The Morning Advertiser visited the brewery, its taproom and a couple of its pubs to find out more about the business that is keen to shout about its cask and community credentials.
Managing director Sam Burrows sees the business’s ambition as extending beyond making great beer. He says: “Our goal here is not just to be the best brewery in the region but to be the best business in the region.”
That ambition is reflected in Brew to Give, the brewery’s community programme. Head of people & community Kari Halford describes its principle simply: “Every beer we brew gives back.”
What else can we give?
Since the initiative launched in May 2023, the brewery has committed 2% of total sales to Bristol charities, community groups and organisations.
The first year began with an £80,000 budget and this has risen since. Rather than simply dividing that money into a few large donations, the team wanted to understand the people and causes they were supporting. As Halford puts it, Bristol Beer Factory has a tradition of responding: “Yes, sure, and how else can we give it to you better? How else can we support?”
That support takes different forms: cash, beer, staff time and practical skills. Halford says the aim is to learn about each organisation and its challenges, then find ways to make the contribution go further.
Meaningfully involved
At a local fundraising event, for example, the brewery donated beer with a production cost of about £450. The charity could then sell it at the event and raise substantially more than the cost of the donation.
For Halford, that is the difference between writing a cheque and being meaningfully involved. The programme grew from a desire to respond to the pressures facing communities and charities, particularly in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Burrows sees community investment as important to the wider future of brewing, too. He points to community-minded businesses as a source of resilience and hopes Bristol Beer Factory’s approach will encourage other breweries – and businesses beyond beer – to give back. The result, he says, is part of the brewery’s DNA: transparent, practical and rooted in Bristol.
