Bakewell brewery celebrates its tenth anniversary

Since starting in early 2005, the Bakewell beer maker – which has 11 pubs in Sheffield – has gone from strength to strength and now exports products to 33 countries.

Events in the diary include the launch in January of Jaipur X – a special 10 per cent version of its flagship beer Jaipur.

Jaipur, a 5.9 per cent India pale ale which launched in June 2005, accounts for about 40 per cent of the brewery’s production.

Alex Buchanan, marketing and export manager for Thornbridge,

He said: “The original Jaipur has been a fantastic success and so we are looking forward to launching this special version of our most popular beer.”

Also, from July 3 to 5, there will be the second edition of the Great Peak Weekender, Thornbridge’s own beer festival, which launched in 2014 to great acclaim.

Mr Buchanan said the event would be on a bigger scale than the inaugural festival but of a similar nature.

The brewery started out in a brew house in the grounds of Thornbridge Hall.

However, after winning a succession of awards for its beers, demand grew rapidly.

A new state-of-the-art brewery was opened in September 2009 in Bakewell which is capable of producing five million pints a year.

Reflecting on the brewery’s success Simon Webster, Thornbridge’s chief operations officer, said: “The beer sector has changed dramatically in the past decade as the new wave of breweries has instilled life into what had actually become a moribund sector.

“Our success has been seen by many as a catalyst for many new breweries.

“We like to think we have inspired others to join the revolution on beer we are now seeing in the United Kingdom.”

Both Mr Webster and head brewer Rob Lovatt are looking forward to the completion early in 2015 of a £400,000 investment in a plant at the brewery.

The new plant will increase capacity by 40 per cent, adding about two million more pints to the amount the brewery can produce each year.

Mr Webster said: “We started with two employees and by the end of 2015 we will have 38.

“The expansion will allow us to continue on the path we have begun by satisfying more customers across the world that are demanding high quality beers and great choice.”

See www.thornbridgebrewery.co.uk for more.

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