Library

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Return of the home brewer: A brew-off of home-brew kits at HQ

By: Shane McNamara

01/03/2015

A recent analyst report predicted the top five brewing trends for 2015. The first, that craft breweries would consolidate and continue to be bought out by the big guys, seems fairly obvious. Another, that was a bit more of a surprise. In the first of two reports, The BDI takes a look at homebrewing, which is expected to continue its recent growth and popularity over the coming year.

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Apple Magic! A visit to Highbank organic farm…

By: Gerry McGovern

01/03/2015

Our Irish correspondent Gerry McGovern takes a trip to County Kilkenny to see what can be produced from a few fields of apple trees. From syrup to pink gin (and lots of cider).

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EU geographical indications in a growing micro-brewing sector

By: Frank Vriesekoop, Maricruz Rodriguez Herrera

01/03/2015

The consumption of locally-produced beers is increasing in many countries. Much of the recent interest has been associated with beer produced by small independent breweries reacting to a demand for a broader variety – which includes in many cases a return to more traditionally produced and tasting beers. In the UK, the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) has been successfully active since the early 1970s and now there is a growing micro-brewing sector – so could an EU directive

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A visit to The Hooded Ram in Douglas, Isle of Man

By: Roger Putman

01/03/2015

Some folk who like to calculate things reckoned that the Isle of Man, situated slap bang in the middle of the Irish Sea – and home to five breweries for a population of some 85,000 – held something of a record brewery concentration. Roger Putman reports.

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A Fyne new brewery

By: Owen Core

01/03/2015

Fyne Ales’ new brewery in Argyll was born from a need to increase production in order to expand sales, both domestically and for export. Having been brewing at maximum capacity on a 10bbl brewlength plant every week for two years, it was time to expand to supply a growing customer base.

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Campden BRI’s Professor Caroline Walker looks at some recent brewing patents

By: Caroline Walker

01/03/2015

Keeping track of the new ideas, developments and trends in brewing usually involves reading journals, attending conferences and a bit of networking. However, one of the interesting sources of information often neglected is patents, where novel ideas that someone felt were worth protecting are described.

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Peter Mauldon, his friends – and the UK ‘micro-brewery revolution’

By: Ian Hornsey

01/03/2015

When Peter Mauldon re-introduced brewing to the ancient Suffolk borough of Sudbury in 1982, he was furthering his family’s long association with the craft. In a brewing career spanning around 40 years, Peter worked at a number of breweries within the Watney empire, some of which, as we shall see, contributed greatly to brewing science. Peter grew up in a brewery environment and became familiar with the everyday workings from a very early age: “I knew what mash tuns and steam engines were all about by the age of eight,” he told me.