Craft Beer in Jeopardy?

We began this year with renewed optimism. We thought we were at last “out of the wood”, & we could look forward to a really busy 12 months, and perhaps even make a profit. Two months in and we were not even sure if we had a future at all.

Our initial worst fears were quite different from the challenges that have since beset us. The old adage “when times are good, people drink a little; when times are bad, they drink a little more” no longer seems to apply. It now appears “…when times are bad, people stop drinking!”

It isn’t all about the cost of utilities, there are also staff shortages, and the increasing cost of both food and beer, which all contribute to this demise. But I want to leap in here and quickly point out that the increase in the cost of beer – according to the Office of National Statistics, so far up 13 pence per pint this year – is far more about the cost of utilities, wages, packaging, and distribution, than it is about the price of malt. Yes, barley prices are sharply up again this harvest, and malt prices will have to follow, but this increase on its own will only add between one and two pence per pint!

But it does not stop there. CF Industries have recently announced that they are closing down their Billingham fertiliser plant, a serious by-product of which is Carbon Dioxide, necessary for keg beer production. This only adds to the woes we face across the U.K. brewing landscape. The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) is calling for the government to intervene, but I doubt they will get much response.

Meanwhile, our weekly sales of malt have begun to reflect all this. Our customers are all still there, and they are all still brewing, but a significant number of them are not brewing quite as much as they would like to.

As I wrote to one, who emailed me on this subject last week, we all have to get through this, as best we can. There is a very good reason why, because the “sunnier uplands” will always be there another day.

Whisky Galorious!

 Swinging from “uplands” to the Highlands, and from beer to ‘Scotch’, you may have recently read the story about the cask of ‘single malt’ whisky made by the Ardbeg distillery on Islay, distilled and laid down in 1975, and auctioned a few weeks ago. It sold for a staggering £16m., putting the value of a single bottle, of a total of 440 bottles, at £36,000 each! (The previous record price for a cask of single malt was just £1m.).

This would never benefit me, I’m too old, but for the future posterity of the Maltings, I cannot help concluding that this would not be an unreasonable thing to do. I am thinking about it!

But I deliberately relate this story to point out, it is not all bad news at the moment.

Customers to the Maltings.

One standout feature of this year at the Maltings has to be the number of customers who have requested to visit us. We have received whole teams from both Breweries and Distilleries, and we are due to carry on, hosting both disciplines in this month of September.

I really welcome this because these are opportunities to learn from each other. I am neither a trained Brewer, or a Distiller, but I do know a little bit about barley and malt, and when I am talking with customers it is sometimes surprising what more we both discover we can achieve together.

I attach a photograph of our most recent guests, Brasserie La Boyere, from France. Peter Smith (on the left) standing alongside me with his father Bill (on the right), are both English, but Peter has now made France his home. Bill has to be our oldest visitor, by far, he is 101 years old! You would never have thought it, he made it all around the Malt floors, almost unaided, and continuously fired all the right questions at me, the whole way round.

After a couple of hours of interrogation and discovery, we loaded up the Smithmobile with 10 bags of our finest Maris Otter malt and pointed the way to the Portsmouth ferry.

Now then, methinks, if I should make it to 101 years old, that “consequential” clause in the Distillers Malt supply contract, might benefit me, after all!

 PLEASE: Do what you can to save our pubs!

Robin Appel

Full of Eastern Promise

Restoration Progress

Most Warminster people are very much aware of a tall and expansive plastic canopy that enshrouds one corner of our Maltings, but it is not easy to see from the road exactly what is going on underneath. After more than 6 months of this project, they might even ask if anything is going on at all!

Well, work is progressing, albeit slowly. Like so many other industry sectors, we are hampered by the lack of available raw materials, and a lack of skilled labour in the construction industry, most of whom are struggling with the huge backlog of work caused by 2 years of ‘lockdowns’.

However, by way of an update, I can advise you the Pound Street elevation has had most of its roof refurbished, that was completed first. The more complex work involves the dismantling, and now the reconstruction, of the two kilns. We are on the brick and stonework at the moment, much of the second-floor elevations requiring a complete rebuild.

We are advised the work will almost certainly stretch well into the winter, but hopefully before Christmas we will be uncovering the almost final if not completed works. But, for the time being, although it may not look like it, it is work in progress. We are grateful to our contractors, Chalke Valley Roofing, who ensure there are craftsmen on site every working day. I might describe it as gentle but steady progress!

New Staff

 We pride ourselves that we have a very low turnover of staff at the Maltings, three current members being part of the original team that was already here when I arrived in 2001. So, it is unusual for us to talk about new staff, let alone three new staff since my last Newsletter. However, two of them are additional members to the team.

Lisa Conduit

Complimentary to these new appointments, I have introduced an additional formal training programme for all our staff, which sets out to explain in greater detail the whole process of malting, from barley production on the farm, a much more detailed insight into the separate procedures in the malthouse and including an explanation of all the grades of malt we produce, and for whom they are intended.

My first two ‘students’ have been Nathan Ball and Nic Corper, both are established ‘hands on’ maltsters, but both keen to gain a better and wider understanding of the tasks they perform each day. My weekly tutorials have one more session to go, after which I will turn the procedure around, and invite Nathan and Nick to review and discuss each topic with me, to ensure they have gained something of a better grasp of the intricacies of malting practice. It is all about encouraging a shared ownership of everything we do at the Maltings, and a shared commitment to perfection. If this programme has proved successful, Jake, Brandon, and Lisa will be invited to follow suit.

Harvest

Meanwhile, harvest is fast approaching. The barleys all look good in the field, but can we safely gather them in? I will let you know next time.

New Website

At the beginning of April we launched our new website. This is little more than 2 years since we announced our last one. Are we overindulging ourselves?

Not at all! At the beginning of 2020, as a team, we had re-grouped, we had repositioned the company, and we had also re-branded. That website was a loud message that everything had changed, and in particular the business had a new manager – yours truly, of course!

Since then, as a team, despite the infliction of a pandemic, we have really established the business on it’s revised direction of travel. At the same time, I, myself, have learned a lot more about making malt, and a bit more about supplying brewers and distillers. I am still learning, of course, but by the end of last year we really felt we needed to change the emphasis on the message to our customers and potential customers. After all, we are making terrific quality malt, and we need to shout about that, first and foremost. Not only that, we need to explain we do know, and understand, how we can maintain this high standard.

So, working with Jasper Williams at Juice Factory Design, we have come up with a simpler, more succinct and logical layout. It is all about promoting and selling our malt. You see, our website really does work for us, attracting potential customers every week, not just from the U.K., but from all over the world. And our strike rate is good – 35%! Not bad for a small company like ours, but then we have always set out to punch above our weight, so to speak. The point is, Warminster Malt really is a performer, and it needs the best stage set we can give it.

Better See for Yourself!

To our customers, and potential customers, what we always say is: if the website excites you, why not come and visit us, and see for yourself what we get up to!

I am pleased to report that, over the last 4 months, we have had 9 such visits, both brewing teams, and distillers. What is more, as a result of each visit, I do believe both sides have been able to forge an even better understanding of each other’s compatibility.

Party from Corinium Ales, Cirencester, 23rd March 2022

MaltingsFest 2022

Following Easter, we all drove down to Newton Abbott in Devon to attend the biggest Beer Festival on the South-West Peninsular. It was the first opportunity for two years for the regions’ brewers to all come together to showcase their beers, and to compete with one another, face to face, at the beer judging which precedes the Festival.

There were more than 250 cask ales exhibited, along with keg beers, as well as local ciders and spirits.

As the main sponsor of the event, our name was very much to the fore – all over the programme, the wrist bands and the glassware, as well as x4 banners, two of which provided the backdrop to the presentations of the medals and trophies awarded to the winners of the beer judging competition.

I am very pleased to report that Warminster Maltings customers featured very strongly in the prize giving. Particular congratulations go to one customer, Dawkins Ales from Bristol, who collected no less than 10 medals!

Football Crazy!