10:23am Friday 19th March 2010
By Ian Boydon
CUMBRIA is fast becoming a beer-brewing hotbed that is increasingly attracting visitors to the county as its number of microbreweries expands further.
There are now more than 30 breweries in the county and there are more set to open.
Despite the pub trade being in sharp decline, with dozens of pubs shutting every week across Britain, demand for real ales has never been stronger.
“Cumbria is becoming well known for microbreweries,” said Brian Coulthwaite, landlord of the Watermill Inn and Brewery, in Ings. “We have probably got the most densly populated area, per head of population, for microbreweries.
“It is catering for what people are wanting nowadays. People are becoming more discerning and they are after something a bit different, which matches in with trends for local foods.”
Mr Coulthwaite, who has been brewing at the Watermill for around four years, and is looking to expand on the 320 gallons a week he currently produces, said he gets people coming up to the region to try out the different beer. He is also holding a Cumbrian Festival of Beers at his pub to promote 24 different beers from throught the county.
Microbreweries are also being set up in Cumbria as a way of diversifying to save pubs that might otherwise struggle to keep open.
Anthony Barrett, landlord of the Croglin Castle Hotel, in Kirkby Stephen, will launch a new microbrewery on April 1.
“The pub industry is going down the toilet so I thought it would be a good thing (starting the Croglin Brewery) to help the pub and get people interested in Kirkby Stephen,” said Mr Barrett.
“The town doesn’t have much of a real ale pull so I thought it might attract more tourism to the town - which benefits everyone.”
The new brewery will have three beers loosely based on the Norse god Loki, of whom there is a stone carving in the churchyard in the Eden town.
The Brown Horse, in Winster has set up The Winster Valley Brewery, and Burgundy’s, in Kendal, has been granted planning permission to open up a brewery.
“We have done real ale for 18 years so it feels a natural and interesting progression,” said Mike Pennington, owner of Burgundy’s. “I think we could do a lot more with Cumbria Tourism and link with other breweries to promote them more.”
A spokesman for Cumbria Tourism said: “Cumbria’s micro-breweries are a real asset to the county so these new additions are great news. Real ales have seen something of a renaissance in Cumbria over the last few years and are proving popular with visitors who enjoy activities such as brewery tours and ale trails while exploring the county. These individual micro-breweries are unique to our area and they all contribute to making it distinctive, setting it apart from other regions.”
Next week is Cask Ale Week with offers on real ales being available at pubs throughout the county.
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