Stewart Brewing’s 6th birthday
This weekend saw the continuation of an Edinburgh tradition – the annual open day at Stewart Brewing. The Loanhead micro throw a yearly birthday party to celebrate another 12 months of trading – and happily the BeerCast had an invite. Each year Steve and Jo produce a special celebration ale to mark the occasion – named after the brewery’s birthday. This time out, brewer Iain put together Stewart 6, which was served up to the public – alongside several of their regular beers such as Copper Cascade, Edinburgh Gold and Pentland IPA. As if that wasn’t enough temptation, there was a free BBQ out the back of the brew unit, plus a hop challenge to select a potential addition to the Pentland IPA as a new line – we were split between the American crystal and New Zealand southern cross.
As for the Stewart 6 – the abv of which I didn’t catch, but we think it nudges the 5% mark – it pours a dark amber to medium brown colour. Looking very much like a pint of bitter – which is nothing if not pleasing to a Northerner like myself, it has a healthy dose of malt on the aroma, with some moderate bitterness and a touch of fruit from the Perle hops. Tastewise it’s extremely malty, which is not surprising as there are six different kinds in the brew – it’s the chocolate malts that come to the fore, with a dark, dry flavour and a pronounced bitterness. You can tell it’s a celebration beer – things have definitely been thrown in there – but it all seems to work out very well.
Stewart are really one of Scotland’s success stories when it comes to brewing. After several years of working for other prodcuers, Steve took the plunge and opened the premises in 2004 – initially brewing at Strathaven before the Bilston site came on line. Their beers are a common site in Edinburgh, last year they launched a range of bottled beers to complement their traditional range – and this culminated in their 5% Hollyrood picking up the best Blonde/Golden Pale Ale in the 2010 World Beer Awards. Talking to Jo today, they are soon to be relocating to larger premises on the same industrial estate, which can only be a good thing as the demand really seems to be there. Rumours of a 6% IPA in the future are particularly exciting. Anyway, with the current tough times for the industry, it’s great to celebrate a local success story – many happy returns from all at the BeerCast.
