A canning line costing more than an average house is behind the launch of the latest brewery to put their beer in cans.
Justin Hawke, founder and head brewer of cult brewery Moor Beer, wanted to add cans to his beer-packaging options but felt ‘cheap and cheerful’ canning just wasn’t right.
Instead, after months of research and development, the brewery bought a state of the art canning line from German manufacturers Leibinger, Hantelmann and Lubeca. It includes a revolutionary new approach to ‘can de-palletising’ (removing cans from a delivery pallet so they can be filled) from British engineering company Lynchet, which one brewery spokesman described as being ‘the Lamborghini of can filling systems’.
“People know about craft beer, but the next thing is quality. That’s the message we need to get out there,” says Justin. “Breweries can buy a cheap canning line or use mobile equipment but there’s not enough quality control on the beer or the can.”
He admitted the time and money Moor Beer has invested on putting its beer in cans was considerable – and not an option for every brewery – but feels confident it will pay off.
“Beer has to be able to shake off the cheap tinned lager image or those investing in putting their beer in cans are going to suffer. We’ve spent a lot but I think we’ve got equipment that enables us to put world class beer in a world class package – and drinkers should be able to tell the difference.”
Moor Beer will officially launch eight different beers in 330ml cans at a series of public events in London on Saturday 5th September. The first cans will be available at Bottle Dog, Kings Cross from midday, followed by We Brought Beer, Balham 2:30pm, Hop Burns & Black, East Dulwich 5pm, culminating with a party at The Black Heart Camden from 9pm.
“We went down this long and expensive route to can our beer because, despite general perception, the humble can is the best package for preserving beer freshness. It keeps out light and oxygen, is more environmentally friendly, and safer,” explains Justin.
“True to our core belief, we’re also can-conditioning our beer to offer our drinkers around the world the pinnacle of the brewer’s art: modern real ale in a can.”
● Moor Beer in cans launches with: Revival (3.8%), Nor’Hop (4.1%), So’Hop (4.1%), Radiance (5%), Illusion (4.5%), Confidence (4.6%), Return of the Empire (5.7%), and Hoppiness (6.5%) with RRP ranging from £2 – £2.75 depending on beer.
ENDS
For further details, images of the new cans and interview requests contact:
Editors notes:
● Moor Beer – now based in Bristol – started in 2007 when Californian Justin Hawke fool-heartedly bought the defunct previous incarnation of Moor Beer Company and resurrected it. Everything had to be completely replaced: equipment, recipes, branding, processes and ethos. The only things remaining are the slogan Drink Moor Beer and the name of one beer, Old Freddy Walker (although the recipe has been totally rewritten).
● The Moor Beer vision has been shaped by decades of experience Justin gained living around the world. As a West Point (military academy) graduate he brings a laser focus on attention to detail and quality. Time spent living in Germany was the genesis for unfined natural beer. Returning to California during the first microbrewing boom created a passion for hoppy, flavour-forward beers, while his enduring passion for the UK keeps one eye on tradition and drinkability.
● The Land Registry put the average house price (outside London) at around £180,000 in July 2015.
● The Moor Beer Candemonium event is in London on Saturday 5th Sept. No tickets required. Beer-lovers can just drop in and buy some of the first-ever Moor Beer in cans. Details of venues/times are above.
