Business Opinion

Why handpull is well up to the cask Have you ever struggled to find the butter in your fridge, only to be told by your partner that it's in front of...

Why handpull is well up to the cask

Have you ever struggled to find the butter in your fridge, only to be told by your partner that it's in front of you? Apparently, this is because men have hopeless close vision, having spent prehistoric times tracking animals from a distance.

The male of the species is pretty good at taking a long view, but has a tendency to miss the opportunity right in front of him. The beer and pub industry is still male-dominated. Does that explain why too many of the obvious opportunities are missed? And is such an opportunity handpull beer?

Over two years ago, a group of famous cask-beer brewers formed the "Why handpull?" think tank, committed to working together to promote a positive future for cask beer.

Last year they argued that millions fancied a pint of handpull beer, but did not drink one because its quality was too much of a risk. Drinkers showed a surprising awareness of the drivers of poor quality and, in particular, excessive range.

The "Why handpull?" group argued that cask ale had a great future as long as pubs understood how to marry an intelligent selection of well-known brands and interesting local/smaller beers to decent throughputs.

Just before this research was released I met the MA's The PMA Team to share my views on a variety of topics. I argued that the future was bright for handpull beer because drinkers really got the whole eco-friendly thing, and wanted beers that were real and unadulterated.

Meanwhile, as the Government railed against alcohol abuse, what beers were most associated with the gentle pleasures of a savoured pint? With trade threatened by the smoking ban, what appealed to a huge group of discerning customers who had ceased to visit smoky pubs? Finally, as the power of supermarkets grew inexorably, how could pubs differentiate themselves and so survive?

From all this, I concluded that handpull beer's time had come again. Having visited last week one of our customers - The Gate Hangs Well at Hanbury, Worcestershire - I remain convinced. This independent pub has prospered over the last three years in the hands of Neil and Helen McMahon. It serves great food, but also offers well-known cask beers complemented by carefully-selected local ones. Immaculate and welcoming, it's one of those pubs I visit on business and leave determined to return to.

Speak to Neil and you will understand the importance of the handpull beer range to the pub's success. Yes, this is just one pub, but look at Wetherspoon's recent results, in which cask beer played a huge part, the growth of the Society of Independent Brewers (Siba), and the continuing success of classic pub and beer businesses such as Fuller's, Greene King, Adnams and my own business, Marston's. All of these pride themselves on offering brilliant cask beers and strive to improve them wherever they are served to demanding drinkers.

Great handpull beer can be at the heart of great British pubs. I am certain that it can be a real point of difference in a constantly-changing market. I also believe that you must listen to the experts in this area: watch out for the latest output from "Why handpull?"

If this is all so obvious, why can't we see it? Let's grab the opportunity with both hands. Let's serve more and more drinkers with the brilliant handpull beer they so want to enjoy. If you're looking for the butter, it's right there in front of you!

Alistair Darby is managing director of Marston's Beer Co