With one year ending and a new one about to begin, we’ve taken the opportunity to look back over what’s been a busy twelve months. A chance to pause, reflect and raise a glass to some of things we’ve achieved along the way.
The most important place to start is to thank every single person who has contributed to the growth we’ve experienced in 2025. We couldn’t continue to do what we do and share our passion in the way we’re able without the support of our trade customers, suppliers and, perhaps most importantly, all the people who have taken the opportunity to enjoy our beers throughout the year.
So, here’s a big thank you to all of the above; whether you’ve enjoyed a pint in the Taproom or your favourite pub, stocked our beers, joined us at an event, or cracked open a can at home.
THANK YOU!
The past year saw the continued development and evolution of our line-up of Assassin beers; both in terms of new additions, but also a complete overhaul of the range’s branding. Starting life as a homebrew recipe, first conceived back in 2011, Baby-Faced Assassin has now grown to become the founding member of a fully-fledged family of five. Having first been joined by Easy-Going Assassin, its lower-ABV counterpart a few years ago, we welcomed this year no fewer than three new additions.
Hazy-Faced Assassin launched in May and was quickly followed by the arrival of Mango Hazy Assassin later in the summer and Little Hazy Assassin in November. Forming the modern end of our range, all five beers have been given a collective bold and exciting visual identity thanks to our ongoing collaboration with the incredibly talented David Bailey.
We also added to our bank of gluten-free beers in our year-round range. Alongside all five Assassins, two gluten-free lagers in the shape of Haus Lager and Good As Hell were added in can and keg, as well as Yorkshire’s Best.
Yorkshire’s Best quickly found its feet in our cask core range, proving to be a very popular addition. We were especially proud to see it secure a listing with Systembolaget in Sweden. No mean feat and a credit to our production team!
Speaking of the production team, we’ve been delighted to add some exceptional brewers with bags of experience to the team over the course of the year as we continue to grow and develop. Ben, Nick, Harry, Malc and Tim have all played a vital role as production demand has increased.
Our sales team has also grown as we’ve proactively enhanced our presence across the North of England. Phil joined us from Vocation, and David, formerly with Black Sheep joined the team in January 2025. We’re also delighted to be welcoming Bethany into a new role at the start of January ‘26 to further strengthen our ability to support customers and partners across the trade (Fancy stocking our beer? Click here!)
Behind the scenes, we’ve made several significant investments to ensure our beer continues to meet the high standards we set ourselves. Two rather large grain silos now dominate the brewery yard, while the recent installation of a centrifuge has enhanced our brewing processes, helping to improve the consistency and quality of our beers in both can and keg.
Headed up by Alex and Howie, the Taproom has continued to go from strength to strength. We really can’t stress how grateful we are to our wonderful customers; both those for whom our onsite bar is their local and the many people who have travelled from further afield to visit. The the weekly quiz, ably hosted by Quizmaster Ant is at the heart of the regular events the Taproom hosts, backed up by another strong line-up of Really Funny Comedy gigs dotted across the year too. This year’s headliners have included, amongst others, Josh Pugh, Geoff Norcott, Kiri Pritchard-McLean, Ria Lina, Tom Stade and Ivo Graham. Keep an eye out for more to come in 2026!
Combatting the Taproom’s high ceilings and hard surfaces, part and parcel of a building such as ours was high on our to do list and led to the installation of a number of ProSound acoustic ceiling rafts (checkout that immediately made a positive difference to improve the acoustics. Shout out to Soundproofing Store, who managed the project for us – they did a great job!
Suds With Buds was once again a huge success. It’s a heck of an event for our small team to pull off. There’s a great deal of planning and hard work that goes into it each year, making it exhausting and rewarding in equal measure. We go again on July 4th 2026! Details and initial announcements will be shared in the new year. In the meantime, make sure the date’s circled on your calendar.
That about wraps up 2025. Here’s to what should hopefully be a cluckin’ good 2026! 🍻