Burning Sky Q&A | IMBC 18

This year at IMBC, Burning Sky sponsor Room 2 – the central space at Victoria Baths. This Burning Sky’s first year as room sponsor and this means you’ll find Burning Sky at the helm of Room 2 with a host of their beers pouring at each and every session. We spoke to head brewer Mark Tranter about their plans for IMBC 18 and Burning Sky goodness in general…
Hello Mark! We are very excited to have Burning Sky as the sponsor of Room 2 at IMBC 18. What are you looking forward to bringing to the space? And can you can give us any teasers on any special beers that you will be bringing? 
 
Obviously we are super excited to be sponsoring IMBC this year – it ties in nicely with our 5th Birthday celebrations. We will be bringing a snazzy bar with a nice café vibe for people to be able to relax in and around. We will be pouring some special beers, including our first coolship release, vertical tastings of Anniversaire, the only keg ever of a single barrel Blackberry aged Provision and the debut of a couple of brand new beers. Amongst other things…
 
You’re coming up to your 5th birthday (only 13 more years before you can drink your beer!) – congratulations. Time flies but also Burning Sky have put out so many great beers in that duration, it’s hard to think of a time that Burning Sky weren’t on the UK scene. You’ve got a birthday shindig at the Prince Albert in Brighton – what’s happening? 
 
I guess we started brewing just as the UK beer scene was really stepping up a notch – so in some ways it does seem like we’ve been around that bit longer than we have. For our Birthday, we are organising a small party/ beer festival at our favourite pub in Brighton, The Prince Albert. It’s a thank you to them and to everyone who has supported us over the years – so it’s a free event. Here there will be some extra bars in the pub, serving beer from some of the best UK brewers, friends and people that inspire us, the full details can be found here.

As you move into the second half of your first decade, what are your hopes and dreams for the future of Burning Sky?  
 
That’s a tough question! Time moves so fast – and nowhere faster than in this ‘craft’ beer world. I guess I just want us to continue down this path that we have started forging, being true to our ethos, whilst continuing to improve our beers through constant learning. Obviously, as we get older, our barrel library expands, which in turn allows us to release more things.
 
As you are so renowned for your saisons, blends and wilder ales, I think sometimes people forget that Burning Sky also produce some outstanding IPAs and pale ales. Do you ever feel that or are your pales (cask, keg, bottles) actually right up there in terms of actual real-life demand?
 
That’s kind of you to say! Obviously we are so proud that people like our saisons etc – we certainly do! I think that people who know about our pales and IPAs, love them for the same reason that we do they are full flavoured in terms of being hop forward but also balanced and really drinkable. We love pales that leave you wanting another, rather than them being a chore to get through. Are they up there? Well we never have any stock, so I guess they are!
Are there any particular styles you are focusing on expressing in the future? What’s left for Burning Sky! Tell us about your coolship…
 
We will continue in our way – I feel like there is so much variation and nuances in the beers we do, so it will be more exploration of these with our ‘house style’. With the coolship, we are releasing our first beer from this on the 5th anniversary of our first ever brew, 29th September. There will be a small National launch on that day with the beer pouring in Manchester for the first time at IMBC (bottles will be available at the Beer Merchants shop there too).
So now we are happy with the results we are seeing, we can step it up a gear in terms of production. This will be made easier insofar as we will be taking on another building next year, to house all our barrels. Big enough for us to really grow into.


Burning Sky resides in Firle – midway between Brighton and Eastbourne – how is the brewing scene down there? Any peers blazing a trail that we should watch out for? 
 
Historically, there hasn’t been much action in terms of modern style breweries but that is changing slowly with the likes of Gun Brewery (who have been going a couple of years now), some others are starting up, like ‘Good Things Brewing’, ‘Lost Pier’, ‘Lost and Found’ etc. Then obviously we have Harveys, who we all love and are finding new favour with modern beer aficionados.
 
What makes a good beer festival? 
 
Good people – obviously! Good beer – obviously! Organisation – I think it’s easy for people from the outside looking in to underestimate how much goes into these things. A nice venue always adds to the attraction – gone are the days of a municipal hall!
 
Any favourite memories from IMBC 17 / Burning Sky’s fringe takeover at Port Street Beer House? Unfortunately we couldn’t duck out of Victoria Baths to check that out but heard it was top notch! 
 
We were really pleased with the beers we managed to rustle up for that! I think my favourite moment was getting the Barrel aged, bretted IPA that we brewed with Harveys on the bar – it tasted amazing and was a perfect marriage of old and new!

Thanks Mark!

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IMBC 18 
4th – 7th October 2018
Tickets for Thursday and Sunday sessions remain. Buy yours HERE.

Posted on 31st August 2018

Beer Merchants Q&A | IMBC 18

Beer Merchants are back at IMBC once more this year – as joint sponsors of our Food Village tent with Lervig, and as glass sponsor alongside Magic Rock. We spoke to Luke at Beer Merchants about what you can expect from their extensive treasure trove at IMBC 18…


Beer Merchants are taking over one of our Food Village tents alongside your good friends Lervig. Can you tell us a little about what you’ll be bringing to the space?
 
We will be bringing an all-star line-up of bottles, cans & merch to takeaway. From the best of the UK, fresh American imports, new releases from Europe and of course, a good Belgian selection. Expect fresh IPAs, lots of lambic and a healthy dose of imperial stouts for good measure. Since we’re sharing the space with Lervig we’ll have a bit of focus on their specials too but keep an eye out for their Crowler filler to take home whatever tasty draught beer they have on.


Unit 101 in Manchester and the Beer Merchants Tap in London are fast becoming must-attend venues for fans of great beer. What can visitors expect at either location when they step inside Beer Merchants’ inner sanctum? 

 
Much the same as our online experience, we pride ourselves on bringing the very best beer from all over the world, in a welcoming and relaxed environment. A 300 strong beer list could be kind of daunting, but we have a great team on hand to make sure people find the perfect beer for them and enjoy their visit. We have moved our trade warehouse from Northwestern Street in Manchester so 101 will unfortunately be closing soon but plans are afoot to replace it with a much better space.


With Beer Merchants at IMBC the takeout options for attendees are always incendiary – what do you have up your sleeves this year? Any rarities you can talk about? Lower strength beers might also be a good shout – what low ABV numbers are you excited about at the moment?
 
IMBC is very fortunate as it kicks off just after our 2nd Cantillon shipment of the year comes in, so there will always be a great selection of lambic in attendance. We also work closely with loads of what we consider the best breweries around the world, so expect fresh Lervig, Garage, Collective Arts & more on the import side. A little closer to home we will also have all the latest releases from Magic Rock, Northern Monk, Cloudwater, Lost & Grounded etc so something for every palate.
 
Session beers are a hugely important part of the drinking culture in the UK and something we always keep in good stocks. We are all really enjoying House Party from our friends Lervig at the moment – a 4% juicy pale ale hopped with Citra & Bru-1. This has also been the summer of Keller Pils at Beer Merchants HQ. Lost & Grounded have been smashing it through the heatwave and a sub 5% unfiltered lager is the perfect choice.


You guys are aways involved in great events with the quality of the breweries you support. Do Beer Merchants have any forthcoming events around IMBC that drinkers can look forward to?

 
We will be running IMBC related tap takeovers during the festival at Unit 101 and the week after will be the Unit 101 closing party. Keep an eye out for that one as we want it to go out with a bang!

What makes a good beer festival for you guys? You’re no stranger to starring on some outstanding festivals. 

 
For us, a good festival is a combination of many things: A great venue, an awesome beer list, good friends & a great vibe (all things IMBC have in droves). Victoria Baths always has such a great atmosphere through the weekend with a real buzz from both the customers and the brewers alike about a particular beer or brewery. Its always fun to have such an open & inclusive environment at a festival.


Beer Merchants are the IMBC 18 glass sponsors alongside Magic Rock. You’ll essentially be in the hands of everybody inside Victoria Baths…what beer should they start on? 
 
Thats a tricky question as there are so many incredible breweries to choose from, but our friends Magic Rock are always going to be a good starting point. Burning Sky will undoubtedly bring a host of impeccable Saisons not to be missed and who can finish a night off without an Imperial Stout from Lervig (certainly not us)? 

 

Any favourite memories from IMBC 17? 
 
IMBC 17 was great fun but one of the standouts was The Thirsty Games. Its great to see smaller breweries get a showcase like this. Everything we had from Burning Soul was great, Affinity are good friends on the London scene & bonus points for showcasing Little Earth Project. Not only are they a seriously exciting brewery, but they are from my (Luke’s) hometown!

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Cheers Luke! Follow Beer Merchants on instagram and twitter to keep up with their developments.

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IMBC 18
4th – 7th October 2018 | Victoria Baths, Manchester
Tickets available for Thursday and Sunday sessions HERE. 

Posted on 30th August 2018

Lervig Q&A | IMBC 18

Norwegian powerhouses Lervig host their very own space at IMBC for the second year running, alongside brothers in arms Beer Merchants. Lervig will be co-sponsoring one of our Food Village tents and bringing the motherload to IMBC 18. We caught up with Liam from Lervig to see what they’re bringing to the party and to find out what else is happening Lervig way…

Hello Liam! This is Lervig’s second year as room sponsor at IMBC. Last year you were hosting the Turkish Baths, this year you’re sharing a big outdoor tent with your pals Beer Merchants. How was your experience at IMBC last year?

We had a ball last year. Indy Man is one of our favorite festivals and one we always want to “represent” at. We had a beautifully tiled room last year, but it was a little sweaty to be honest so when we got the chance to be in a spacious airy tent we jumped at it, and we have such a great relationship with the guys from Beer Merchants it was a no brainer that we should team up.


Can you tell us a little about what you’ll be bringing to your new outdoor space for IMBC 18? We hear exciting plans are afoot!

Well… We don’t want to give too much away. Certainly not in terms of the design in the room, that’s something our designer Nanna Guldbæk is hard at work on right now. It’ll certainly have a party vibe … Maybe even a House Party vibe. We’re bringing our own DJ this year, he’s a Mancunian living in Stavanger, so we thought it would be a great way to merge our two worlds :) Also, we’ll have some Barrel Aged special releases through out the festival. Keep an eye on Facebook and Instagram for info on those during the weekend.

Three Bean. It’s a modern classic. Do you think you’ll ever bring out a Four Bean? One Bean could be a single origin session strength stout too. You can have these ideas for free.

Ha ha. We’ve talked a lot about a Four Bean… Just haven’t found the right bean to enhance the already complex flavours thou (any suggestions?). One Bean might work, but let’s keep that on the back burner for now.
Lervig have a deservedly outstanding reputation for dark beers (the aforementioned Three Bean, Konrad’s Stout, Toasted Maple Stout, Big Ass Money Stout etc etc). Your sours and hazy IPAs are pretty great too. Are there any upcoming beers, or styles, that you are especially passionate about?

Well, we’ve been working on some lower ABV things recently as that’s what we’ve been digging over the summer. We released House Party in the UK market (4% Session Ale) and that’s been going really well so we’re keen to experiment a little around that end of the table. But then we’re also coming out with a 10.5% DDH TIPA in the coming weeks (Medicine) so we’re all over the board. We just love it all I guess!


Nanna’s artwork – the rebranding of core range stuff, the new can designs – is really great. The vinyl wall illustrations you had at IMBC last year really made the space your own. Are you cooking up any spicy visuals for the new space this year?

Yes – we are hoping to give people an even bigger experience this year – with lots of characters, colours and focus on textures – all revolving around our beers. Wiggly, wild and wonderful is what we are going for.


How is the beer scene in Stavanger? As regular travellers to the UK how do you find the beer landscape over here? Are there many similarities or stark differences between the two?

The beer scene here is really great right now. There are a lot of breweries up here (like in the UK) really pushing boundaries and experimenting with really cool and innovative ideas, and the beer fans are among the best in the world. The downside however are the strict regulations and restrictions around buying beer. For us anything over 4.7% needs to go through the government owned and run monopoly which can be quite restrictive. We can usually release beer in the UK before it gets to market up here for example which is frustrating for us and our fans alike. Apart from that the scene is quite similar. The trends seem to be the same as the UK and UK breweries do well up here.

Can you give any exclusive leaks of any beers that you’re be bringing to IMBC 18?

Hmmm… We want to keep the Barrel Aged things under wraps for now, but we’ll have Medicine along with us. We’re even trying to blend a couple of beers to have an IMBC only beer. It’ll be a sessionable hazy smasher! Plus we’ll have a Crowler station set up for take away beers of your choice.

When IMBC goers are in Manchester, where should they go? (Besides Victoria Baths, naturally)

We really like the Patron in the Northern Quarter. They have a great tap lineup and great food. Also we’ve had a lot of fun at Port St Beer House in the past… Can’t go wrong there.

Thanks Liam. Anything else to add?

Just that we’re super pumped for the festival and hope to see you all in out tent :)

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IMBC 18 
4th – 7th October 2018
Tickets available for THURSDAY and SUNDAY sessions HERE. 

Posted on 28th August 2018

Verdant Q&A | IMBC 18

VERDANT return to IMBC for their third year at Victoria Baths. This time Verdant commandeer the Turkish Baths as official IMBC 18 room sponsors. We spoke to Adam Robertson, Verdant co-founder, about life in the juice lane. Read on…


You guys are constantly revisiting and updating the recipes of your core range – how is that process? Do you ever feel like you achieve the perfect rendition of say Headband or will it always be a case of fine tuning and adapting?

We have revisited the core range continually and mainly down to the fact they are all still brewed into our original flat bottom fermenters, which restricts us to using dried yeast. We are now happy with all iterations of these beers and even to the point now that we feel moving away from these FV’s would change the beers again and maybe too far away from what they are now. Headband for in stance is tasting perfect right now, Pulp & Bloom have never been messed with and as for Lightbulb, well that’s an ongoing battle and mainly down to the fact that subjectively we all like different things. But, I’m pretty sure that we are very close to having that nailed too.

Have you noticed any particular trends in drinking habits this past year? Lower ABV stuff seems to be much more prevalent than it was amongst UK breweries than it was last year for instance. 

Lower ABV beers for sure and fruited sours, the triple fruited Gose we collab’d with North Brewing on definitely seemed to hit a sweet spot with people. I think the brewers have driven the low ABV trend, last year at beer festivals was brutal with all the DIPA’s floating around. There is also a definite trend towards the Brut IPA, an IPA fermented out with Champagne yeast, still fruity but with an incredibly dry finish. 

How is it meeting the demand for Verdant beers? You’re bringing out new beers most weeks – it is exciting times. You recently increased your brewing capacity. What are your plans moving forward?

We brew to capacity each week, we have filled our space to capacity so we simply can not grow any more in our current situation, so yeah that is exciting. We create new beers each week and we release them via our online store, the Experiment in Hackney and via distribution and then on Monday we start all over again. It’s really fun times but we look to the future and we try to understand how sustainable that is, the UK beer scene doesn’t look to buy the same beer twice, everyone always wants something new and I wrestle with how healthy that is for a business. It works whilst we are this small and still have a large portion of the market to attract, but how sustainable is it when we grow to be larger brewery…

Our plans are to grow for sure, but we are so limited in finding suitable space in Falmouth. We are working hard to solve these problems and have a couple of options. We will be looking to putting some plans in place later this year.


Seafood tapas and beer! Name a more iconic duo. How are your plans for the Seafood Bar going? 

This space really excites all of us. We know it’s late and it’s taking too long but it will be so very worth it. Current plans are to open over the weekend of the Falmouth Oyster Festival on October 16th. The space we have taken on has been the Falmouth Seafood Bar for nearly 40 years, we want to continue this tradition but bring Verdant beers into the mix also. It’s quite an important space in Falmouth and although very small will be a great place to spend an afternoon or evening when visiting the town. Expect the freshest seafood along side the freshest beers.

Are you finding drinkers are making the pilgrimage to Falmouth more often these days? Where should any prospective fans visit in Falmouth?

Most definitely! We find the shop at the brewery is very busy with people suggesting day trips to Falmouth via the stop off at an industrial estate. It’s really very exciting to have the drinkers from around the country drop in and buy fresh cans. We always get to here where they buy our beers outside of Cornwall. If coming to Falmouth you need to visit HAND Beer Bar – 8 years a craft beer, The Working Boat stunning location and good food, The Star & Garter for finer dining, The Seaview Inn for a pub with a panoramic view of Falmouth. You can’t really go wrong for food in Falmouth, the Kitchen is fantastic, The Wheelhouse if you can get a table and Provedore (arrive early with cash) are all great options.


You’ve been at IMBC the past two years. What for you, as seasoned festival pourers, makes a good beer festival? 

A man dressed as Mario playing an 8bit keyboard 🤣 (Ed: if you know you know) 

But seriously it’s down to the organisers. When an event is well organised the brewers pull out all the stops and bring their A game. A well organised festival provides everything that the customer would need. Beer, Food and Conveniences often; layered with music and good vibes at value for money. The location for IMBC is worth the ticket alone.

Tell us about The Experiment! How did your partnership with Pressure Drop come about? Any plans to link arms with those guys at IMBC?

In the true name of collaboration, we were invited to brew with PD and we bit their arm off. For us they had been the catalyst to drinking better beer in the UK so it had to happen. When we there Graham had mentioned their old site and that it was laying dormant. We took a visit together and the plans were hatched. It was a simple decision and it’s a very softy launch. We have some more work to do there but it’s working out really well, we are very excited to have such a place in London – we get the freshest beers up there each week. We hadn’t considered an Experiment at IMBC 🤔

Lastly, what are Verdant going to bring to the Turkish Baths? Any exciting plans you can leak? 

No leaks, but expect some beers never poured by us before, when I say never poured… beer that has been hanging around for a while that we need you guys to taste. Music naturally as we are all huge fans, a photo booth is being lined up so that visitors can remember their time at IMBC and we can post you all onto the internet. Expect fun times!

CHEERS ADAM!

Follow Verdant on Instagram, Twitter, and on their website.

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IMBC 18 / 4th-7th October 2018. Victoria Baths, Manchester
Tickets for Thursday 4th, Friday 5th day session, and Sunday 7th October are available HERE. 

Posted on 22nd August 2018

Magic Rock Q&A | IMBC 18

We are none more excited to welcome back Magic Rock to IMBC as the glass sponsor of this year’s festival alongside Beer Merchants. Find Magic Rock pouring at EVERY session of IMBC 18. We spoke to Marisa and Duncan from Magic Rock to see what’s happening…

Hello Marisa and Duncan! We are excited to have Magic Rock as the glass sponsors at IMBC 18 this year alongside Beer Merchants. Your designer Rich Norgate has collaborated on the glass artwork with the person behind our IMBC branding, Steve Hockett. Your glassware is always on point – how important is the right vessel?

Marisa: Well, thank you very much, our designer Rich Norgate does a great job. We are always really happy when we get good feedback from the beer community. Great glassware always improves the drinking experience

Duncan: The right vessel is important for the correct ‘mouth movement’, I’ve always believed beer tastes different with different mouth shapes, I’m all about the stout pout at the current moment.



Magic Rock are back at IMBC for all sessions this year after occupying our bar Common for the IMBC Fringe last year. What can punters expect from the return of Magic Rock at Victoria Baths this time around? Any exciting plans you can talk about?

Marisa: All I’ll say is that we missed it so much that you won’t be disappointed for what we have instore this year.

Duncan: Its been a bit like Glastonbury, we let the cattle have a rest last year, so the pastures are now greener and we have fuller bellies ready to be milked.

Magic Rock’s setup at IMBC 2014!

Sesh Fest! What a premise. A great time was had by all. Do you have plans to repeat the festival and what else is going on down at the Tap these days?

Marisa: We definitely plan on SeshFest making an appearance in 2019.

Ah, there is always something going down at the Tap. Particularly over the next few months, a lot of exciting things are happening; the Rainbow Project Launch in our taproom, gigs by local musicians and tap takeovers. Verdant just took over our taps and it was a great night! We also just had our annual Food and Drink Festival and it was a great time.

Duncan: we are planning to double the Sesh on one day now, so splitting it into two session, so we might re-brand as Double Sesh Fest? Maybe?

Given that you are lords of the Sesh Fest, do you have any advice to attendees on how to approach their chosen session at IMBC?

Marisa: Everyone has a different definition of what a ‘session’ is and how they approach it, so giving advice can be a little challenging. To us, a good session means something a little bit more than just drinking beer, it has a sense of community tied to it.

There was one comment I overheard at SeshFest that really stood out… “What makes a good session is the people around you.” As tasty as beer can be, nothing competes being in good company when out on the sesh.

Duncan: Shandy or Radlers, in pints.

Marisa in the house

Speaking of sessions, low ABV pales are all the rage these days and we are enjoying riding that wave! Your recent Micromachine collaboration with Northern Monk was a smash hit. Have you found that drinkers are turning to flavourful low ABV beers in favour of their higher strength DIPA brethren?

Marisa: Yeah, I think drinkers are turning to low ABV, flavourful beers although I still love a 8.5% DDH NEIPA.

Duncan: Yep I can’t drink any above 5% these days, gives me a ‘hops flush’.

We know you guys are no strangers to Manchester – any tips for festival goers over IMBC weekend?

Marisa: Get to Idle Hands before or during the sesh for a coffee and get to Siop Shop for the most wonderful breakfast sandwich you will have ever eaten. Oh wait, and Siop Shop does vegan donuts?! It’s a must. (Ed: backing this 100% and you might always find said duo at IMBC 18…)

Duncan: Oasis Café, Fab Café, This and That, Corn Exchange (bootleg tape basement) and the Arndale. (Ed: Follow This & That on Facebook and thank me later) 

Cheers! Any parting words?

Marisa: See you at Indyman 2018.

Duncan: Live well and work safe.

Duncan entering the house

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Follow Magic Rock everywhere on the internet and drink them dry at IMBC 18.

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IMBC 18 / 4th-7th October 2018. Victoria Baths, Manchester
Tickets for Thursday 4th, Friday 5th day session, and Sunday 7th October are available HERE. 

 

 

Posted on 15th August 2018

Wild Beer | IMBC 18 collaboration

Yesterday we took a trip to Shepton Mallet, home of Wild Beer Co, to plot a special IMBC 18 collaboration with the Wild Beer team.


Wild are returning this year at Indy Man to plant roots once more in the Food Village as sponsors of one of our two outdoor rooms. We briefly chatted over their plans for the space in October and we are tres excite – basically more beer, more barrels, more cheese. Tick tick tick. Last year the Wild space was something of a party destination, expect similarly heightened scenes this time around.


Wild Beer’s brewery is pretty incredible. You know it’s going to be good when you approach a building signposted “The Barrel Library”. The team is passionate, as you’d expect, about looking after and experimenting with beer. There is a lot going on here and so much beer, of all different states. Barrels are numbered, piled high and catalogued. To an outsider there’s no rhyme or reason to the barrel formation, just a sea of but it’s all there on paper and in the Wild Beer team’s heads.

Brett from Wild Beer guided us through samples extracted from their barrel library of different base beer options for the collaboration. Samples are taken by removing a stainless steel nail from the barrels and filling up a glass from the pinhole stream. Bang the nail back in and the barrels are all good and back on the ageing trail.





For our IMBC 18 collaboration we picked out a foeder aged saison, Schnoodlepip, blended with a lower ABV saison in the wood. This was then put alongside two of our other favourites from the sample options – a couple of aged Pogo expressions, Wild’s tropical pale ale.



The beer will be a blend of these three beers as a base and then left to age running up to the festival on a colossal amount of fresh morello cherries in the barrel. Expect something wholly Kriek-some. This is Wild’s first Kriek-forward endeavour and they are excited to bring it to IMBC 18. As are we. Here are a few photographs from our trip, with a little commentary.


More barrels in the mainland brewery.


Fresh from the barrel.


Wild Beer hot sauce. Modus barrel aged hot sauce with homegrown jalapeños and habaneros. Not sure if this one is commercially available but sounds good, huh!


Just in case you were wondering how Wild keep tabs on what barrel sample is what…they write the corresponding barrel number on the base of the glass.

Wild’s new canning line cans up to six-thousand cans an hour. Not bad!


Cheers Brett and the entirety of the Wild Beer team for having us and we can’t wait for the outcome!

Posted on 12th July 2018

Meet Burning Soul / Thirsty Games 2017 Winners

Ahoy! The second annual Thirsty Games competition was a smash this year. Thirsty Games finalists Affinity, Burning Soul, and Little Earth Project poured beers side by side on The Thirsty Games bar throughout IMBC 17. Burning Soul lifted the Thirsty Games trophy (made by Manchester artist Pascal Nichols) on Sunday evening after winning the public vote. We caught up with Burning Soul to congratulate them on their victory and to see what they’re up to now.

As part of The Thirsty Games prize, Burning Soul are the first name on the brewery team sheet for IMBC 18. You’ll find them in Victoria Baths at IMBC 18 at every session. Thirsty Games sponsors Lallemand have also gifted Burning Soul £500 prize money as well as kindly supporting The Thirsty Games and new breweries throughout 2017.Let’s see what Burning Soul are saying…

Firstly, congratulations on winning The Thirsty Games! How was your experience at IMBC 17?

Cheers man, yeah we had an absolute blast. Everyone has always told us how awesome Indy Man is, we always planned to go but always tried getting tickets too late. To go for the first time taking our beer along was epic and it did not disappoint! From the general vibe, to everyone is there to have a great time, the setting is such a great building, to the ridiculously high standard of beer made us feel very honoured to be pouring there.

Photograph by Jody Hartley


You lifted the Thirsty Games trophy at 5pm on Sunday – was there an immediate reaction once news spread?
It was a great moment with people at Indy Man who we’d met over the weekend and the social media went a bit crazy with people congratulating us, we were buzzing.

You guys brought three of your beers along – can you talk us through them? Was there a standout beer that punters reacted especially favourably towards?

So we brought along…

Belgian IPA which is a personal favourite of ours. It’s brewed with Summit, Chinook and Citra then fermented cool with a Belgian yeast. It just works really well with the citrus hops giving it a real depth of flavour.

Citra Amarillo Sour which is a new one we have been trying lately from our pilot kit and it finished fermenting just in time and was tasting great so we brought it along to see what people thought. It’s clean smooth sour with a hit of citrus from the dry hop. Really happy with how it went down at the fest and we have just started brewing up a batch on our full kit yesterday excited to see how it comes out.
And last but not least a lightly Barrel Aged Coconut Porter, this was the most stand out beer people were really enjoying, including Logan Plant who came over to check out the Thirsty Games. This is the first beer we have put in a barrel but it’s definitely not the last. Its only been in the barrel for 1 month. We were originally going to bring our normal version but after having a taste we knew we had to sneak a little out early just for Indy man and were glad we did. It’s a dark rich chocolatey porter enhanced with toasted coconut then the Jack Daniels Barrel added lush smooth vanilla notes.
How did you find feedback in general? Did it seem like there was a lot of interaction from festival goers with the Thirsty Games bar?

Yeah the interaction was great, lots of people would come up intrigued so we would tell them what its all about get them to taste all the beers and buy their favourite.

Photograph by Jody Hartley

You were up against stiff competition in the shape of Affinity and Little Earth Project – did you enjoy pouring alongside those two? The standard was excellent this year
These guys are the reason we had such a great time. We couldn’t have asked to spend 4 days with a more lovelier bunch of people and their beers were great. Even though we were technically in competition it never felt like it. We were just a group of people, who love beer, hanging out at Indy man, having a great time. All of us singing along to queen at the end of Friday is one great memory in particular.

What were you beer highlights from IMBC 17?
It has to be getting to meet Logan and getting to talk beer with him. He was telling us about when he started out and how he went about things. He was really digging the coconut porter and was generally interested asking about the process for getting the coconut flavour into the beer. We got his vote which made our day.

What kind of kit are you working with at your brewery?
We have a 4bbl brew house that’s completely self built (after a lot of auction hunting, some quick lessons in metal work and ordering a lot of piece’s of stainless steel off the internet).
When we got the keys to our premises it was particularly terrifying as we suddenly had overheads and nothing but a pile of parts and tanks (that was a long way from being able to brew beer) After 3 months hard work it actually worked which was the biggest sigh of relief. We have since had some upgrades in the form of 2 new shiny conditioning tanks. We also often have our 100l pilot kit running, testing out new recipes that we put on in our taproom to see what our customers make of them.

If anyone is on a Burning Soul pilgrimage, where should visitors to Birmingham head?
Our brewery tap is located by the Jewellery Quarter area of Birmingham City Centre, we’re based at 51 Mott St B19 3HE. You can actually get a tram from New Street Station to St. Paul’s for £1 which is 3 mins round the corner from us. We’re open Fridays 4-8 and Saturdays 1-8. We have 8 rotating taps plus take out bottles.

We sell our beer to many local pubs and bars including the Wolf, 1000 Trades, Wellington, Post Office Vaults, Clink, Cotteridge Wines, Wildcat Tap, Cherry Reds.

What’s next for Burning Soul?

We just want to keep perfecting our beers. Now that we’re starting to really understand our kit and how to get the best out of it, we can start scaling up a lot more of our small batch recipes and getting them outside of our taproom. We’re all about experimenting, that’s what makes brewing exciting so we hope to have a lot of new beers out in the next year.

Where can people pick your beers up?

At the moment mostly in bars in and around Birmingham. We have just started selling on Eebria trade so we should start getting kegs further afield . We have done some bottle runs  which can be found in local bottle shops such as Cotteridge Wines, Connellys Wines and Clink (although limited stock at the moment). We were chatting to the canning guys We Can at Indy Man so this is an option we’d definitely like to explore so watch this space!

Thanks Burning Soul!

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Thirsty Games 2017 winners BURNING SOUL!

Posted on 11th October 2017

IMBC 17 Photos

IMBC 17 is a goner! Luckily we had Jody Hartley down to photograph it. Here are some choice visuals! Enjoy!

Posted on 4th October 2017