Drinks

Building a rapport: securing guest taps in pubs crucial to success for small breweries (pictured: Titsey Brewery new taproom)

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Top tips from Titsey on brewing success

By Rebecca Weller

Building a strong rapport with local communities to secure guest ale taps in pubs is crucial to the success of a small brewery, but quality and marketing are top of the list for Kent-based Titsey Brewery.

New chapter: Cleeves Palmer steps down from the Dorset-based brewery (Credit: Getty/ Monty Rakusen)

Palmers brewery boss steps down

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

Palmers brewery boss Cleeves Palmer has announced that he will be retiring after more than 40 years.

What does the future hold for CAMRA?

Big Interview

'There's no silver bullet'

By Ed Bedington

With challenges facing the sector and pub closures rising, how can CAMRA play a positive role to help the sector move forward?

New products: this month's round-up includes Diageo, Double Dutch, Beavertown, Fentimans and more Smokehead

NEW PRODUCTS ROUND-UP

Diageo releases new Captain Morgan's flavour

By Rebecca Weller

This month's new products round-up features new serves from Diageo, Double Dutch, Beavertown, Fentimans, Smokehead, Britvic and more.

Impact of new alcohol duty rules on pubs

OPINION

Thanks for next to nothing, Mr Prime Minister

By Ed Bedington

The days when Rishi Sunak was viewed as the white knight of the pub trade, riding to the rescue with furlough, VAT cuts, business rates holidays and (maybe) Eat Out To Help Out are now something of a dim and distant memory.

Award winning beer: (l-r)Elland Brewery brewing director Joe Francis, brewer Rob Thomas and sales and marketing director Scott Hutchinson

2023 Champion Beer of Britain unveiled

By Rebecca Weller

Elland Brewery's 1872 Porter has been crowned the golden Champion Beer of Britain at the Great British Beer Festival (GBBF) 2023.

Shocking figures: 30 pubs a week lost in first six months of the year (Credit: Getty/whitemay)

More than 750 pubs shut in H1 2023

By Rebecca Weller

Some 30 pubs a week closed across the first six months of the year, “shocking” figures from the Campaign for Ale (CAMRA) have revealed.

Choosing quality: Heineken's latest beer report identifies drinking trends (agrobacter)

Beer drinkers want to trade up

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

Consumers are prioritising value for money through premium options and quality experiences despite financial challenges, according to the Heineken Beer Report 2023.

Drinks Recovery Tracker: drinks sales in decline for second week in a row but wine sales up (Credit: Getty/SolStock)

Drinks sales in decline for second consecutive week

By Rebecca Weller

Wine sales saw a surge as the weather cooled despite drinks sales in the on-trade falling year-on-year for a second week in a row, the latest Drinks Recovery Tracker from CGA by NIQ has revealed.

Go soft or go home: there are plenty of options available to licensees in non-alcoholic drinks (credit: Getty/damircudic)

Feature – Soft Drinks

FEATURE: Soft drink sales on the rise

By Emma Eversham

According to CGA by NIQ’s Drinks Recovery Tracker, soft drinks sales in managed venues have risen during the past three months compared to the same period last year.

Make-or-break time: cost of a pint of lager rises by almost 12% (Credit: Getty/blizzard_77)

Pint prices soar by almost 12%

By Rebecca Weller

Consumers and operators alike will “continue to feel the squeeze” as the average price of a pint jumps almost 12% year-on-year.

Modest week: drinks sales dip below 2022 levels after 11 consecutive weeks of growth (Credit: Getty/Peter Cade)

Drinks sales in decline as weather cools

By Rebecca Weller

After an 11-week stretch of year-on-year growth, drinks sales in the on-trade dropped below 2022 levels in the week to Saturday 15 July.

Drinks Masterclass: How to make a Sway in the Morning cocktail (Credit: Getty/SolStock)

DRINKS MASTERCLASS

How to make a Sway in the Morning cocktail

By Rebecca Weller

Closing this latest series of The Morning Advertiser’s Drinks Masterclass, Pennyroyal general manager Liam Jones shares how to make the bars Sway in the Morning cocktail.

Political move: Carlsberg, which introduced bio-based bottles a year ago to its UK subsidiary, has not been contacted by Russian authorities

Carlsberg’s Russian subsidiary seized by state

By Gary Lloyd

The Russian subsidiary of beer manufacturer Carlsberg has been taken over by Russia after president Vladimir Putin signed an order to put it in “temporary management” of the state.

Consumer demand growing for Cruzcampo Spanish lager

Promotional content

Serve the taste of Seville with Cruzcampo

By Heineken UK

Spain’s number one lager, Cruzcampo, is set to make a splash in the nation’s pubs as Heineken UK responds to growing consumer demand for Spanish lager.

Raise a glass: Net number of breweries increases (Credit: Getty/ Sigrid Gombert)

2023 sees net rise in UK breweries

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

The total number of breweries in the UK has risen in the second quarter of 2023, according to new data from the SIBA UK Brewery Tracker.

Susan Chisholm talks about quality control at Greene King

The Cask Project

VIDEO FEATURE: Quality time at Greene King

By Gary Lloyd

Greene King quality control manager Susan Chisholm has worked for Suffolk-based brewer and pub operator Greene King for 45 years so she knows a lot more than most in the business.

Drinks Masterclass: how to make a Bananarita cocktail (Credit: Getty/SolStock)

DRINKS MASTERCLASS

How to make a Bananarita cocktail

By Rebecca Weller

This week’s Drinks Masterclass showcases a Bananarita cocktail from Bristol-based bar, Filthy XIII.

Green focus: The Milk Thistle bar manager Sebastiano Fileccia created the idea behind the event

Shaking Up Sustainability in bars

By Charli Tomney

Last Tuesday (27 June) the Top 50 Cocktail Bars teamed up with current number 43, The Milk Thistle, for an exclusive event at the venue all about sustainability in bars.

Last resort: Black Sheep Brewery closes pubs in Leeds and York

Black Sheep Brewery closes three pubs

By Rebecca Weller

Black Sheep Brewery has announced the closure of three retail premises following an “extensive review” of the businesses.

Greene King sends out first pins of beer

The Cask Project

Greene King launches new seasonal ales via pins

By Gary Lloyd

Suffolk-based brewer and pub operator Greene King has launched small containers of beers – 4.5-gallon pins – with its latest seasonal cask ales: Ale Fresco and New Tricks.

Obstacles and solutions: Experts give insight into breweries' financial landscape (Credit: Getty/ Klaus Vedfelt)

Brewery sector balanced by ‘optimism and concern’

By Amelie Maurice-Jones

The UK brewery sector is fighting a “toxic cocktail” of soaring costs, business rates, high taxation and Covid-ramifications, but there are silver linings, with many reporting better trade than expected.

Is it possible to make cask beer stay fresh for longer?

The Cask Project

Extending the life of cask beer

By Gary Lloyd

One of the biggest challenges around delivering an epic cask offer remains shelf life, so the ability to extend the lifespan of what is a quintessentially British product could be just the silver bullet the category needs.

Drinks Masterclass: how to make a Champagne Pina Colada (Credit: Getty/SolStock)

DRINKS MASTERCLASS

How to make a Champagne Pina Colada

By Rebecca Weller

In this week’s Drinks Masterclass, London-based cocktail bar manager Andrei Marcu shares how to make a Champagne Pina Colada.

Drinks Recovery Tracker: CGA data shows drinks sales were up 7% year-on-year in seven days to 17 June (Credit: Getty/Kar-Tr)

Drinks sales show 7% year-on-year growth

By Rebecca Weller

On-trade drinks sales have shown year-on-year growth for an eighth week in a row, the latest Drinks Recovery Tracker from CGA by NIQ’s has revealed.

Asking questions: bringing education to the masses key for beer industry (Pictured Ed Hughes and Sam Lyne)

INTERVIEW

Education key to changing beer perceptions

By Rebecca Weller

The beer industry needs to bring education “to the masses” to help boost the category and support firms through recruitment and costs challenges.

New products: this week's round-up features Silent Pool, Stowford Press, Adnams, Ad Gefrin, Titanic Brewery and Vapoura Rum

NEW PRODUCTS ROUND-UP

Silent Pool releases new gin expression

By Rebecca Weller

This week's round-up features new products from Silent Pool, Stowford Press, Adnams, Ad Gefrin, Titanic Brewery and Vapoura Rum.

Beer expert: British Guild of Beer Writers chair Emma Inch

Opinion

Understanding the realities of writing about beer

By Emma Inch, chair of the British Guild of Beer Writers

Do you remember that meme that did the rounds on social media a few years ago with the heading ‘what people think I do versus what I actually do’?

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