If you’re wondering about the title, there’s a scene in Empire Strikes Back when Han spectacularly fails to get the Millennium Falcon and most of the main cast out of bother, and, when blamed, plaintively whines: ‘It’s not my fault!’
I’d like to echo that sentiment now - the lack of posts has not been (for once) my lack of imagination, drive or discipline, but a problem with accessing the site. A problem that has now been sorted and, look, here I am on a Sunday afternoon with all the Untapped nonsense that you could possibly never want to know.
Summer, in case you hadn’t noticed, is firmly over and the brewery is fast becoming a place of toasty pilgrimage once more, rather than a humid hell to be avoided at all costs. The downside to this is that all the markets we attend now require the kind of clothing that Ranulph Fiennes wears at work. We’ve now been trading for a full year, and this seems like an appropriate time to look back. First though…
Thank You.
To all the Untapped fans, who have been both loyal and vocal in their purchase and praise. Never shy about giving opinions (mostly very good, bless you), advice when sought and opportunity when possible. Please keep it up, it makes all the hard work, constant planning and occasional frustration worth while.
So, what have we learned over the last year?
Well, despite the recession, increases in duty and all manner of of pressure on the drinks trade; there is a real desire in the UK for well made, home grown beer. In fact, for well made, home grown anything. This may come as no surprise to you, but with the recent revelation that £1 in every £8 is spent in Tesco, and with the increasingly all pervasive reach of Amazon and their ilk, it is a bit of a surprise to me. Don’t get me wrong, I know that the beers we make are dam’ good, attractively packaged and winningly sold. But, a year ago, the thought of indirectly taking on the power of the multiple grocers and the big brewers (you know who you are) did make for some sleepless nights. It’s been really rewarding, therefore, to get the kind of impassioned response to Untapped that we’ve had.
I’d love to think that was entirely down to our genius, but we are grounded enough to know better. Even with all the carefully produced, focus group directed and powerfully marketed influence of national brands, people still have a hunger to get their food and drink from an actual person who actually made it. And to have that relationship as part of the pleasure of buying the product. This isn’t, I think, anything to do with the influence of Jamie or Hugh. This is just part of being human. We knew that if we loved and believed in our beer, we could convince others of its excellence. In other words, If you brew it, They will come. Trust me, the nearest we got to a focus group was a very drunken night in North Wales with a firkin of what ended up being Eclipse. I can’t remember any specific conclusions, but I do know that I was speaking for most of the night in a broad Russian accent. Might have been planning an Imperial Stout. Who knows?
The other conclusion that we’ve taken out of our first year is…we can do this. Starting a brewery without a brewery wasn’t exactly what we had first planned, but we (and you) have made it work. Our second Christmas is just around the corner, and we’re working flat out to make sure that, whatever else might happen, you’ll have some excellent beer to see you through it. And in the new year, onward and upward - perhaps even to a new home…