Brewers Journal Podcast Reby Media

How much do you know about your local and the people that run it. Why they do what they do. What they enjoy about this profession. What they enjoy....less so.







Be it core classics or specials and seasonals, the independent on-trade is essential in offering a platform to countless brewery's beers. And for patrons and producers in West London, they're fortunate to have a brilliant pub that does just that.







Run by husband and wife duo Tim and Tosh, alongside canine companion Dexter, The Brook is part of the rich beer and brewing fabric of Brentford. After running a wealth of London's best-known pubs, giving a boost and a stage to excellent, independent, beer is a huge part of their raison d'être.







The Brook was founded as 'The Royal Oak' beer house in 1787 and it was originally a standard corner property, later expanded into properties in New Road. It belonged to the Royal Brewery of Brentford.







The Royal Oak was licensed as a public house by 1894 and it was built in its present form in that year 1894, possibly being partially rebuilt in the 1920s. ​







The Strawberry House beer house was established by 1871 at 33 New Road where a member of the Gomm family (the brewers) was noted as a beer seller there. It was probably named after the large area of market gardens that used to exist in the area between Brook Road and Ealing Road.







One of the market gardeners, Thomas William Beach, founded a jam factory in Brentford and he won awards for his strawberries at the Great Exhibition in 1851.







The beer house was closed after 1896 by which time it was known as The Patriot. ​ Licensees of The Royal Oak included John Carter (1869), Richard Lewis (1870), Elizabeth Gardner (1894), Boaz Stallwood (1901) and Albert Coles (1914-1937). Stan Johnson was the landlord of The Royal Oak until 1960.







By 1957 Stan had decided that he would become a publican and he moved to The Royal Oak after completing his training at The City Barge at Strand on the Green. In 1960 Stan and his wife moved to the Midlands, first in Walsall and then in Bridgnorth. ​







The Royal Oak was closed for some time and re-opened as 'The Brook' in June 2019 with Tim and Tosh Rider as the owners.







Tim explains: "My introduction to the pub trade was Godolphin's just near Brentford Lock in 1989. My stint there made me realise I had a genuine love for the hospitality pub trade…so, thank you Brentford for that! I joined Whitbread soon after becoming the manager of The King's Head in Chiswell Street near the Barbican Center.







"I met Tosh in The Blue Posts, in Soho, 20+ years ago. We married in 2002 when we were both running Bar Mosko in Holborn, then we spent 10 years at The Tabard in Chiswick followed by 2 years at the Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in Fleet Street. Between the two of us we have gained strong links and experience within the pub industry.







"We took the lease on for The Royal Oak in Brentford in March 2019 and the pub showed real promise plus a chance for both of us to finally put down some roots. The Royal Oak needed some love so after 3 months of getting the pub back into some order, we changed the name to 'The Brook'…it was time for a fresh start.







"We are immensely proud of The Brook, how it looks and we are committed to becoming the local “village pub” in Brentford. So come and relax with our great selection of craft ales/beers, great wines, spirits and good food alongside good company and an extensive selection of vinyl and digital music!"







In this episode we speak to Tim about the joys, and challenges, of running an independent pub, the importance of connecting with the community,

From Arise, Aurora and Cuvée, to Plateau, Saison Anniversaire and Luppoleto Pils, many of us are abundantly familiar with the fantastic beers produced by Burning Sky.







But how much of do you know of the story behind these beers and the brilliant brewery that makes them?Because the Burning Sky team, led by founder Mark Tranter, prefer to let the beers do the talking.Founded in 2013, Burning Sky have made an indelible mark on UK beer since day one. The Sussex outfit, led by Mark, are a benchmark to many brewers across the diverse spectrum of this incredible liquid.And with the brewery celebrating its 10th anniversary last year, we invited Mark to tell us more about his journey in beer.







Speaking at our Brewers Lectures in Bristol last month, he observed how the industry has changed in the last decade and the challenges the brewery has overcome. 







He explains why Burning Sky’s rural location in Firle, East Sussex has both pros and cons, the development of their mixed fermentation offering and why when it comes to business, it’s important to understand that everyone's aims and ambitions are different. 

Much has changed in England's capital during the last decade. Breweries have come and gone as have countless beer styles, too.







But in 2024, Hammerton Brewery - based moments from Caledonian Road & Barnsbury railway station in the London Borough of Islington - proudly celebrates its 10th anniversary.







The business, founded by Lee Hammerton and his girlfriend - now wife - Karina has produced a wealth of beers during those 10 years, picking up a raft of awards along the way.







And brewing is something that runs in the blood for the Hammerton's, with Lee being a distant relative of the family that founded the original Hammerton Brewery, a substantial site situated at the bottom of Lingham Street in Stockwell, and one acquired by Charles Hammerton in the late 19th century.







While the modern Hammerton produces a number of decorated dark beers, that original brewery was also known for being the first in the UK, and probably Europe, to use oysters as part of the process of brewing stout in 1938.







In this podcast episode, which is also available to watch on our YouTube channel we chart the last decade through some of the brewery's most important beers.







From N7 IPA and Panama Extra Pale Ale to the alcohol-free Zed and from nitro stout Tint to City of Cake, which just picked up Gold in the Cask competition at the recent SIBA Independent Beer Awards 2024, we discuss how these beers have shaped the first 10 years of one of London's finest breweries.

What’s the largest event you’ve organised alcohol licensing for? 







Well, today’s guest has licensed major festivals such as Glastonbury, pubs, bars - oh and the King’s Coronation, too.Piers Warne is a licensing lawyer at TLT and has 20- plus years’ experience licensing premises for the sale of alcohol and other licensable activities.This includes licensing breweries for direct sales to customers, online sales and for taprooms. He has acted on the licensing around sale and purchase of major breweries and small start-ups across the country and on registrations for AWRS and other relevant certificates, too.So to learn more, we recently asked him to share his experiences and expertise from the licensing world, the opportunities that can arise and the potential pitfalls to avoid.

What does it take to cut it as the head of operations and sales at one of the UK's most exciting independent breweries? Well, we asked Kat Türková to find out!







Kat grew up in the Czech Republic and came to the UK in 2015 to study a BA in Comparative Literature at King’s College London. After graduating university and following a few jobs in the hospitality sector, she met Daniel Tapper and became a part of the Beak Brewery from the early days in 2019. 







At Beak, Kat has utilised her skills and went from being a taproom manager to becoming the head of operations and Sales, driving the brewery’s sales strategies not only in the UK, but also abroad, as well as ensuring a smooth day to day operations of the business. 







In this episode, recorded at our Brewers Lectures in Portsmouth, Kat talks us through her journey in beer, her role at Beak, the challenges that presents and the advice she would haven given herself before embarking in a career in the brewing industry.Production: Ross MacPhersonPhoto Credit: Beak Brewery

As head brewer at Liverpool-based Azvex, Jack Walker is responsible for creating a raft of celebrated beers.







And only this month, the brewery was awarded the accolade of Best Double IPA in England for its Swedish Buzzsaw in the Untappd Community Awards. The 8.2% beer is dry-hopped with Citra, Strata, Mosaic & Nelson Sauvin







These types of beers, as Jack explains, are part of the modus operandi at Azvex. And that means hazy hops, big stouts and silly sours.







In this podcast, recorded in the Azvex taproom, Jack talks us through the setup at the brewery and what makes them tick. He discusses their four-vessel brew house, which allows for ultimate flexibility and control over a multitude of variables in the brewing process. 











































He explains that the fundamentals of their hoppy IPAs remain good basic brewing practice, but also evolving how and when they use hops, their percentages of adjunct grains, and always focusing on quality markers such as dissolved oxygen and pH. 







Currently, they are focused on biotransformation and the flavour impact from the interaction of yeast and hops, and they have some “really silly” 60%+ adjunct grain bills. 







“Pray for our lauter tun!” he says…