Focus Scotland: Caledonian and cask
Stephen Crawley, managing director of Caledonian Brewery, is a man of several talents - not least a serious cricketing ability. If you don't believe me, look him up on Wikipedia - he made 14 appearances for Scotland as well as being on the books of Lancashire and Leicestershire.
He has also presided over the rise of Caledonian Brewery over the last decade - most significantly the rise to prominence of Deuchars IPA, which was named Champion Beer of Britain in 2002 and now has large distribution across the UK.
He spoke to The Publican about the performance of Caledonian, Deuchars, the state of the cask ale market in Scotland and challenges ahead in today's tough trading environment.
How do you see the cask ale market in Scotland?
"If you looked at the brewing situation logically you might think there was no way that Caledonian could still be in business. Who would have thought it would be the last brewery left in Edinburgh? We have succeeded because we brew products that the consumer actually wants - it is all about what works for them.
"If you go outside of Edinburgh and Glasgow there isn't that much cask around - aside from certain country pubs. And to be frank there are a lot of places you actually wouldn't want it in.
"But I have to say I think the cask market in Scotland is in the healthiest state I've known. We have to be careful though. The last time there was a big increase in cask sales was the mid-1990s and we got it wrong. It started going into the wrong kind of outlets. Cask was seen as a panacea to solve a failing business."
How has Caledonian come along recently?
"We have made lots of progress in the past couple of years. But I don't think we are doing as well as we could be. It is a little bit annoying because we have a great level of distribution that is not necessarily bringing home the bacon.
"I think general consumer trends are affecting us, even in good stockists. A pub has to work so hard now to get people off their armchairs and into the pub and I think the economic climate has created a little bit of a 'feelbad' factor.
"The pub has to fight back. It has to make everything it does world class. I don't want to be too negative. There is real progress being made."
Why is Deuchars so successful?
"Everyone at Caledonian is so proud of the way Deuchars IPA has performed. It is a fantastic achievement. It is like a whisky from Watford becoming a top 10 brand in Scotland!
"It is brilliant that it has worked so well in Scotland, which is traditionally a non-cask ale market.
"Coming from Edinburgh gives it great provenance as well - it is light and refreshing and has great modernity. "We have a got a great quality product and I am very bullish about the future."
What can cask do for Scottish pubs?
"There are a lot of outlets around Scotland that I would love to have more beer in but they simply don't have the wherewithal for it - be that lack of cellar space, or staff or even interest.
"But you do see a number of pubs that are transformed by cask ale. I asked someone from one of the big pubcos recently 'When was the last time you had a licensee throw your keys back at you who ran a decent cask business?'
"It can go a lot further so long as we get it in the right outlets. Once we put it in an outlet we rarely lose that account."
What are the challenges ahead?
"Actually, the biggest challenge we face is regional and vertically-integrated brewers buying up pubs we are stocked in and chucking us straight out.
"It is frustrating when you build up a business over three to four years and see it grow and then lose it overnight. But to be honest that is the market we are facing. It is survival of the fittest."
