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ROOSTER’S
BREWERY
Episode
1: Franklin's Brewery
Returning from
Bordeaux in 1965 where I'd been studying wine-making and tasting,
jobs were hard to find. I heard about Goose Eye brewery outside
Keighley. I arrived one cold, sunny, Spring Sunday morning. After
seeing the brewery I had a pint and generally got the feel of
the place. That's when I was bitten by the bug - I thought -'I
could do this'.
To get started,
I found an old barn at The Gardeners Arms in Bilton, Harrogate.
The building needed a good clean out, drains installing, a concrete
floor and Planning Permission. The local Harrogate CAMRA branch
helped along the way. I installed a 7 barrel brewery I'd put
together out of second hand tanks. Eighteen months after my Goose
Eye visit I started brewing at Franklin's Brewery.
The first brewday
started badly. The mash tun floor, made of wicker by a blindman
in York, floated above the mash having lost it's anchorage in
the bottom of the tank. It was an eighteen hour day but the beer
turned our well.
I enjoyed the brewing
- delivering beer in the taxi that I was driving as the day job.
When I started, I did all the work (not very well) from start
to finish. If I needed any brewing advice I turned to Jeff Ellison
of Phillips yeast in Armley. He had been a microbiologist with
Scottish and Newcastle breweries and was a rare breed who never
wasted a word. I gave up the Franklin's after 4 years or so.
It was right at the start of the small brewery movement and I
just got bored knocking my head against the brick wall of the
tied market. My landlord raised the rent beyond what the turnover
could stand. I sold the brewery to Tommy Thomas.
Episode
2: A break
I had a third attempt
(sadly without success) at passing the Master of Wine exam. By
this time I had married Alison and we were on the way to raising
two children. I had a spell with Martinez Fine Wines in Harrogate
which lasted a year.
Episode
3: Back to brewing
I went back to
Taxi driving until I got an invitation to join Bill Witty at
Daleside Brewery. Bill was a great boss, letting me make the
beers I wanted. I left about a year later and Alison and I set
up a 4 barrel brewery at Claro Court in Harrogate. This time
we named the brewery Rooster's. Why 'Rooster's' ? Well, because
Roosters are natural - like our beer, it's male and at that time
so were the majority of beer drinkers. I also like Rooster Cogburn
as the marshall in 'True Grit'. Sad, I know but what can I do
Episode
4:ROOSTER’S BREWERY
We opened in October
1993 Total production started at eight barrels (8 x 36 imp.gals).
We now average 60 barrels per week. Under the Rooster’s
label we make five regular beers: Special, Cream, Yankee®, Y.P.A® and Leghorn. All products are presently only sold on draught.
The Outlaw
Brewing Co.
was started in April
1996 after we released our Pioneer Brewing Company name. Under
the Outlaw label, we make small experimental brews on a 'state
of the art' home brew plant. This improves our general brewing
skills and keeps customers palates sharp.
Roosters brewery, Knaresborough,
UK. | Contact us
Site created by
Glynn Snowden.
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