Hops and Shots are delighted to welcome Stroud Brewery to our brewery family, a well establishes organic brewery based in Stroud.
Craft breweries are opening up all over the UK. Each have their own story to tell but we are pretty sure that none are quite like the one at Stroud.
Greg Pilley will tell you himself that he has always had a disproportionate interest in beer, stemming from an expatriate childhood where social drinking was often the catalyst of community building in the newly constructed and remote engineers ‘villages’ where he grew up in Argentina, Iran and Jordan.
Greg studied Marine Biology (and drank a lot of beer) at Swansea University. After graduating he worked for various conservation organisations in the UK and overseas. After 2 years VSO, as Project Manager for a conservation project in Nigeria, Greg travelled for two years researching the traditional alcoholic beverages of Africa - how they were produced and the social context they were drunk in. This was with some support from Guinness Brewing Worldwide, and subsidised by the updating of sections of the Rough Guide to Africa. Returning to the UK, Greg settled in Bristol and began working for the Soil Association, principally as project Co-ordinator for the Cultivating Communities project. Working for the Soil Association developed Greg’s interest in the importance of organic.
Greg’s interest in sustainable development, community creation and beer came together. He had a vision to develop a thriving, dynamic and resilient enterprise, recognised for its ethos of sustainability and producing a nationally respected range of cask ales and organic bottled beers.
With a family on the way Greg and his partner Jade decided to leave Bristol and find somewhere lovely to raise a family and set up an organic brewery.
Stroud Brewery was established in 2006. Just 2 months later, its launching brew, Budding, was awarded Champion Beer of Gloucestershire at the Cotswold Beer Festival and it remains the most popular beer. The business has grown steadily and now employs over 20 people.
To their surprise, Stroud Brewery outgrew the original site in all areas: the brewery, office and tap, something which seemed impossible in the beginning.
They recently constructed a brand new building on a disused car park just 100 metres away, purpose built for their growing needs. It provides more space for the brewery, allowing an increase in the production capacity, a larger office and a canal-side tap with beautiful views of the Golden Valley. It's certainly an exciting time for everyone at the brewery.
We are so pleased to have Stroud on board, they're the leading organic craft brewery in the UK, with some wonderful beers. They've got some exciting news coming soon with some mainstream collaboration which we can discuss soon, and Hops and Shots are already in discussions to widen the range with Greg and his team."
They have a full range of eleven beers, including bitter, lagers, IPA, and pale ale available in a mixture of 330ml cans and 500ml bottles. There is also mixed brewery packs available in either 6's or 12's. For more information about the range please click here.