For someone who only claims to have been bitten by the beer bug in 2008, Terry from Liverpool Craft Brewery has set about a five-year task of developing the brewery (along with colleague Paul Seiffert) into one of Liverpool’s most recognisable gastronomic brands. He admits this whilst draining the last from his tankard of WEST’s Munich Red, savouring it and displaying a remarkable amount of patience for someone who is being bombarded with questions having finished up a Friday’s work. The piece of paper (as I didn’t have a fag-packet) is rolled out with some additional questions and thankfully, Terry doesn’t flinch as the paper unfurls. Hopefully some of these questions some of the regular followers of this blog will also be wanting to ask. When asked about his roots with beer, his answer is altogether more refreshing than his original tipple of a mass-produced US lager. The epiphany came whilst on a business trip over in Sheffield and with Terry flushed with success and feeling a bit flamboyant, asked the bar tender to give him the most expensive beer that they had on draught. An interestingly flippant approach, which Terry insists changed the game for him and the Dogfish Head 90-minute IPA gave him a mouthful of hopped beer he simply couldn’t ignore. Returning to the present Terry begins an interlude story about wrestling with the roller shutter door to the brewery, which is the reason he was a little behind schedule, continues on with Paul’s whereabouts on deliveries and how he isn’t going to be best pleased given the state of Friday evening traffic leading us nicely into a discussion about the logistics of Liverpool Craft Brewery. The question arises about potentially collaborating with some of the city’s other breweries in making deliveries to other UK beer hubs, where LCB’s wares are regularly drunk, but a wry smile tells me it isn’t the first consideration given to this situation. Although there is a significant amount of beer shipped out of Merseyside, there is no dialogue to the end of trying to tighten up on economic and environmental (in terms of sustainability) ends to benefit all parties by sharing deliveries. Terry says that he doesn’t rule things out happening in the future, but instigating any change might be awkward at best, at least at the start. There have been rumours and newspaper stories about the expansion of the LCB operation, which I mention to Terry and he is only too happy to elaborate; “Currently we are all working on top of one another, as the brewery is in two railway arches, with space being so restricted we can’t brew and do the packaging at the same time plus there is a nightmare with storage space being at a premium”. So I ask what the plans are and if there is anywhere that has been earmarked to alleviate the problems they are currently having; Terry’s answer is pretty emphatic; “The potential site is in the Baltic Triangle, with the space there and the existing breweries, the track record is good. We’ll be looking to upscale to maybe a 15 barrel brew, but not much more since we want to maintain a tight grasp of the quality of the beer rather than go over the top with output”. He continues to say that the space there will allow for storage of raw materials and their products, along with a bar area and brewery tap, which will stock not only their own beers, but some from other breweries, both locally and further afield. Terry states that he’s not too bothered about the potential gentrification cycles perhaps in motion in that end of town, focussing solely on the near future and the potential to perfect LCBs products. He remains particularly proud of the Love Lane Pale recipe, which has barely deviated from the original first brew and states; “Strictly speaking, I am much more comfortable as a Pale Ale brewer, since that’s my forte. There are other brewers in LCB who we’ve recruited to have a handle on other styles such as Piers and the recently recruited Joe Murphy. Our approach is very much one of collaboration and trying to make sure not only are our staff looked after, but the whole Liverpool scene is a healthy one as a high-tide keeps all the boats afloat”. Sales beyond Merseyside have been pretty healthy, with London being a major destination for LCB’s beers, although Terry remains very pragmatic about such a competitive market. He states that just having a presence is a good thing sometimes. Liverpool is still the major market for LCB though, with (currently) 9 permanent Love Lane Pale keg pumps present in Liverpool at various bars and a healthy uptake in the bottles, there aren’t many bars renowned for what they stock that you won’t find a LCB beer in. So what else for the brewery aside from their quest to perfect the beers that they make? Terry points me in the direction of Paul, who finally arrives back from his deliveries in Birmingham. Paul is once again holding the reins for the forthcoming Liverpool Craft Beer Expo, taking place in the middle of June (18th-21st) at the venue Constellations in the Baltic Triangle are of Liverpool. I managed to catch up with Paul and put some questions to him about goings on at the Expo for this year: How do you feel the Expo will be affected with the move of venue? Although it hasn't really settled (having been in the Furnace and then Camp), will the move from C&F pose any other logistical issues? There are always logistical issues with an event this size, so a new venue just means a new set of challenges! The Expo was always meant to be a moving, ever-evolving event. This year's venue will obviously mean a change in layout, but with that comes a huge outdoor area, more space, more bars and ultimately more beer. How many breweries do you have lined up taking part this year? Will it be on the same scale as last year in terms of cask and keg both being heavily represented? We will have even more beer than last year, more taps, more keg bars and more casks. This year all of the casks beers will be available throughout the event, with 30 always being on handpull. We have all of the big breweries returning from last year, as well as welcoming some new faces the party! Any particular things we should be looking forward to this year (highlights for you guys, or perceived highlights)? There will be lots of new things going on this year. There will be a new German beer bar hosted by 'Imports Scotland', there will be a new and improved 'Whiskey Den' and a 'Cider House' with over 50 ciders. There will be amazing food and music, but that now comes as standard! Do we have the same format, where there will be separate talks held by individual breweries presenting their beers to punters? The individual breweries will be there for the festival, the specific events are yet to be announced though! Are there any breweries present this time around who didn't make it last time and you are particularly excited about having on board? We have quite a few new breweries joining us this year which is exciting. We have Cloud Water Brew Co from Manchester, Wylam Brewery from Northumberland, and our very own Ad Hop Brewery from Liverpool. Are the programmes going to be easier to handle again? The programmes will be beautifully designed as always - don't blame me for your tiny hands! Suffice to say, there’s a lot to look forward to from many of Liverpool’s Breweries over the next few years, but perhaps none moreso at this point than Liverpool Craft Brewery. New premises, new bar, expansion of production and hopefully range plus the aforementioned Expo in June, there’s a lot to consider. Stay tuned and pray that the roller shutter doors don’t cause LCB any more problems!
Pedro. p.s. my hands aren't tiny at all.... ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Liverpool Craft Brewery The Railway Arches, Love Lane, Liverpool. Tel: 0151 236 9400 Twitter: https://twitter.com/craft_beers Web: http://www.liverpoolcraftbeer.com/ Liverpool Craft Beer Expo - 18th to 21st June 2015, Constellations, 37-39 Greenland Street, Liverpool. http://www.liverpoolcraftbeerexpo.com/
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