Craft beer, for want of a better term, has now never been so popular in Northern Ireland. But what is made by the small microbreweries and what is actually owned by the big gun macros such as Diageo, Tennent’s and Heineken? It’s easy to be hoodwinked when ordering a beer from one of the many…… Continue reading Crafty Macros
In 2011 Northern Ireland had four breweries and one contract. Fast forward six years to the present day and that number has increased over 500% to 31 businesses that produce beer. Some are breweries, some are contracted and some are brewpubs. Whatever they are, there’s a lot more than five. And something that’s been on…… Continue reading Room For Another?
Northern Ireland has three breweries listed as a co-operative – that is, a business owned by all of its members who can have a say in how it operates. Two of the three, Boundary and Lacada have a substantial membership after reaching out for public funding while the third, Farmageddon, is owned by a group…… Continue reading A Co-op Coup
I left my previous supermarket post talking about selected Northern Irish beer at Sainsbury’s and Asda and now it’s time to move on to another couple of big guns, Tesco and Lidl. I confess that Tesco was one of my go-to places when I started my liaisons with different beer. I make no apologies for…… Continue reading Supermarket Sweep 2
Sometimes the craft beer scene can be a daunting and scary place. For those of you recently entering the arena of CBWs (Craft Beer W–kers) spouting this and that about sours, DIPAs, barrel aged and saisons, you may find yourself simply saying “Wha…?” So let’s stop and think for a moment. If you are new…… Continue reading Supermarket Sweep
Quare Swally 