NEWS OF THE BREWS
Thwaites launches Wainwright Ale
Lancashire brewer Thwaites has launched a seasonal ale named after a famous local author as part of its bicentenary celebrations.
The 4.1% abv Wainwright Ale takes its name from Alfred Wainwright, writer of acclaimed books about walks in the Lake District and on the coasts of northern England.
This year is also the centenary of the birth of Wainwright, in Blackburn, the home of the brewery.
The beer will be available throughout April and May, and for every pint sold a donation will go to Kapellan, a Lakeland animal rescue centre in Kendall, Cumbria, where Wainwright was chairman, and to which he donated a considerable amount of money.
Thwaites brands marketing manager Lee Williams said: "The Wainwright Society is celebrating a special year too, so it is apt that we name the beer after Alfred and launch it during the centenary year."
Hydes Smooth goes Original
Manchester brewer Hydes is rebranding its Hydes Smooth ale as Original Smooth.
The company said the product was being rebadged to bring it into line with its Original Cask brand and to acknowledge that the product had clocked up more than a decade on the market.
Marketing director David Safiruddin said: "We wanted to strengthen the association between our core smooth and cask products and create a single unified brand.
"Smooth has long been a favourite with our regular customers and we are sure that the revised branding will only act to strengthen its position and attract a new generation of drinkers."
Original Smooth will be given an above-the-line marketing campaign in the summer. The beer is Hydes biggest volume selling beer.
Spring time for Twickenham
West London microbrewer Twickenham Fine Ales has introduced the 2007 version of its seasonal Spring Ale.
The brew is 4.3% abv golden ale, made with British First Gold and American Mount Hood and Amarillo hops.
Managing director Steve Brown said: "Last year it sold extremely well, in fact, so well that we had trouble brewing enough to meet demand."
Brown set up Twickenham in 2004 and it now brews over 80 nine-gallon casks of real ale a week.
It has 12 beers, including four seasonal ales, with distribution into 150 pubs and clubs in London and the Home Counties.
Brew salutes Brontës and Nelson
The Old Bear Brewery in Keighley, West Yorkshire, is launching a brew celebrating the Brontës and Admiral Nelson. The 12.5% abv Duke of Brontë ale was named to commenmorate Lord Nelson who was given the title of the Duke of Brontë by the King of Naples, in return for helping restore him to his throne in 1799.
The ale was initially brewed as a one off brew, but has returned and already been on offer at a number of Camra beer festivals. It will also be available in bottles.
