. Enterprise Tondelli supplied a high level empty can depalletiser manufactured all in stainless steel from its subsidiary Eurosistemi. The unit can handle both layer sheets as well as recyclable plastic interlayers with a high level magazine.

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | CANNING49

access for support reducing total cost of Pressureownership.type combiner for empty can conveyors feed into a triple channel gravity can cleaner. Automatic divert gates at the rinser inlet allow feeding of the various can sizes down dedicated lanes reducing change over time to a simple switch. Can inversion is by easy openable “suitcase” type machined plastic can twists rather than conventional bars.

“As the conveyor supplier for the project, Enterprise became key in the management of the project. They dovetailed with hard working and dedicated St. Austell and Bath Ales teams and other contractors on site.”

Bath and St. Austell have historically tended to the turn key approach which can sometimes lead to equipment compromises. However they have been very pleased with the result this time by selecting some of the best suppliers in the industry who are specialists in their fields.

The main Euroistemi conveyor control cabinet is located out of the way on the high level platform so a local operator panel was located at low level adjacent to the labeller/filler well for easy access. Again to reduce cost of ownership and provide support in real time a VPN is also fitted to this panel.

ATondellisixteen platform self adhesive labeller supplied by Enterprise Tondelli from their manufacturer BRB Globus applies a wraparound self-adhesive label to plain cans. To prevent can crushing during this operation and to give an effective adhesion the cans are pressurised with air on the labelling carousel. Guillotine guards allow easy access to the machine which is also fitted with a vpn connection for remote assistance in real time.

Brewers Halfpage - 190x125mm.indd 1 11/01/2022 15:19

“We were facing the reality of order minimums and looking for alternative options that would allow us to increase our small-run seasonal package presence at retail,” said Dustin Kellner, Brewery Operations Manager, Worthy Brewing Co. “We had tried both shrink wrapped cans and pressure sensitive labels on blanks and disliked both due to the downstream issues of recyclability.”

“Utilisingadded.theSolucan

After exploring various options, Worthy Brewing contacted Soulcan, a Canadian beverage can printer dedicated to providing craft brewers and brands

WORTHY BREWING IS A

service, our can designs are also no longer hindered by numbers of colors or the degree of design complexity or detail – their service offering, powered by the Tonejet Cyclone, has transformed our go to market opportunities.”

It also brews a variety of seasonal beers, leveraging Solucan’s totally customizable digital offering for its packaging – which provides greater versatility in the number of SKUs, as well as removing minimum order constraints. “Worthy quickly realised that we could meet their production requirements.

Armed with a game-changing digital print offering that provided a new level of flexibility for short-run production and removing its previous reliance on the larger can providers, Worthy quickly realised that the Tonejet technology could meet its production challenges head-on and open new business Direct-to-canopportunities.

with the ultimate beverage can supply chain flexibility required in today’s competitive market. “Solucan offered a competitive solution that addressed all our recyclability concerns, while also providing a superior finished product,” Kellner

Unsurprisingly, companies like Worthy Brewing with its ‘Earth First, Beer Second’ motto are looking for environmentally friendly solutions to get products to market quickly and move away from the use of plastics and adhesives. Direct-to-can digital printing is proving to meet these environmental demands and boasts a wealth of other benefits including a new level of design freedom and no minimum order quantities (MOQs). Oregon-based Worthy Brewing is a sustainability focussed, solar-powered brewery. The company has implemented various green initiatives in recent years and recognising that there’s always a need to do more, recently turned its focus to beverage can decoration.

raft beer production, and in particular the decoration of beverage cans, continues to face increased pressures.

digital printing technology has enabled Worthy to respond quickly to changing trends and unique sales opportunities – providing the freedom to explore other products, with new sales outside of the traditional craft beer market in non-alcoholic beverages. Worthy brews six signature year-round craft beers, in six designs produced every two to six weeks.

BEER WORTHY OF THE PLANET

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | CANNING51

SHORT-RUNBARRIERSBREWERYSUSTAINABLEINOREGONUTILISINGTONEJET’SDIGITALPRINTINGTECHNOLOGY.HEREISTHELOWDOWNOFHOWTHEYREMOVEDPREVIOUSLYASSOCIATEDWITHBEVERAGECANDECORATION.

C

This is due to minimum order quantities having risen dramatically, with the increased use of shrink sleeves and labels used to decorate them, negatively impacting the environment and the aluminium recycling process.

Using a combination of digital printing inks and industry standard over print varnish, Tonejet printed cans have a better look and feel than traditionally printed cans and remain 100% recyclable without the use of any plastics or adhesives to maximise the full-circular recycling of aluminium.

“Craft beer has always been a huge potential market for our technology. Worthy Brewing understands the importance of can design while being conscious of the environmental impact of its packaging – something we are ideally suited to deliver,” added Rob Day, CEO at “SolucanTonejet. has excelled in its mission to support the beverage industry as it moves away from plastic packaging, and the variety of customers they are producing cans for speaks volumes for the Tonejet technology and its “Wecapabilities.hadtried

A sizeable craft brewery, the company were ordering truckloads of cans sourced from one of the largest can providers, but this was resulting in huge inventories and cash flow issues. The introduction of digital print for beverage cans for Worthy has provided a sustainable solution enabling a more dynamic supply chain and revolutionised the way they do business,” said Sebastien Baril, President at SolucanSolucan.prints

We were facing the reality of order minimums and looking for Co.WorthyDustinretail,”presenceseasonalouruswouldoptionsalternativethatallowtoincreasesmall-runpackageatsaidKellner,Brewing BREWERS JOURNAL52 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 CANNING

both shrink wrapped cans and pressure sensitive labels on blanks and disliked both due to the downstream issues of recyclability.”

directly onto 355ml and 473ml cans using its Tonejet Cyclone and Tonejet Cyclone C4+ pallet-to-pallet decoration lines. The Tonejet Cyclone models offer a total system approach that enables customers to work with cans from any source.

Trust Christeyns Food Hygiene’s Solutions for High Quality and Consistent Results. Caustic CIP Chlorinated line cleaners Foam Free Detergents Neutral Detergents for manual cleaning PerAcetic Acid THEBALANCEBREWINGPERFECT WWW.CHRISTEYNS D From Single Machines To Complete Plants Tel : 01525 718288 E mail : info@enterprisetondelli.co.uk Website : www.enterprisetondelli.co.uk

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The team, led by managing director Hamish Glenn and head brewer Jacob Hobbs, have a mission. And that’s to take locally sourced quality ingredients and create perfectly-conditioned beers that are both accessible and full of flavour.

focus, they also support other local breweries both large and small. In the spring of 2022 the brewpub took advantage of a local council grant to expand their offering by investing in a canning line. After looking at the available equipment options, they chose a recently launched CF15 Automatic Canning Line from Innovus Engineering.

WHEN HACKNEY CHURCH BREW CO MADE THE DECISION TO LAUNCH THEIR NEW CORE BEER RANGE INTO CANS, THEY OPTED FOR A COMPACT TWOHEAD CANNING LINE THAT CAN OUTPUT A PRODUCTION CAPACITY OF 1000 CANS PER HOUR.

Although a compact machine, it has all

COMPACTCANNING

amed after the parish church across the road, London-based Hackney Church Brew Co has created a welcoming space where everyone can enjoy tasty beers and food.

The CF15 is the latest model in the CF range of machines - a compact two head canning line with a production capacity of 1000 cans per hour. Innovus designed the CF15 to fill an important gap in the beverage canning line market.

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | CANNING55

The state of the art brewhouse produces a wide range of styles, with seasonal specials alongside their newly launched core beers. As part of their community

sensor monitors the incoming beer pressure. As the CO2 supply is fed to the control panel, it passes through a solenoid which micro-doses CO2 to the tank top, maintaining consistent product pressure at the filler.

As well as two CO2 purging tubes before the fill heads, and one at each fill head, a secondary purge of CO2 when the fill valves are lowered can be added. This is helpful if the canning line is left temporarily unattended. The built-in timer automatically purges again if the can wait time exceeds the limit set by the operator.

CANNED CREATIONS

To increase the level of automation and allow their canning line to be operated by one person, Hackney Church

Apanel.pressure

When designing the new CF15, Innovus also enhanced the statistical records and trends available on the HMI touch screen, and a new can per minute counter was added. If the canning run has a specific quantity of cans to fill and seam, the machine will pause and display an alarm when the target can count is reached. Fluctuation in tank top pressure can be an issue on CO2 supply with a standard regulator. To address this and eliminate CO2 break out, the CF15 has an inbuilt adjustable pressure monitor in the control

Brew Co also invested in two Innovus integrated rotary tables for can infeed and collection. Other optional equipment for the CF15 includes a date coder and can Doublelabeller.seam

integrity is vital in canning. All Innovus can seamers have mechanical seaming operation, which gives significantly more consistent performance than pneumatic operation. Their machines are supplied with a comprehensive tool kit, including a seam micrometer and seam tear down tool, so that customers can carry out accurate seam

Innovus canning line has enabled Hackney Church Brew Co to launch their new core beer range into cans and to increase their small pack presence in the market. The move to a core range meant there was a more regular canning requirement and justified the investment in equipment for in-house canning.

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the expected industry leading features such as automated lid dispenser and undercover gassing, plus a pre-fill purge and post-fill gas injection for consistently low levels of dissolved oxygen. The CF15 fills and seams standard, slim and sleek cans, and changeovers between different can heights are quick and easy. Advantages over other machines on the market include fully adjustable filling, and smooth and consistent conveyor transport of cans to minimise dissolved oxygen pick up, plus a separate motor for the air blower to prevent pressure dropping in the compressed air line to the machine.

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“I am so pleased to be continuing this dream of mine, and to have investors that

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 59

SPEYSIDEBACK IN BUSINESS

The brewery was mothballed for a short while when the pandemic hit but has attracted new investment and is set to re-launch from bigger premises.

orres-based Speyside Brewery, which produced beers and lagers influenced by the area’s rivers and landscape, will be recommencing production a few yards from its original site.

“In larger premises with our equipment, recipes and passion, we will be targeting markets that I believe have always been under-served by beers from Speyside, and Scotland in general. Servicing that and responding to our loyal local customers will mean we’ll be flat out from the get-go.”

The brewery’s charismatic founder, Seb Jones, will continue as managing director and lead the company’s development. Speaking from the famous Telford bridge landmark at Craigellachie on Speyside, he said the industry has emerged from the pandemic in a different shape with new challenges and markets.

F

A HEARTBREWERYPIONEERINGINTHEOFSCOTLAND’SSPEYSIDEWHISKYCOUNTRYISBACKINBUSINESSAFTERACOVID-INDUCEDBREAK.

believe in it just as strongly is fantastic,” he explains.

The brewery first opened its doors in 2012, the first in the area for over a decade. Using Speyside area icons to name its beers, it collected a host of awards. In 2016 the brewery teamed up with one of Speyside’s biggest distillers to create a ground-breaking IPAinfluenced whisky and a beer aged in the same single malt casks. The formula has since been copied by many breweries and distilleries across Scotland.

I am so pleased to be continuing this dream of mine, and to have investors that believe in it just as strongly is fantastic,” Seb Jones. BrewerySpeyside

Urquhart Brothers Ltd is an investment company started by Stuart and Richard Urquhart in 2022 with the aim of investing in businesses they believe in and see potential. Combined, the brothers have 30+ years’ experience in the commercial and operations side of the alcohol industry. Speyside Brewery is the second investment made by the company; Quantock Brewery in Somerset was the first earlier this year.

Re-starting production will see beers such as its Speyside lager influenced by local beauty spot Randolph’s Leap, and the big-selling Findhorn Killer IPA, named after one of most successful salmon flies used in the area’s peaty rivers.

BREWERS JOURNAL60 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 SPEYSIDE

Naidene Urquhart and restaurateur Katalin Urquhart said they were delighted to be part of the story that brings Speyside Brewery back into production.

“We’ll be resurrecting many of our beers, and I’m already developing some new ones too,” he adds.

“Seb and Speyside Brewery produced exceptional beers and it’s great to be able to help that journey continue,” they say.“In addition, it had very strong roots in the Speyside and Forres community, which we are very keen on growing along with the brewery.”

“Many of the new beers will be in direct response to the changing landscape of the drinks market. But importantly for our local economy we’ll be creating employment, which along with happy customers I find the most satisfying elements of business.”

Speyside Brewery is actively recruiting a head brewer and administration personnel, with more jobs to be created later in 2022 and in early 2023. New directors, Moray businesswoman

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The great thing about this fest is that many of the smaller breweries get an opportunity to showcase their beers to a large audience. 80 brewers presented 500 beers, with many specially brewed for the occasion and 68 new beers being available for the first time. And we only had two days to work through that lot!

BELGIUMBREWINGINBRUGES

Well the 14th edition of the Brugs Bier Festival was going to be different. Firstly, it wasn’t held on the first weekend of February. De Brugse Autonome Bierproevers (or BAB) wisely pushed the date back to have more chance of reduced restrictions allowing the festival to take place. So the festival was held on the second weekend of April, just before Easter. Another change was a new venue! After years of moving around the city with the Markt, ‘t Zand and Belfry being used recently, the festival found a new home. The old Beursehalle just off the Zand square has been replaced with a stateof-the-art facility. The brand new Bruges Business and Convention Centre opened its doors in the New Year and is a perfect location for the festival.

Lots of space, plenty of ventilation, truly outstanding food, many bathrooms (essential for a beer festival) and outside space for those who need a break. Upon entry you purchase a bier kaart with credit for beers. This can be easily topped up via a QR code which links you to a payment site. This system proved to be seamless and other festivals could learn from this.

What wasn’t different was the triumphant return of the international bottle swap at De Bierboom. Everyone’s favourite pre-fest party was once again awash with outstanding beers, great food and the best company you could wish for (including Kristof from Fort Lapin who stopped by with e delivery). Marshalled as always by Maitre D Rudy Vossen the evening was awash with brewers, retailers, beer tourists and enthusiasts from all over the world. And they bring their beers with them.

BREWERS JOURNAL62 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022

An Oude Bruin Harvest 2021 at 6% abv was a perfect start to a long day. Man, these guys know their craft. Two more treats on show was the new nitro porter Ants Pants 4.9% abv and Naked Kameradski at 15% abv. I have always loved the company of the guys from the industrial park in Anzegem. Always on

THE BRUGES BEER FESTIVAL RETURNED EARLIER THIS YEAR, FOLLOWING A COVIDENFORCED ABSENCE, AND PAUL DAVIES WAS STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BLOCKS TO TAKE IN THE GREAT AND THE GOOD IT HAD TO OFFER. AND THAT MEANT SAMPLING SOME OF THE WONDERFUL 500 BEERS AVAILABLE.

B

ack on the first weekend of February 2020, a high old time was being had at the 13th beer festival in the beautiful city of Bruges. The usual pre-fest bottle swap at De Bierboom, followed by a sore head on the morning of the fest. Hanging out with old friends, meeting new ones and enjoying delicious beers from around Belgium. Little did anyone know that it would be more than two years before the next edition.

I felt that hitting some Oude Bruin from Brouwerij ‘t Verzet at 11am was a tad on the early side but as always I’m up for a challenge.

Expect heavyweight Belgian classics, homebrews and one-offs from regional producers. I always champion UK breweries and pitched up with some faves from Boxcar, Boutilliers, Brew By Numbers and Skin Contact from London Beer Factory’s Barrel Project – so good that I was asked where in Belgium it had come from!

In 2022, the brand new Bruges Business and Convention Centre opened its doors in the new year and is a perfect location for the festival.

BREWERS JOURNAL64 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 BRUGES

beer nut and along with being a generous host is excellent company. Our quiet conversation was disturbed by the crew from Focus-WTV from West Flanders. It didn’t take long before I was being interviewed and asked for my British take on the festival and Belgian beer.

I always feel that the morning of a beer fest is the best time of day. Plenty of room, less queuing and the opportunity to speak and listen to friends in (relative) peace. I was delighted to bump into Lars Pillen, who along with Emmanuel Maertens runs the Bruges Beer

Fellow guides were in attendance and it’s always great to catch up with Liselot who runs Beer Secret and hosts tastings and tours in Bruges, Brussels and Ghent. Another guide who was there was Katie Van de Weghe aka Queens of Hop. Katie not only hosts events, tastings and tours but she also works at Bourgogne des Flandres and has been honing her brewing skills. She recently launched her first beer. Drama Queen was brewed at Brouwerij Stokhove and is an English

One beer unique to the festival is the BAB Mystere, commissioned from Brouwerij Strubbe, Ichtegem which is brewed in the former kettle of brewery Aigle Belgica, the renowned but defunct brewery of the seventies in Bruges. The beer is produced in honour of former Bruges resident and World War One flying ace André de Meulemeester who was

form, up for a laugh but forever taking their business extremely seriously. If like me you are a fan of roodbruin then join me at their Oude Bruin Fest in Kortrijk on the 7th and 8th October.

The morning of a beer fest is the best time of day. Plenty of room, less queuing and the opportunity to speak and listen to friends in (relative) peace,”

and can enjoy free beer at festivals when seen wearing the exclusive members t shirt. I jumped at the chance and can’t wait to get stuck in, and maybe get involved in a little brewing….

Paul Davies

LarsExperience.isafellow

Porter weighing in at 6.7% abv. Well what can I say? Hanging out with Jef Pirens of D’Oude Maalderij can be an experience. To put it mildly. Seriously it was great to catch up on all things D.O.M and his restaurant Mash. Never standing still he has a number of plans up his sleeve with further collabs with other like-minded brewers, events and a new initiative ‘Orde Der Domestieken’ – a selected group of beer enthusiasts will act as ambassadors for the brewery and be available to assist at various festivals. In return ‘Domestieken’ receive special beers, insight into the beers and brewery

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | BRUGES65

So another BAB Brugs Bier Festival drew

The great thing about the festival is that many of the smaller breweries get an opportunity to showcase their beers to a large audience. 80 brewers presented 500 beers, with many specially brewed for the occasion and 68 new beers being available for the first time.

born into a brewing family and whose brewery merged with Belgica in Ghent to form Aigle Belgica. He also formed the Club Mystere where former pilots of the Great War were invited to his house for club dinners. He was also a painter and his works have been exhibited posthumously. The Mystere beer bottle is wrapped in paper depicting some of his Aroundart. the time of the festival numerous restaurants and bars also participate, featuring beers that are poured during the festival and a special beer of the month. The festival also encourages

donations to a. umber of charities, Pelicano which finances the basic needs of children in poverty; De Varens a special school for mentally and physically disabled children; BC Spermalie a special education primary school for children suffering from multiple disabilities; and Klub Tarnowski who support Ukrainian refugees arriving at the Polish city of Tarnow. Donations are made in a number of ways, either directly at the information booth or by donating your festival glass and/or remaining beer credits.

to a close. And next year it will be the 15th edition. And guess what? It’s being held in the summer on the 10th – 11th June! See you there, Cheers! Special thanks to Filip Geerts, Belgium Beer Board and Caitlin Mackesy Davies for their photos.

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SCIENCEWARM

u Vicinal Diketones – 2,3 butanedione (commonly called Diacetyl) and 2,3 pentanedione. Diacetyl provides beer with unpleasant buttery, butterscotch flavours.

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 67

Active live yeast in suspension is essential for the successful reduction of these unwanted volatile compounds which is affected by:

u Aldehydes particularly acetaldehyde give beer a “raw green apple” taint.

O’ROURKE,ARTICLE,LATESTTIMTECHNICALEDITORATTHEBREWERSJOURNAL,INVESTIGATESWARMMATURATIONANDCOLDSTABILISATION.

MATURATION AND COLD STABILISATION

These compounds are reabsorbed by yeast and reduced by NADH to produce less flavour active compounds as described in Article 4 and allowed to fall below flavour detection threshold.

u Temperature – the rate of diacetyl reduction in particular is accelerated at higher

Figure 1 shows the changes in flavour active compounds which increase during yeast growth (“overflow” metabolism) and falls as yeast reduces the compounds during the stationary phase.

Figure 1: The changes in flavour active compounds which increase during yeast growth

u Time – longer stand times generally allow for greater reduction of unwanted volatile compounds; excessive time can result in poor yeast health with a gradual increase in raw flavour compounds being released particularly diacetyl.

IN HIS

The main flavour active compounds involved are:

W

arm maturation (secondary fermentation) occurs on the completion of primary fermentation when the growth (budding phase) is complete. As yeast transitions from growth to maturation yeast metabolism changes from producing the compounds necessary for budding and focuses on producing energy storage compounds such as glycogen and trehalose necessary for facing a period of starvation. The reactions involve flavour active compounds, associated with raw flavours, being reduced in order to recycle NADH to NAD.

Figure 2: Effect of temperature on the rate of VDK (diacetyl in mg/l) reduction.

which produces condition.

In 4B: Modern fermentation systems take advantage of improved equipment and a better understanding of warm maturation. The wort is collected between 10 and 120C and usually allowed a free rise to 13 to 140C. At 1/3 original gravity the temperture is allowed to free rise as high as 200C to complete diacetyl removal

before being centrifuged and crash cooled to 00C for cold stabilisation.

Kräusen adds live yeast and sugar to produce an active secondary Øfermentation.>Yeastscavenges any residual oxygen from the cask.

Ales for keg and small pack are brewery conditioned with a warm diacetyl rest for 1 to 2 days before being cooled to between +2 and 00C for sedimentation, they can then be filtered and packaged (usually with some form of pasteurisation or sterile filtration) or packaged unfiltered which provides oxygen scavenging with some microbiological resistance. Ale yeast shows little growth below 60C and so there will be little metabolic change at low Reducingtemperature.diacetyl is more problematic in cooler lager fermentation where temperatures could be as low as 8 to 90C. Fermentation and maturation are

fermentation and is then slowly cooled over several weeks to 00C for sedimentation and stabilisation.

In a traditional two-vessel process, lager beers are transferred following primary fermentation and cooling (to approximately 40C), into a separate vessel, where residual sugars (maltotriose and sometimes maltose) are slowly fermented. At the same time,

Ø > Yeast reduces residual diacetyl and acetaldehyde

In 4A, traditional fermentations wort is collected at around 60C and allow to rise to 90C before being cooled through a series of steps to 40C to settle the yeast. The green beer is transferred to warm storage along with 10% actively fermenting beer at 90C for a secondary

Ales have warmer fermentation temperatures which accelerates the reduction of the raw flavours. Cask ales still have residual fermentable extract and viable yeast to allow conditioning in the cask either in a temperature regulated beer store in the brewery or the customer’s cellar.

u pH – lower pH improves the rate of redox reactions and favours wort acidification and vigorous fermentation.

Figure 3: Traditional two stage fermentation & maturation process

When fermentation is finished the beer is cooled to 40C to settle the

temperatures, but once achieved the beer should be cooled.

usually treated as separate steps, but there is significant overlap between the two events.

BREWERS JOURNAL68 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 MATURATION AND STABILISATION

> Secondary fermentation gives off CO2

yeast and the beer is transferred to the “warm maturation” barrels. 10% actively fermenting beer from a later fermentation is added as kräusen.

In figure 3, Wort is collected at around 60C with a fermentation time of between 7 and 10 days and a top temperature of 90C.

Cold-fermented beers heighten “green” flavours production compared with beers produced using a higher fermentation temperature and requiring a longer period of warm and cold maturation referred to as “Lagering.”

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 69 MATURATION AND STABILISATION

off-flavours are reduced, and the beer becomes carbonated as the yeast continues to give off carbon dioxide.

In addition, there are rapid maturation methods available: u Passing warmed beer through an immobilised column of yeast to remove diacetyl u Adding an enzyme (alpha aceto-lactase decarboxylase) which converts alpha acetolactase to acetoin avoiding the production of diacetyl.

Figure 4a: Traditional lager fermentation profiles

Figure 4b: Modern lager fermentation profiles

With the introduction of rapid warm maturation processes, many brewers carry out fermentation and warm maturation in the same vessel, reducing times to 1 to 2 weeks, and the beer is centrifuged, and crash cooled for 2 days to 2 weeks cold stabilisation before filtration. The reduced process time has obvious appeal allowing lager beers to be produced in 2 to 4 weeks which requires fewer storage vessels.

The original reason for the “Lagering” of beers in Germany was due to regulations

Some breweries add kräusen, (a small proportion of fermenting beer), before the beer is transferred to a “Lagering” (cold storage) vessel. The introduction of active yeast during this process can help the beer mature more quickly and produce vigorous natural carbonation.

Eric Toft’s Brewmaster at Private Landbrauerei Schönramer [4] in his podcasts describes how 28 to 35 days storage is required to provide a mellow more balanced flavours which starts to be lost after 40 days. This greatly depends on alcohol strength with stronger beers benefiting from longer Thestorage.same principles of longer storage benefits higher gravity ales. Since there will be little yeast metabolic activity it supports the observations of Masschelein and Murray that it is likely to be due to polypeptides leaking from aged yeast cells. Eric also considered there may be an increase in mellow esters. Extended storage with elevated temperatures results in yeast autolysis which contribute a meaty marmite flavour to the beer. These observations are endorsed by Richard Keen of Cotswold Brewery [5] which follows a gentle cold conditioning programme for his lager after warm maturation, gradually cooling the beer to 70 then 50 and then 30 before storing at 00C for at least 5 weeks. A blind taste

into the warm beer and is permanent haze.

Warm maturation is followed by a period of cold stabilisation at between 0 and -20C with lower temperatures being preferred. Little or no yeast metabolic activity occurs at these low temperature and the focus is on clarifying and stabilising the beer:

The first manifestation of the loss of colloidal stability is observed as chill haze, which is a reversible association between small low polymerised polyphenols and proteinaceous material. The tendency to form chill haze progressively increases over time. Oxidation of some polyphenolsflavonoids in particular, lead to the formation of condensed (polymerised) products. These are active precursors in haze formation, leading to permanent (irreversible) haze formation

restricting brewing to the winter months (between Michaelmas and St George’s day) which required the cold storage of beer to meet consumers requirement in the summer. Some traditional brewers continue to mature lagers between 4 –00C for several months in the belief that it provides a smoother fuller taste and Mostmouthfeel.larger commercial brewers dispute this difference and (Metrulasas [2]) at UC Davis could not find any changes in the chemical composition of beers after prolonged cold storage and concluded that extended cold storage had no effect on flavour development. In contrast Charles Masschelein [1] observed flavour improved in stored lagers which he attributed to nonvolatile compounds from yeast, probably polypeptides. Murray [3] also noted fuller mouthfeel in stored beer with an increase tripeptides such as gamma-Glu-Val-Gly & gamma-Glu-Cys-Gly associated with Kokumi activity in food by activating calcium receptors on the tongue to enhance flavour and mouthfeel. The effect is increased by CO2 top pressure to produce “harmonious palatability” in beer.

u Flocculation and sedimentation of yeast is required to produce brighter beer and is a pre-requisite for beer filtration. It is essential to keep the beer cold to avoid autolysis with regular yeast purging. u Formation of chill and permanent haze due to the interaction between proteins and polypeptides in the beer with complex polyphenols which can be removed by settling or filtration is required for haze free beer shelf life.

The extent to which a beer requires haze stability depends on its required shelf life and storage conditions after packaging. For beers requiring a longer shelf life, such as small pack beers, then additional physical stabilisation is required. Polyphenols (flavonoids) in the packaged beer can be oxidized to form larger chained tannoids, which react with protein molecules to initially produce chill haze and under more extreme circumstances produce a haze which persists

Oxygen catalyses the polymerisation of simple flavonoids which become three to four units long, and which are able to bond with a number of proteins via hydrogen bonds to form chill haze

The maturation or lagering is more than just removing haze forming particulates or reducing off-flavours. The necessary amount of lagering time and the cooling protocols should be constructed to optimise the merging and integration of the desirable flavours and aromas to ensure a smooth blend of characteristics. This process should be carried out thoughtfully in preference to rapidly crash cooling which can result in “spikes” of flavour instead of producing well matured and well-integrated flavours & Whetheraromas. extended cold storage is a relic from the original Germanic brewing laws or a genuine improvement in drinkability still remains a matter of opinion.

trial for standard lager beer (4% abv) after 2 and 5 weeks of cold storage showed a slightly smoother, subtle mellowness not present in the younger beer and with a noticeable increase is salivation in the mouth to create a better-balanced finished beer.

SIMPLE FLAVONOIDS PROTEIN

SIMPLE FLAVONOIDS PROTEIN

POLYMERISED FLAVONOIDS PROTEIN

BREWERS JOURNAL70 | SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 MATURATION AND STABILISATION

u Controlling the polyphenol content in the beer

As the polyphenols continue to oxidise larger complexes are formed, and some of the polyphenol/protein hydrogen bonds are replaced by more permanent ionic bonds. These bonds no longer break when the beer is heated and leads to the formation of permanent haze.

To avoid colloidal haze production the brewer has to control brewing by the selection of brewing materials and production and storage of packaged beer. These steps can be divided into:

6.communication.TimO’Rourke “The mechanism of colloidal instability in beer and its consequences for haze and flavour stability” Ferment vol 11 No 3 1998

brewersjournal.info SEPTEMBER~OCTOBER 2022 | 71 MATURATION AND STABILISATION

To avoid colloidal haze production the brewer has to control brewing by the selection of brewing materials and production and storage of packaged beer. These steps can be divided into:

As the polyphenols continue to oxidise larger complexes are formed, and some of the polyphenol/protein hydrogen bonds are replaced by more permanent ionic bonds. These bonds no longer break when the beer is heated and leads to the formation of permanent haze.

u Controlling the physical conditions in the brewing process Process aids can be added to reduce proteins or polyphenols. By optimising the brewing process, it is possible to produce beers which are stable for up to 3 months without additional treatment. However, if a longer shelf life is required chemical stabilisers are recommended.

2. Laura K. Metrulas, Christopher McNeil, Carolyn M. Slupsky, Charles W. Bamforth “The application of metabolomics to ascertain the significance of prolonged maturation in the production of lager-style beers” Journal of the Institute of Brewing Volume 125 2019

3. James Murray “Beer maturation: lessons from the past … and some” Brauwelt International 2020

Figure 8: Summary of process aids available to stabilise beer haze formation

u Controlling the protein content of the beer

CITATIONS & FURTHER READING

4. Eric Toft - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIHfZ60MJwM & https://player.fm/ series/craft-beer-brewing-magazine-podcast/ep-244-eric-toft-of-schonramer-is-fixated5.on-consistency-drinkability-and-characterRichardKeenefounderandHeadBrewer of Cotswold Brewing Company personal

1. Charles Masschelein “Biochemistry of Maturation” Journal of the Institute of Brewing Volume 92 1986

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