Friends brew up storm with their own ale
TWO beer drinkers have turned their hobby into a business – and Birmingham’s ultimate microbrewery is growing better by the day.
Andrew Morris and Nigel Beecroft began producing beer in a garage, making a modest 20 litres at a time.
Now their Ostler ale is being brewed and served at The White Horse, in Harborne and is on sale at local restaurants.
Mr Morris, a teacher, and Mr Beecroft, who has a chemistry degree, are now producing 70 litres per session. Yet the Harborne pair had no prior experience of brewing, only a passion for real ale. It has been a steep learning curve.
Mr Morris, aged 54, said: “It’s a labour of love, it really is. No one makes money producing ale, unless they produce an awful lot of it. In all honesty, there have not been that many disasters. There is a school of thought that we need to make it a strictly Har- borne ale, available only in Harborne.”
Mr Morris and Mr Beecroft began brewing 18 months ago, but the turning point came when the White Horse agreed to reactivate its brewing licence last October. The pub now serves Ostler’s signature ale, Thoroughbred, an IPA – and regulars can’t get enough of the stuff.
“It’s 5.5 per cent and dangerously easy to drink,” said Mr Morris. “It packs a punch and tastes superb.”
The pair have no plans to produce a range of ales, though did dabble with a Christmas beer.
“Jumping around and doing a lot of beers would be great if we were still doing it in my garage,” explained Mr Morris, “but not if you’re trying to run it as a business. A strong version and slightly weaker version of the IPA may be the way to go. Really, we just want local people to enjoy something that’s made on their doorstep.”