Commercial craft brewing
The Craft Brewing Association is primarily an association of people who brew at home. However, the current UK tax structure makes it very attractive to brew commercially on a small scale. If you're a member of the CBA and are interested in starting up, we can provide introductions to other members in the same position and to those who have already made the jump.
If you haven't already read it, we suggest you get a copy of The Microbrewer's Handbook by Ted Bruning. Ted was editor of "What's Brewing" until recently and does a splendid job of introducing the technical, commercial, planning, tax and other issues and listing suppliers of ingredients, advice and equipment.
You'll also want to make contact with Murphy and Son of Nottingham, who supply not just the liquor treatments, finings, processing aids and cleaners for which they are famed, but also analytical services, malt from Thomas Fawcett , hops from Charles Faram and yeast from Lallemand . Friendly, helpful and knowledgeable people.
Brewlab 's three-day Starting Up Brewing course is also highly recommended, as are their analytical services.
For professional-quality hydrometers and other instruments - and excellent service - we recommend Stevenson Reeves of Edinburgh.
You might also like to join the independent brewers' trade association SIBA .
CBA Members
Nearly all brewers are craft brewers, but some of them have to do as they are told by the accountants. The happy brewers below are members of the Craft Brewing Association and brew tasty traditional ales. The smallest are hobby breweries able to sell their beer, the largest are substantial businesses.
Beckstones Brewery, Cumbria
Copper Dragon , Yorkshire
Fat Cat Brewery, Norwich
Ffos-y-ffin Brewery, West Wales
Foxfield Brewery, Cumbria
Keynsham Brewing Company
Tryst Brewery, Larbert, Stirlingshire
WC Brewery , Chester.
Several more members are setting up breweries or brew in larger breweries.
If you're a commercial craft brewer and a member of CBA and would like a link to your brewery from here, let u s know.
UK commercial brewers
For comprehensive information on ale breweries in the UK, we suggest two websites:
Quaffale - focusses on the breweries
Beer Mad - focusses on the beers
This document was updated 07/04/2008.