About Wilderness, brewers of interesting but approachable beer.

Hi – we’re James and Helen, and we run Wilderness. We’re totally independent, have no investors, it genuinely is just us in the company. While that has downsides, we get to run the business exactly as we want. For us, that involves being totally open and honest about what we’re doing, supporting progressive causes and working to minimise our environmental impact.

We make modern interpretations of traditional European beer styles. Most of our beer is aged and soured in our library of oak wine barrels, with mixed cultures of yeast and bacteria. The aim is to make interesting but approachable beer, so while the majority of our beer might be wild, we’re still reaching for balanced and accessible flavour profiles.

The brewery is located in a beautiful part of the world, wonderful (wet) mid Wales, and we have a small orchard up in the hills close to the England/Wales border which we use both as a source of fruit, but also for wild yeast and bacteria used in some our our wilder, spontaneously fermented beers – like our Perennial. 

It’s been a really eventful five or so years since we released our first beers. We’ve been nominated for (and won) some amazing awards (New Brewery of the Year, Brewer of the Year), and you can find our beers in venues ranging from old school locals to Michelin starred restaurants.

Since 2023 we’ve been working with Sophie Potter on our label and clip designs. Sophie is a Cardiff based artist, whose focus is typically on florals and botanicals which fits perfectly for us and even our previous designs. It was really important to us to find something that could translate the work we’re trying to produce for customers looking at a shelf of beer, or a line of taps. Our approach to beer is very soft, not rushed, and considered. We’re tending to our barrel store in the way that someone might tend to their garden. The working relationship we’ve built with Sophie is very representative of the working relationship between the art itself, and our beer. We’re very lucky to get to work with Sophie.  

We also love to collaborate with producers who we enjoy spending time with, we’ve made a lot of friends since we started, and this year alone we have products being released with Pastore, Balance, Ross Cider, Welsh Mountain Cider, BeerMoth, and more. We don’t just collaborate with drinks producers or bars, this year we are releasing a beer with Little Woodbatch who are regenerative growers local to us. Building, and fostering community with like-minded people is part of the work that means the most to us. 

We’ve had some really lovely feedback about our beers from Brewser customers over the last couple of years, and we’re excited to share our latest box with a whole new group!

Bristol Beer Factory: Brewing with Purpose

At Brewser, we celebrate breweries that craft exceptional beers and make a positive impact on their communities. Bristol Beer Factory (BBF) exemplifies this ethos through initiatives like “Clear Head” and “Brewed to Give,” demonstrating that brewing can transcend beyond pints to meaningful societal contributions.

We’re proud to highlight BBF as our Discovery Brewery of the Month this April. Their commitment to creating a positive impact extends far beyond their exceptional beer. We caught up with Kezia and Kari to dive into some of the incredible initiatives and achievements that make BBF a true force for good in their community. 

Clear Head: The Beer That Saves Lives

In 2019, BBF collaborated with Talk Club, a men’s mental fitness community, to create “Clear Head,” a 0.5% ABV alcohol-free IPA. This initiative began with Talk Club’s first session at BBF’s Tap Room, aiming to provide a comfortable space for men to discuss mental health. The partnership evolved into crafting “Clear Head,” with 5% of its total sales donated to Talk Club. By March 2025, these contributions surpassed £100,000, supporting the expansion of Talk Club’s services nationwide.  

Brewed to Give: Investing in Community Well-being

BBF’s commitment to community extends through their “Brewed to Give” program, dedicating 2% of total brewery sales to local charities. In the 2023-24 period, this amounted to £100,000 in cost-price stock, space, and sponsorships, benefiting over 150 charities. This support is projected to generate over £300,000 for Bristol’s good causes, exemplifying BBF’s dedication to uplifting their community.  

‘Connecting people over world-class beer is at the very heart of every BBF brew. Our community means everything to us which is why we donate 2% of every brewery sale to local charities. Since May 2023, when we launched BREWED TO GIVE, we have given £170k of stock, space or support, which has helped raise over £416k for groups making a difference. People often ask us why do we do it. And it is simple. We can and we should. The system is broken and those with the power to make change, are not getting it right. Our community made us who we are and we will always have their back. Together, we can raise up our city. We can make a difference’ – Sam Burrows, MD of BBF

Bristol Beer Factory exemplifies how breweries can intertwine quality craftsmanship with profound community impact. By supporting initiatives like “Clear Head” and “Brewed to Give,” BBF not only delivers exceptional beers but also fosters a culture of care and responsibility. Their efforts inspire both the brewing industry and beer enthusiasts to recognize the potential of beer as a catalyst for positive change.

Grab your BBF Discovery Box at Brewser today and enjoy an exceptional selection of beers – while also making a real impact and supporting incredible causes with every sip. 🍻

One of the first things that you notice as you approach Lost and Grounded Brewers is the rising mural that covers the face of the brewery which depicts the artwork of their flagship lager, Keller Pils. This is the beer they aimed to create when starting the brewery, and every week of the year their team devotes energy to making Keller Pils the best version of itself. 

The journey first began 25 years ago with our Co-Founders Alex Troncoso and Annie Clements homebrewing together before travelling the world, with Alex working for some of the best craft brewers across the globe such as Little Creatures Brewing and Camden Town Brewery. The name, Lost and Grounded Brewers, was coined by the co-founders when it was finally time to stop, make beautiful Bristol their home, grow an amazing business, giving them and their team careers and focus.

Operating from their 25HL state-of-the-art brewhouse in Bristol, complete with a traditional lactic acid propagation plant, they produce beers with balance, nuance and depth of character. Brewing sustainably is also a clear focus for their team, with many initiatives being implemented since brewing started 8 years ago. Some of these include the ongoing monitoring and optimisation of the brewhouse to reduce their energy consumption, installation of our 30 tonne malt silo in June 2022, and most recently the commission of our Energy Recovery System in February 2023.

From the very beginning Alex and Annie had a deep admiration of many traditional styles of brewing.  Before starting the brewery they pulled out their old brewing books, one of which was by the late Michael Jackson, the Great Beers of Belgium.  Re-reading this book ignited their love of Belgian-style beers, and motivated their original core range. 

As they’ve grown the last few years it has become increasingly difficult to maintain stock of all of their range year-round.  However, right now they find themselves at a very special moment in time and we have been able to secure a limited quantity of their entire core range – fresh and in stock.

Keller Pils, 4.8% Hop-Bitter Lager Beer. – “Their flagship and the benchmark for UK lager.”
Helles, 4.4% Unfiltered Lager Beer. – “Gentle and balanced.”
Running with Sceptres, 5.2% India Pale Lager – “Lager’s answer to IPA!”
Hop-Hand Fallacy, 44% Witbier – “Their take on a classic Belgian-style Witbier, spiced with orange peel and coriander.”
No Rest for Dancers, 5.6% Red Ale – “Their tribute to Belgian-style Dubbels.”
Saison D’Avon, 6.5% Belgian-Style Ale – “Their soft and fluffy version of this traditional Belgian-style Ale.”
Apophenia, 8.4% Tripel  – “The strongest of their core range.”
Running with Spectres, 6.8% Baltic Porter – “A once-a-year release of their strong Black Lager.”
Wanna Go To The Sun, 4.6% Pale Ale – “Their easy-drinking, peachy and citrusy Pale Ale”
Extra Nice, 4% Extra Dry Lager – “A Lager with purpose, 5p from each can sold supports Stonewall Housing.”

This award-winning brewery has also received some impressive accolades including ‘Beer of the Year’ with Helles and ‘Brewery of the Year’ at the 2022 Brewers Choice Awards, as well as a Gold award for Keller Pils in the Kellerbier/Zwickelbier category at the 2023 World Beer Cup Awards®, one of their most prized achievements to date.

You can grab their special ‘Lost and Grounded: In Full Flight’ box for December by heading to their profile and adding it to your plan today.

This box from Turning Point, based in Knaresborough, was timed with their release of Disco Kingdom, with four variants of their flagship Disco King pale ale which I’m really excited to drink because I’m a big nerd when it comes to comparing similar beers (and I really like Disco King!). 

The OG Disco King is 5.1% and hopped with Mosaic and Chinook. Lightly hazy, it’s got the perfect balance of big fruity hop aromas and a mouthfeel and carbonation that’s still crisp and refreshing, which I really like. I get lots of tropical and citrus fruits, all of them mixed together, with some tropical fruit candy, tinned mandarin and tinned apricot. The bitterness is low and it’s a real crowd-pleasing pale ale. 

Disco Jester is the beer I’m most excited to drink in this box. I’ve had Turning Point beers brewed with modern British hops before and they’re great. This one takes the same base brew as Disco King and swaps the US hops for Jester, Harlequin and UK Chinook, and it’s one of the best British-hopped pale ales I’ve had in the last few years. The best compliment I can give is that I don’t think many drinkers would know it was made with British hops if they didn’t know – you get a lot of juicy fruits, it’s reminiscent of tropical fruit squash, there’s apricot, fruit candy, citrus pith, and then just a hint of herbal, peppery bitterness which adds a distinctly British accent right at the end. Love it. 

Disco Tropical takes the already-fruity Disco King and adds pineapple to it plus more tropical-tasting hops. One of those hops, Sabro, can bring a coconutty aroma to beer and the first thing I thought when I tasted this was definitely pina colada. The pineapple adds some light tartness, which is refreshing and distinctively that of ripe pineapple (so doesn’t taste fake unlike a lot of tropical IPAs), then the added hops bring both a creamy coconut and more juicy tropical fruits. Nicely done!

Disco Midnight is Disco King reimagined as a dry hopped stout, and it’s very good – it’s also really interesting to see how the dry hops in a pale ale change when put in a beer with lots of darker malts. The base brew is toasty and roasty, but not bitter like espresso and it’s more of a dark malt complexity and depth. The hops which were all juicy fruits in Disco King are now like charred versions of those fruits – think grilled pineapple and baked stone fruits. The hops still come through really well in the beer, and there’s a brilliant integration of hops with the darker malts. Superb. 

Also in my box were four more of the Turning Point range. 

Their core range Pilsner is Nova, which is 4.6% and gluten-free. It’s a little sweet with some fuller malt flavours, then the two classic lager hops, Saaz and Tettnang, come through at the end. It has a very slight acidity to the beer, which is normal in a lager and can add nice refreshment, though to me that was just a bit too high and unbalanced the beer a bit (plus I’d have loved more flavour from those hops). 

Their Session NEIPA, Astral Voyage, is another core beer for Turning Point. It’s only 3.4%, and brings some nice aromas from Citra, Mosaic and Galaxy. It’s light with high carbonation, and has aromas like mango candy and citrus fruit squash. Nice and refreshing.

Sunshine Indoors is a mango and saffron lassi pale ale that’s 6% brewed with vanilla and lactose, to give that creamy quality of a lassi. The aroma definitely makes you think of sweet things and that continues as you drink it – it’s all sweet mango and vanilla (you need a sweet tooth for this one, I reckon). It had a bitterness that reminded me of jalapeno peppers, which worked well with the mango. I didn’t get too much saffron.  

Milk Foley is a 6.3% strawberry and cream pale ale, and another beer that’s on the sweeter side. The aroma was very nostalgic to me of strawberry and cream hard sweets I remember having as a kid, and also of the chewy strawberry and vanilla sweets. It’s got a lot of candy qualities, but keeps a bitterness of a pale ale (which is perhaps a bit too jarring for me!). It’s not my kind of beer, and is too sweet for me, but the flavour of strawberry and cream is a lot of fun! 

Ampersand Brew Co. are based in south Norfolk and I know them as a brewery that makes excellent versions of classic styles, and while I’ve had a few of their beers before, it was really good to sit down and taste through their full range, which included one of the best beers I’ve drunk all year. 

Pulpit Pale is 5% and brewed with UK Cascade and Olicana. I love these hops and love seeing British brewers showcase and celebrate them. The hops give some light grapefruit and tropical fruits, clean and fresh and fruity. The malt base has some breadcrusts and toast, which adds sweetness to balance a fairly high bitterness. Lovely stuff.

Camphillsner is Ampersand’s 5% lager which uses UK malt, German hops and Czech yeast for a pan-Euro Pils that’s a lovely bright yellow colour with distinctively pithy and floral German hops, a firm bitterness, and a gentle maltiness to hold it all together. 

Bidon, a 3.9% session pale brewed with Citra and El Dorado, has a nice light haze, a very juicy aroma with tropical squash, lemon, peach and apricot, with a refreshingly light body. This is one I want to sit in the sun and drink by the pint!

On The Wing is a 4.5% Hazy Pale brewed with Amarillo, Citra, Ekuanot and Chinook. It’s got soft and juicy stone fruits and lots of lovely lemony flavours like homemade lemonade, bitter lemon and lemon sherbet. 

Talking of lemons, Low Lemons is a 3.4% pale brewed with lemon juice and zest which is like a zingy and refreshing shandy with a bright lemon flavour. A great summer beer!

Honk Short Of A Gaggle is a 4.2% Cold IPA with Stata, Simcoe, Citra and Chinook. It’s got a lot of grapefruit in the aroma, lemon, pithy citrus, and a fairly robust malt body – I’d say too much malt for a Cold IPA (which I want to be like a light American lager), and it reminded me more of just a really nice pale ale. 

Basil Blush is a 3.3% raspberry and holy basil sour. It’s bright red, there’s tart raspberries, it’s very dry, and the holy basil comes through with its aniseed and clove-like flavour. The aroma actually reminds me a bit of root beer, which is unexpected. I’m not sure if they got the holy basil aroma they were hoping for in this one, as that clove flavour is a bit jarring.

Pixelate, a 4.1% Citra and Azacca Pale Ale, was unfortunately not a good can and mine had some wild yeast in there, giving it a funky brettanomyces aromas and too much fizz.

And that leaves their Doppelbock. It’s 8% and has been aged in second-fill oak whiskey barrels for six months. It’s a deep ruby brown and the aromas are glorious. Vanilla, dark caramel, creme brulee, sticky toffee pudding, dark cherry, chocolate brownies, but it’s not sweet, and it’s bitter with some oak tannins, and a dryness at the end which means it’s layered and complex in flavour. It’s an absolute triumph of a beer. Delicious! I’m not sure if the Doppelbock will be in many more Brewser boxes, but drink it if you get the chance.

That was a fun box to drink through! 

A box of 10 hoppy beers from the top-rated brewery in Wales who are famous for the hoppy beers they brew?! Yes please! 

I drank my way through all 10 cans, and here’s what I tasted… 

IS IT OVER. A 4% pale ale with Simcoe and Strata, it’s hazy orange in appearance and hazy orange in flavour, with definite notes of orange squash. There’s also some dank and herbal aromas, and lemon peel and pith. It’s got a lot of depth for a 4% beer!

FLORET. This Extra Pale Ale is 4.2% and brewed with Azacca, Citra and Simcoe. It’s very pale yellow with a creamy foam. It’s crisper than some of the others in the box, with a lively carbonation and some pithy citrus hops making this one nice and refreshing. 

LITTLE PATTERNIST. An El Dorado and Simcoe 5% Pale Ale, it’s got a sweet citrus aroma, tropical fruit squash, some melon. It comes out with big flavour up front, then finishes lighter.

LITTLE PETAL. A 5.2% West Coast Pale Ale with the classic West Coast hops of Cascade, Amarillo and Simcoe. It’s a little hazy (but less hazy than all the others!), there’s lots of lemony hops with some lemon candy and lemon sherbet, plus some savoury aromas, a bit of woody spice, and a nice crisp bitterness which lasts a while – just what you want in a West Coast Pale!

HUMBLE RENDER. This 5.7% Pale Ale is brewed with Citra, El Dorado and Sabro, and it pours a thicker, hazier yellow compared to some of the others. The Sabro comes through really nicely (but I like this hop – not everyone does!) with a dried dill aroma and a creaminess that’s rounded out by tangy citrus, some strawberry, and a peppery finish. Great full texture.

OH MY. Oh my indeed – this was my favourite beer in the box. Citra and Sabro in a 5.8% Pale Ale, you get lots of juicy hops and a lovely aroma of tinned orange, orange cordial, sweet melon, candied citrus and zesty citrus. There’s a lot of hop flavour layered through this beer.

ROSEBUD. A 5.6% IPA with Citra, Galaxy, Mosaic and Simcoe, and with that combo of hops you know it’s going to be good. It’s light yellow and light in hazy, with lemon peel, orange, tropical fruit and some danker herbal aromas. Nice soft texture and a crisp dryness to finish.

ELLA FROM DOWN UNDER. With Ella and Simcoe, this 6.1% IPA pours a thick hazy orange and has a big juicy hop aroma. There’s peach and apricot, fermented tropical fruits, sweet melon and papaya, a little booziness, and a peppery hop finish.

PATTERNIST. A 6.6% IPA with El Dorado and Simcoe, it’s like tropical fruit juice with some bitter melon, strawberry and some herbal dank aromas. It starts creamy and full, then ends dry and pithy.

SPUR. Brewed with Azacca, Citra and Simcoe, this 7.2% IPA has a thick hazy yellow texture, some ripe peach, some fruity yeast esters, stone fruit, a creaminess and fullness to the texture which is a really mouthfeel, and a great overall balance to the finish.

Written by: Gavin Baxter (Beer Fridge Podcast)

Since their inception in 2018 the team at Overtone have been non-stop producing some amazing bold beers and the Mighty Showcase box is the best way to explore what the West side of Glasgow has to offer. With a mix style of beers – Lager, fruited gose, Pales and IPAs.

You open the box and the colourful geometric circles, some almost psychedelic flood your eyes with colour and a taste of what amazing liquid is hidden inside. Naturally you are instantly excited with the higher ABV beers, but we will save them for now. As Overtone have not only mastered the Juice bombs of this world but have also found the formula to getting bags of flavour from their more sessionable, lighter ABV beers.

First beer into the glass was Soft Static 5% Pale Ale, that is full of flavour and a tonne of hops. El dorado, Idaho 7 and Sabro Cryo. It’s soft,creamy with the punch of mango, grapefruit and tangerine. A beer that can be enjoyed by beer geeks as well as newbies, and gives a taste of the quality that the brewery produces.

Let’s go West Coast, Bookhouse Boys at 5%. For me was one of my favourite beers of the box. This, I feel is the little brother to 99 IBUS (last year’s big Westie). Brewed using Columbus, Idaho7 and Cashmere hops. Expect a nice moderate level of bitterness that a West Coast beer should have, and balanced out with flavours of pine, bitter lemon and a lovely sweetness. The bitterness is something not to be scared of and makes you go back for more. I can imagine this beer tasting even better from keg.

Let’s talk lager, the one style where a brewery can’t hide – Pizzicato 5.2%. Now, remove whatever preconceptions you have of the lager style that mass produced beer has led you to believe. Pizzicato is a European inspired beer. Think malty, sweet and refreshing. Not only quaffable and crisp but dynamically complex with a hint of spice, white pepper and hoppiness. A beer that will get you and your friends talking and best enjoyed on a summer’s day.

Psychonaut 8.4% TDH DIPA, just wow. This is the style of beer that I have grown to love from Overtone and why I love this brewery. Hazy and thick, you almost question if using a spoon would be more appropriate. Made with El Dorado, Bru-1, Mosaic and Citra hops this beer coasts your tongue and very quickly, you see why Overtone had the nickname early on of ‘Juice Masters’. An amazing creamy body bursting with dank flavours of mango, pineapple and a hint of a smoky finish.

This box from start to finish shows the excellence that Overtone offers and is a brewery that I would recommend you add sooner rather than later. Add them to your line up today.

I’ve drunk my way through around 20 different Brewser boxes now, and this one from Farm Yard Brew Co. has been one of the best.

I like their story, too. Steven Holmes would be the sixth generation of his family to run their farm, but instead of being out in the fields, or looking after livestock, he decided to build a brewery on the land. That was in 2016. They’ve expanded a lot since then, won lots of awards, added a great taproom, and built in good sustainability measures, including solar power. Before opening this box, I hadn’t actually had any Farm Yard beers, but now I want to drink many more of them.

My box had nine beers, and a nice mix of styles, though mostly hoppy beers (which is what I most want to drink, so that’s good for me!).

Löf is a German-style Pilsner and it’s very good. Very pale, lovely thick foam, little bit of fresh sulphur aroma (which I like in a lager), some lemony hops and a crisp, dry finish. If a brewery can make a Pilsner as good as this, then they get my attention.

Sheaf is their Citra and Mosaic pale ale, and it’s a perfect example of this style. Juicy tropical and citrus, papaya and mango, orange, a light body, great hop flavour through it, refreshing. It’s as good as any other 4.1% ABV pale ale on the market. I’ve Got You is another pale ale, this one raising money for Six Connections, a mental health charity. I got oranges and bitter lemons, and a lush hop complexity through the beer.

There were two session IPAs in the box. Chaff was peach skins, soft tropical fruits and a great depth for the style. Splish Splash was maybe my favourite beer in the box because of how good the Sabro hops taste in this beer. It’s a divisive hop, but in this you get pink grapefruit, creamy dill and coconut (in a good way!), orange, lemon and lime, and it’s superb.

Smoove Bitter is their nitro amber bitter, and while the nitro didn’t leave a creamy foam after a hard pour, the beer tasted like a cask ale in a can, with a comforting and familiar biscuity and toasty malt depth. Chocca Mocha is their vegan vanilla, cacao and coffee stout, and it’s very impressive for 4.4% ABV, with a really rich depth of malt, lots of cacao flavour and fruity coffee. Excellent.

Two IPAs to finish. Many Hands Make Light Work 2 is a 6% ABV collab NEIPA raising money for cancer. Big juicy tropical fruits, a soft and full texture, sweet tropical fruits and bitter citrus to finish. And Gulf is their 5.8% ABV IPA. I loved this beer. They don’t name the hops but it has a distinctive Sabro or Talus pink grapefruit character which I really like, then lots more citrus fruit (all the different types of grapefruit you can think of), an impressive depth of hop flavour and a lasting pithy bitterness.

This is the sort of beer box that makes me excited for beer. All killer, no filler, and beers with character and complexity, but also ones you want to drink several of. Great stuff from Farm Yard Brew Co.!

Hello Modest Beer! This is my first taste of anything from Modest, a brewery from Antrim, Northern Ireland. It’s run by Chris Morris, who went from a tax accountant making beer in a garage to brewing full time, focusing on easy-drinking, well-balanced beers. This box has been a great introduction to what Chris is doing.

I opened their main NE Pale Ale to begin. Cloudy Yet Full Of Sunshine (4.2%) is brewed with Simcoe, Citra, Mosaic and Centennial, and it’s hazy yellow with a nice peach and apricot aroma. There’s sweet pineapple, mango candy, low bitterness and a lovely soft body. They use the word ‘succulent’ on the can and that’s a good description. This is a really good example of a 4-ish% hazy hoppy pale ale.

Just Like Nana Used To Drink (4.3%) is Modest’s Irish Stout. It smells like you’ve put your face in a sack of roasted barley. It’s got a lot of roasted flavours and drinks like a black iced coffee with a little 100% cocoa and richly roasted malts. Great flavour for its low ABV.

If a brewery can make a good Pilsner then they get more of my attention. Good Enough To Take To Yer Ma (5%) is brewed with Magnum, Saaz and Mittelfrüh, and those hops are very distinctive in the aroma. The beer is lightly hazy but still crisp, and has a deep, lasting herbal and woody bitterness – it’s a hoppiness that’d scare a macro lager drinker, but I love that in a Pilsner. 

Of the nine cans in the box, five of them were pales and IPAs, which is good for me. My favourite was Cloudy Yet Full of Sunshine, but all the others were also good, and one thing which came through in all of them was a familiar and consistent yeast ester aroma of peach, apricot and even light vanilla. It’s a nice extra fruity pop of flavour coming up behind the hops. 

The Pretty Good Stratus & Talus (3.8%) hazy pale ale is an impressive low-alcohol pale with a wonderful aroma of Talus with its sweet pink grapefruit (I love that hop!) and a zesty and herbal finish. 2 Thumbs Up (4.4%) is a pale ale brewed with Columbus, Cascade, Cryo Pop and Motueka, and those hops combine to give a juicy lime aroma, layers of citrus pith and zest, and a dry bitterness. Day Dreaming Of Far Off Lands (5.5%) is an IPA with Columbus, Citra and Cascade, and it was my least favourite as there was a slickness in the texture which jarred a little with the bitterness, and the aroma was a bit muted compared to others. 4 Star (5.5%) is an IPA hopped with Columbus, Cryo Pop, Motueka, Simcoe Cryo and Mosaic Cryo. You get a lot of fleshy peach and apricot, plus tannic apricot skin, then some juicy tropical fruits and a herbal bitterness (a solid four star IPA!). 

Exotic But Not Too Exotic (5.6%) is an appropriate name for a mango sorbet pale ale. It’s got mango, vanilla and orange zest in it, but it’s not over-thick or over-sweet, so you mostly just get an extra depth of mango to your pale ale. 

I finished with Where The Other 5% Of British Blackberries Go (4.5%), a bramble sour that’s a vibrant purple colour, smells like a grown up glass of blackcurrant, and tastes like a punnet of blackberries. The tartness is restrained and balanced, and it feels like a very British-tasting sour beer. 

I beat my 4:15am alarm by fifteen minutes and can hardly contain the excitement of my first trip to Northern Ireland, let alone getting back behind the paddle to brew our next collab. Making my way through the sleepy old world of Shrewsbury, I reflect on how the next collab idea came about.

Chris Morris, of Modest Beer, had dropped me an email at the end of January to see what plans we had for St. Patrick’s Day (at that point, we didn’t have many…). I was stoked to hear from Chris, as Ash had kindly shared the Modest box he had for photography and, well, If you haven’t tried Modest Beer before, you’re in for a treat.

Chris is a one-man-band operation, brewing some of the finest hazy beers around. What I like about their box (which features 9 cans and tasting notes), is that ABV tends to stay around 4-6%. You do get some that will sneak over or below, but that sessionable range is my sweet-spot at the moment, and the flavours Chris is able to pack in to his beer is outstanding.

We jumped on a call together and what started as being a box featuring a couple of NI breweries soon turned into a bigger collaboration, featuring 6 breweries from the Island of Ireland, 11 cans, including an exclusive collab DIPA chucked in for good measure. We reached out to all the breweries who were happy to be involved and a date was set for the collab brew.

Having now made it safely across the water, I’m stood outside Belfast airport waiting for my ride from the Bullhouse team. It was my first-time meeting both Mark and Gary and I was particularly excited to meet Mark as I know he’s been a subscriber of ours for some time.

We drove about an hour Northwest and got to where Modest Beer is located, high above Randalstown in Country Antrim, with beautiful views overlooking Lough Neagh. Sam from Lacada, and Michael from Our Brewery were awaiting our arrival with Chris. It was bloody cold, but we were fortunate for a clear day to be able to see the views.

One of the best views of the day though was of Chris’s brew kit. It is a small set up, but unlike any other kit I’ve seen before. It’s manufactured by Brewiks and all tanks are sat on casters so he can move them around as he pleases. It’s pretty-state-of-the-art but also has fair amount of getting your hands dirty (I left the digging of the mash out to Gary and Sam).

The Beer
This one-off Brewser exclusive collab beer is a creamy and soft DIPA packed full of Motueka and Citra, bringing punchy tropical fruit flavours, sweet lime and orange.
ABV: 7.6%
Hot Side Hops: Idaho 7, Mosaic
Dry Hop: Citra, Citra Cryo, Motueka

With the hard work done (by everyone else), we made a beeline for Belfast to visit the Bullhouse East taproom. We were honoured to also be joined by the one and only Neil Delargy (REFTSC5EFKMWY – IYKYK). If you’re heading to Belfast, this taproom is a must-visit. Everything from your craft bar heaven: the three-piece foldable beer tables, 20 taps of draught to choose from, a beer fridge stocked with all sorts of delicious beery goodness and of course, pizza! We were well looked after by our hosts and would like to thank all the staff for a great night.

You’ll hear it a lot from everyone in the industry, ‘one of the best things about craft beer is the community and the people that work in this industry.’ Northern Ireland is no exception, in fact it’s hard to find a stronger community of craft beer lovers anywhere.

The restrictions and licensing laws of NI make it extremely difficult for these independent breweries to get their beers out and therefore promote craft beer to a wider audience. Outside of the 2-3 taprooms in Belfast, I understand that a mere 20 keg lines are free for local breweries, out of 1,100 pubs. Big beer and drinks companies own all of the lines and therefore only their products are allowed to pour, that’s what keeps this craft beer community so tight and passionate about their beer, you have to work hard to make it, and drink it.

We’ve brought together the best breweries from the Island of Ireland for this special box. This is your chance to sample some of their most-loved beers, try something new and support these fantastic teams – all in celebration of St Patricks Day.

So put down that pint of Guinness and pick up Lacada’s Shamrock Pinnacle whilst you thank the brew gods for independent brewing and the joy of discovering something new.

Sláinte!