Thornbridge opens £2m brewery
Thornbridge Brewery has opened a new £2m brewery in Derbyshire which will increase capacity from 2,800 brewer's barrels to 28,000 per year.
Although the brewery has increased production ten-fold, the firm maintains that its 30 barrel plant will still be able to offer small batches of its award-wining beers.
"Although our brewery is only just over four years old we have been at full capacity for most of that time," said managing director Jim Harrison.
A spokesman aded that it couldn't keep up with demand and had been selling out of everything it made for the last two years. Harrison said: "We began planning the new brewery with a determination to use the best technology available but also to ensure our brewing team maintain hands on control of the process so that we have a brewery that allows creativity; the foundation of our success to date".
The 1250 sq metre site has added new equipment including a specially-comissioned German hop back, which, according to a spokesman, "is used by only three or four other breweries in the world", as well as a new bottling line which will help expand export sales. Previously bottling was carried out by hand and supplied to Italy, Scandinavia and the USA among others.
It has also opened an on-site shop and created five new jobs. There are plans to open a visitor's centre next year.
The opening ceremony was conducted by Harrison and Garrett Oliver, head brewer of New York's Brooklyn Brewery and one of the world's leading beer experts.
The first Thornbridge craft beers were produced in February 2005 in the 10 barrel brewery, and its range of cask and bottled beers has received over 90 awards including 35 for its Jaipur IPA.
