Establishing brewery no laughing matter, say celebs

It's safe to say Neil Morrissey and Richard Fox have reservations about the editing of Risky Business, the TV show documenting the celebrity pair's efforts to launch their own beer brand.

"TV crews call that type of programme an 'obs doc'. I call it a crock of crap," says Morrissey, who claims that in the pursuit of drama and controversy, the final product often missed the point - their desire to address the issues surrounding beer and pubs.

"Reality TV, as it is called, is now all about 'jeopardy'," adds Fox. "The TV crew set out knowing the story they wanted to make. While, of course, that jeopardy was real for us, we would have liked Risky Business to be more about the challenges facing Great British ale and our passion for that, rather than a story about our personal financial risk in the situation."

Morrissey and Fox are, though, happy that cask ale is back on the box, raising its profile among the public. "It's crap, but it's well-constructed crap with some really good music, and it's great for pubs," Morrissey continues. "Whatever angles the TV crew drag out because they deem it to be great television, it still at least touches on what's happening in the beer industry."

More than just a stunt​

The show and the resultant Morrissey Fox Blonde Ale's roll-out to the freetrade is all part of a head of steam building up for cask ale. Its sales are outperforming those of the overall beer market, and beer is getting a barrelful of positive coverage on the telly and in newspapers.

Ten years ago, you wouldn't have seen Oz Clarke and James May touring beer festivals on primetime TV, as they did recently for drinks TV show The Big Wine Adventure.

However, some would question whether the involvement of celebs in all this amounts to anything more than publicity stunts.

Fox responds emphatically to such suggestions. "We are on a mission," he claims. "This isn't a short-term project for us; we are entrenched in it and there is no way to go other than forwards. The celebrity angle's effects won't be long-lasting.

"There may be an instant advantage, but if the quality and passion isn't behind Morrissey Fox, it will not survive. I've worked in pubs and restaurants my whole life [among other licensed businesses, he opened pub the Blues Bar in Harrogate 21 years ago, selling it 10 years later], and I've always said that Neil knows more about food and drink than anyone I've ever met who doesn't work in the catering industry.

"That combination of talents is something that will keep us on the right track and we are very evangelical about beer. I hope people will realise that there is genuine passion behind Morrissey Fox."

This passion is rooted in recruiting new consumers into the cask beer category. As Fox says: "We don't want to preach to the converted. There's no point selling great ale to people who are already into great ale. We wanted to appeal to women, lager drinkers, wine drinkers and a younger market. That's the only way you are going to get a new generation to maintain that tradition of drinking great ale."

So much for such bold aspirations, but they are nothing without cold, hard business efficiency to back them up. Marston's and Welsh brewer Newman's help out there, contract brewing Morrissey Fox Blonde Ale for supply to the freetrade through wholesaler WaverleyTBS. The TV star and celebrity chef at the helm hope to have it in 2,000 pubs by Christmas.

Search for the beer mitt​

Blonde Ale was developed in the four-barrel plant microbrewery that is bolted onto Ye Olde Punch Bowl Inn, the leased pub that Morrissey and Fox have in Marton-cum-Grafton, North Yorkshire. This facility is still kept busy, brewing more beers for the pub, and these are due to be rolled out nationally in the new year (see box).

Attention to business and a professed love for craft brewing make this a very different phase in Neil Morrissey's life in beer from when his character in sitcom Men Behaving Badly used to get drunk on cheap lager and play crude drinking games.

It sounds, however, like there are some aspects from the experience that he is not ready to give up in favour of a clinical business approach. Morrissey recalls an episode of the show in which a specially designed beer mitt was used for drinking, with hilarious consequences. "I bagged the mitt after we finished filming," he says, "but I don't have it any more and I don't know whether they still sell them.

"Come to think of it, the Blonde Ale bottle should fit in the lager mitt. We should do a countrywide search to get the lager mitt back!"

More beers from Morrissey Fox

Morrissey Fox is to roll out several new beers to the freetrade from next month, the pair told The Publican when they guest edited the magazine last week.

Morrissey Fox Mulled Ale and Morrissey Fox Best Bitter are currently only available at the pair's pub and microbrewery in North Yorkshire, Ye Old Punch Bowl Inn. However, there are plans for them both to be made available through wholesaler WaverleyTBS.

Blonde Ale is already on sale nationally through Waverley.

Mulled Ale was the first to be rolled out, from December 1. Described as "liquid mince pie" by Morrissey, it is a strong, spiced seasonal beer. It has a 6.8 per cent ABV in Ye Olde Punch Bowl, but this will be lowered to 4.6 for the freetrade.

Morrissey and Fox said they also hope to launch a pilsner-style product. "Pilsner in this country has a poor reputation," says Fox. "The maturation periods of the big lager brewers have become really rapid, and we would like to produce one that captures the essence of what it really should be, the beers we saw being matured for up to six months in the time we spent out in the Czech Republic".

He added that expanding their range of beers was "important if we're going to be taken seriously as a brewer. If we just sat on one product, it would be purely a marketing exercise and that's not what this is."