Otherton Ales started life in Penkridge, Staffordshire on the edge of Cannock Chase, with the forest and its resident deer population inspiring what is now the brewery logo. Like many small breweries nowadays our origins are in the world of home brewing, but a desire and passion for creating and sharing good beer just grew and grew. When the opportunity arose in the summer of 2013 to turn a home brewed recipe into a commercial-scale batch the seeds were sown, and just over a year later Otherton Ales was officially registered as a brewery and found a new home.
At the end of November 2014 we started brewing on a "cuckoo" basis at Offbeat in Crewe. A cuckoo brewer makes use of the facilities of another brewer rather than having their own, but in all other aspects is a completely separate entity. So, while we only rent the brewery equipment at Offbeat, we are brewing our own recipes, using our own ingredients, putting them in our own casks and kegs, and handling our own sales.
During 2015 we did acquire some premises of our own just across the county boundary in Audley, Staffordshire, but to date this has been mostly used for storage. While we are still "Brewing in Crewe", the Audley site is now the official "home" of Otherton Ales - watch out for some interesting developments happening there during 2016!
Birmingham Beer and Cider Festival opens its doors on Wednesday and there will be casks of Jahazi and Turuma making an appearance, the latter being the first chance anyone (me included - though samples from the fermenter were promising!) will have had to taste the finished product. Then the next day battle commences as the Bridge St Ale House in Newcastle-under-Lyme plays host to both Otherton and Offbeat in what is perhaps the brewing world's biggest ever domestic! Turuma and East Indiaman are lined up against Stoatcake Stout and Disfunctional Functional IPA, personally I'm hoping for a score draw to keep the peace...
Small is often beautiful, and that definitely applies when it comes to the Independent Salford Beer Festival. A worthy cause with a stunning beer list, and one which we're proud to be a part of - the honours here go to Turuma again, so I'm really hoping this one lives up to its initial promise! I'll be along on the Friday night (quality control, naturally!), it's ticket only and tickets are running out fast for most sessions so get hold of them while you still can!
There are regular brewery open nights held by Offbeat Brewery; it's likely you'll see us there more often than not and maybe even get to sample one of our latest beers! The "#FirstyFriday" open nights take place on the first Friday of each month from February to December (note September 2015 will be on the second Friday however), with a three-day festival taking place in August and an additional session on the last Friday before Christmas. For more details, confirmed dates, and information about entertainment and food options, see
