In the MIX

Hidden in a nook on the Thames, a bold beer is flowing, discovers Douglas Blyde

Ben Hughes and Emma Sheppard began selling cans from their eccentrically decorated Jawbone Brewery on 23 December 2020. The set-up, based in a former boat builder at Swan Island near Twickenham, is nestled within a hub of fellow creatives. ‘This is the poor relation to Eel Pie Island,’ says Sheppard, a journalist who applies her storytelling nous to recording narratives of immediate locals on Jawbone’s website. Called ‘Nattering with our neighbours’, profiles include graphic designer and houseboat resident, Richard Quinn. ‘He created the illustration of the boatyard’s forklift as featured on our first pilsner, Highs & Lows,’ says Sheppard. Another is chocolatier William Curley, whose kitchen is based here. ‘He reduces the first 20 litres of wort for our beer truffles,’ adds Hughes.

Hughes, who brews alone, ‘which can mean crawling home at 3am’, previously spent three years at Weird Beard brewery devising a 12 per cent imperial stout ‘laced with hand-scraped vanilla pods’ and Breadbanger, a pale ale for The Felix Project. For that, Hughes recalls operating two toasters simultaneously to prepare surplus bread for the kettle. At Jawbone, Hughes has released five beers, including one with ex-England rugby captain Lawrence Dallaglio and his charity RugbyWorks, named Bardot pale ale.

Hughes learnt to brew at home while waiting to be made redundant from a finance job. Perhaps borne out of a mistrust of financiers from that life of yore, Hughes maintains full control of Jawbone. ‘Even when Covid stole our money, manpower and materials, we’ve fought for independence.’ Find Jawbone’s bold, moreish beers at the taproom or nearby pub, The Anglers, ‘which collects beer by boat’, and via its website. (jawbonebrewing.com)