Category Archives: Food and Drink

Food and Drink, News, North Wales

Wrexham lager on top of the world

One of Wales’ most well-known breweries is celebrating double success on the world stage having beaten off competition from the likes of Germany, France and the United States to be crowned with two gold medals at the Frankfurt International Trophy World Beer award. As well as Wrexham lager winning the gold award for best export lager, its Bootlegger Pilsner lager, named after and characterised on a local Wrexham online favourite who continues to gain popularity all over the UK, also took the gold award for best Pilsner lager.

Open to entries from drinks companies across the world, the Frankfurt International Trophy annually judges nearly 3,000 beers, wines and spirits. Wrexham Lager’s success this year is even more remarkable as it is the first time they have entered.

Vaughan Roberts is director of Wrexham Lager and is delighted with the success, saying

“We are naturally very happy that our product is considered one of the best – and this is proved by the fantastic feedback we are receiving on a regular basis from our consumers. We are over the moon of this double success at these prestigious awards – and it comes hot on the heels of the silver award we won at the Lyon International Competition.

“While the domestic market in the UK is still our main target we have been venturing more and more into the export market with Japan getting a taste of our lager during last year’s Rugby World Cup and this award will help to strengthen our export activity.”

With the current pandemic naturally affecting their business, Wrexham Lager, like many others, have had to adapt to meet the needs of new audiences as Vaughan explains,

“With pubs and restaurants being closed we have focussed more on offering our bottled products via online sales through our website, which at one point experienced a breakdown due to the traffic it received. This was an overwhelming response in trade considering before lockdown we had never offered online sales. We continue to receive orders from all parts of the UK and now look forward to pushing further afield including to Ireland and hope to be able to export internationally, one day.

 We are excited to see how far this service will continue to expand into the future and our hope is that the hospitality sector will also begin to trade again very soon and we can return to providing our customers with our award winning product on draught.”

Commenting on the brewery’s success, Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths, said:

“We have always known that Welsh food and drink is of the highest quality and this again is further proof that it is as good if not better than anything else in the world. Even in these challenging times we are constantly looking at ways of increasing our export markets and successes such as these will hold us in good stead as we move towards coming out of lockdown and rebuilding our industries.

“I would like to congratulate Wrexham Lager on its fantastic success, not only with these awards, but on their resilience in adapting their trading products during such difficult times. I am certain there are more positive times ahead and as Welsh Government we will endeavour to support our crucial food and drink industry as we rebuild the economy.”  

The annual Frankfurt International Trophy brings together almost 3,000 samples from 50 countries of beers, wines and spirits. This year, due to Covid-19 private tasting sessions were organised to decide the eventual winners.

Food and Drink, News, Retail

Odysea launches new range of Kalamato PDO Extra Virgin Olive Oils

Greek and Mediterranean fine food producer, Odysea, is to launch a new range of premium extra virgin olive oils to its ever-growing family of products.

Odysea Greek Kalamata PDO Extra Virgin Olive Oil is produced from polyphenol rich olives from groves in Messinia, located at the foothills of Mount Taygetus in the Kalamata region. This area is acclaimed for the production of superior quality olive oil and is awarded PDO status.

The olives are harvested with care by hand, using traditional methods and the oil is extracted within hours of the olives being picked. The oil is cold extracted without the use of heat or chemicals to ensure the flavour and health benefits remain.

This is a pleasant, undemanding oil with good green and spicy aromas accompanied by light citrus tones. Its gentle taste builds on nuts and meadowsweet herbs, followed by a growing pepperiness and the slightest almond skin bitterness. This all fades to leave a pleasant after taste of light flowers and nuts. Overall this is a gentle style oil with a balance of fruitiness, bitterness and pepper.

Greece is known to produce some of the finest oils in the world and the regions of Chania in Crete and Kalamata in the southernmost point of mainland Greece produce the best that Greece has to offer. Both regions provide ideal micro-climates and perfect terrains for the production of premium olive oils. We are proud to offer excellent oils from each region under the Odysea label.

Panos Manuelides, MD and founder of Odysea comments “We worked closely with Yannis Sellas to source our new oil from Kalamata. Yannis is an authority on olive oil and has built strong relationships with olive growers in the region since he began sourcing oil back in 1992. We are proud to add this oil to our existing offering of premium quality, honestly priced oils, all of which are easily available, for our customers to enjoy.”

The new Kalamata PDO Extra Virgin Olive Oil is available in 7 different sizes: 5L, 3L and 1l tins and 1L, 750ml and 500ml bottles, plus an organic version in 500ml.
The range of new oil is available in Wholefoods UK, Booths, the Odysea website, Amazon and major delicatessens, and will be available in Sainsbury’s nationwide from the end of July.

Business Investment, Food & Drink, Food and Drink, Hospitality, News

Anglian Country Inns secures funding from Cynergy Bank providing firm with working capital and protecting jobs

Anglian Country Inns Limited, which operates nine pubs throughout Hertfordshire and Norfolk, has secured £3.33m of Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) financing from Cynergy Bank.

The loan will be used to re-finance existing debt with Barclays, and provide emergency working capital funding which the business needs, because the impact of COVID-19 meant they had to close their pubs in March.

Whilst the Government guarantee is for six years, Cynergy Bank is amortising the loan over a 25-year period. The bank has also provided a £425k CBILS loan to Anglian Country Inns’ sister company, The Farmhouse@Redcoats Ltd, who were already a client of Cynergy Bank, but also required working capital support because of the impact of COVID-19.

The first year of the loans is interest and fee free as the Government pays this to the Bank. Thereafter, Cynergy Bank has provided a further 12-month interest only period before capital and interest payments commence in 2023.

James Nye, Managing Director, Anglian Country Inns: “We were delighted to have completed the CBILS funding of both Anglian Country Inns and our sister-company, The Farmhouse, which together means we are able to protect the business and ensure we come out of the pandemic stronger than ever. Steve Crosswell and the team at Cynergy Bank really understand the sector and were able to structure the deals in a way that gives us breathing space as we look to re-open in the weeks to come.”

Ravi Sidhoo, Managing Director, Cynergy Bank Private & Business Banking commented: “Cynergy Bank is delighted to have concluded this transaction with Anglian Country Inns, buying the firm the valuable time it needs due to the impact of COVID-19 on the hospitality sector. We pride ourselves on working with our clients to understand their business needs and aspirations. With our local, skilled relationship managers, we quickly learn our client’s needs, we understand the market and, unlike mainstream lenders, can deliver certainty at speed. Something that is exceptional valuable in these unprecedented times.”

Cynergy Bank’s Steve Crosswell, Relationship Director, Hospitality commented: “Cynergy Bank is delighted to have concluded this transaction with Anglian Country Inns. The Nye family have built a robust and solid business with high performing assets and they typify all that is good in a family-led business. The impact of COVID-19 didn’t make the transaction a straightforward one, but we were pleased to have been able to utilise the British Business Bank’s Coronavirus Business Loan Interruption Scheme to complete the re-finance and provide much needed working capital support to the business during lockdown. We very much look forward to working with the Nye family in the future.”

The bank was advised by Ed Sandall of Fleurets and James Walton, Susanna Caulfield, Alex Pelopidas and the team at Rosling King LLP.

Food and Drink, Manufacturing

What are the Real Benefits of Canning Your Beer? Your Main Questions Answered

If you are a craft beer producer thinking of switching to canning beer, you have probably thought about some aspects such as how it will change the look of your beer and even its label, and how it will affect your beer’s taste (which is often a more important factor for craft beer brewers who have paid significant attention to their recipes). But here’s a fact that may surprise you: more and more brewers of craft beer are opting for canning as opposed to bottling, and there are many reasons for the switch. So what are the real benefits of canning your beer? Here are the answers to some of your main questions.

  • It has become a lot easier to can your beer

Nowadays, you have a lot more choices in terms of beer can seamers and machines, and there are even mobile or portable canning machines which have made beer canning a much easier and more seamless process, even for those who are canning their beer at home. Beer can seaming machines come in different kinds and sizes and capacities, so you can easily choose the best one for your production requirements. Also, the customer service and support from manufacturers of beer can seamers have improved tremendously in recent years, with more suppliers and manufacturers offering timely support and repair in case a beer can seamer breaks down and needs repair or parts replacement.

  • It improves the taste of your beer

While beer bottles may look inherently more attractive than beer cans, those who are in the know will attest that canning your beer will improve the taste of your beer. This is because the can will offer a tighter and stronger seal compared to a bottle, and, additionally, the beer can will do a much better job of protecting the beer from light. Light can certainly be the enemy of beer, as you may already know because it can give the beer an unpleasant taste when light penetrates the beer. The light can break down the molecules of the hops, and this creates and produces a chemical reaction that impacts the beer’s sulfur content, resulting in an unpleasant smell and taste.

  • It lets you save money

While a beer can seamer can be on the expensive side, with equipment costing a hefty amount (especially when you choose a bigger-sized machine that has more capacity and offers a higher production output), it can still save you money in the long term. One way through which you can save money by investing in a beer can seamer is through shipping. A case of beer cans will weigh approximately one-third less than the same case of beer bottles, and you will even be able to ship much more of your product because around 2,000 beer cans can fit in a shipping container compared to only 1,350 beer bottles fitting in the same container.

At the end of the day, of course, it’s your decision whether you will really take advantage of beer canning, but the facts don’t lie – more brewers are switching to beer canning due to its many benefits, and you should weigh up your decision as carefully as possible so you can reap the full benefits in the long run.

Food & Drink, Food and Drink, News

Brewdog produce special beer to mark ‘Barnard Castle Eye Test’ row

In the wake of the row over whether Dominic Cummings broke lockdown rules to drive from London to Durham and then again by taking a day trip to Barnard Castle to ‘test his eyes’, independent Scottish craft brewers, Brewdog, have released a new beer to mark the occasion.

Called ‘Barnard Castle Eye Test’, the new IPA is now available to pre-order, with all profits going towards the company’s production of free sanitiser for the NHS & Health Care Charities.  The ale is described as:

“Short sighted beer for tall stories. Our New England, Old School IPA is locked down and loaded. Dry-hopped for a juicy hit with pineapple, mango and hint of zesty lime.”

12 x 330ml cans are available now for pre-order, with the product being available within 2 weeks.

To learn more, visit the company’s website: https://www.brewdog.com/uk/barnard-castle-eye-test

Food & Drink, Food and Drink

How one hotel is feeding the community

For the Priory Hotel in Louth, 2020 looked set to be one most successful of its 19 years. With comedians and bands coming in from around the world to perform and numerous weddings booked in, the year kicked off to a flying start. The hotel had high occupancy, was receiving five star reviews for its tasting menu and launched its Serendipity Initiative Charity, which provides employment opportunities for those often overlooked because of r learning difficulties.

Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the entire country came to a standstill. The impact of lockdown and social distancing saw occupancy drop to 10% and nearly put Paul Hugill, hotel proprietor, out of business overnight.

Paul says, “It was like the earth fell from beneath us, our cash reserves drained quickly”. However, in choosing to see the positives in the situation, rather than the negatives, Paul has since made use of the Government’s Job Retention Scheme and focused his attention on helping those most in need during this challenging time. With stocks of food that could no longer be sold and an unused but fully functioning kitchen Paul and his colleague Benjamin Smith, transformed the Priory Hotel into a community project – The Neighborhood Kitchen.

Paul continues, “There is support for small businesses out there, with local government helping through grants and other providers such as Liberis helping financially with payment holidays during this crisis. In turn, we wanted to do our bit to support the local community that has supported our business for nearly twenty years.”

In just twenty-four hours Paul and Ben were cooking and delivering two healthy meals a day, every day of the week, to nearly a dozen homes of the most vulnerable and isolated members of the community. But it didn’t stop there. The Neighbourhood Kitchen is now serving up to one hundred meals a day, seven days a week. It has also recruited a team of over twenty volunteers from all walks of life, including RAF pilots, students and bank managers.

Since the Neighbourhood Kitchen launched, three other restaurants have joined forces with Paul to help deliver hot, nutritious meals to those who need it most. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, these restaurants were considered competitors, but now they are working together to support the community. The team has also been overwhelmed by generous donations through JustGiving and from local residents. These have enabled them to not only maintain hot meal deliveries but to support four local food banks and three other local community projects.

In harnessing the power of word of mouth and social media, no money has passed hands since The Neighbour’s Kitchen launched and Paul intends it to stay that way. For him, one of the most inspiring aspects of the Neighbourhood Kitchen has been the emergence of community spirit and collaboration as a result of experiencing one of the most difficult and unexpected challenges of our generation.