Connoisseurs of real ale in London will have the chance to sample a specially commissioned brew by Yorkshire’s award-winning Ilkley Brewery this Jubilee holiday as Harvey Nichols puts ‘Ilkley Jubilee’ on its esteemed beer list.
Hot off the review panel at Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch, the hand-crafted beer has earned its royal pedigree having beenbrewed for the first time by HRH The Princess Royal when she visited Ilkley Brewery in April this year. The regal brew will be on sale at Harvey Nichols’ Knightsbridge store as well as its OXO Tower on the South Bank.
A premium ale, at 4.5%, Ilkley Jubilee is made with ingredients from the Commonwealth of Nations including English barley and hops from Kent, Australia and New Zealand. The beer is extremely light in colour and crisp in finish making it ideal for summertime get-togethers.
Luke Raven, Ilkley Brewery’s brewer and marketing manager, commented: “We’re absolutely delighted that Harvey Nichols has chosen our royal brew as its only Jubilee beer for the diamond celebrations. It’s a fantastic coup for us and gives a brilliant platform to reach discerning real ale fans in the London market.
“We hope our diamond standard brew will give Harvey Nichols’ customers who may not have tried our beers before, a taste of our handmade real ales which are all made with passion, quality and skill.”
Retailing at £2.50 a bottle, Ilkley Jubilee is available now at Knightsbridge’s Fifth Floor food department as well as in the OXO Tower’s Restaurant, Brasserie and Tower Bar.
Harvey Nichols’ buyer, Andrew Duncan, commented: “We are so pleased to be selling Ilkley Jubilee in a selection of Harvey Nichols Wine Shops and serving it at OXO Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie. It’s a truly refreshing ale which I think will appeal to our customers greatly; the perfect tipple to toast the Queen this weekend.”
To find out more about Ilkley Brewery, visit: www.ilkleybrewery.co.uk or to read the brewery’s blog, go to:www.ilkleybreweryblog.blogspot.com
For further information on Harvey Nichols and the OXO Tower, visit: www.harveynichols.com
ENDS
Images attached (high resolution versions available on request):
– HRH The Princess Royal finds out more about the hops used to make lkley Jubilee ale, with Chris Ives, Ilkley Brewery director.
– Ilkley Jubilee with its Commonwealth of Nations ingredients.
Media contact:
For further media information, please contact Katy Barraclough, Conway PR, on 07813 094945 / 01943 430257 or emailkaty@conwaypr.co.uk
About Ilkley Brewery
The Ilkley Brewery Co. Ltd. was founded in January 2009 by Chris Ives and Stewart Ross.
The idea behind the brewery came from a desire to re-establish brewing in the spa town of Ilkley following the closure of the original Ilkley Brewery and Aerated Water Company in 1920 which was taken over by Hammond’s Bradford Brewery Co. in 1923.
With an initial investment of £70,000, Chris and Stewart bought an eight barrel brew plant in spring 2009 and moved into their first premises at Lencia Trading Estate, East Parade, Ilkley where they had the capacity to brew 4,600 pints a week.
In May 2009, The Ilkley Brewery made its first brew: Olicana Gold (3.9% ABV) with the first pint being sold at The Junction pub in Baildon, West Yorkshire.
At a similar time, The Ilkley Brewery secured its first two permanent pumps at The Wheatley Arms, Ben Rhydding and at Bar t’at in Ilkley.
In late spring 2009, Ilkley Best (4.0% ABV) and Ilkley Original (4.3% ABV) joined the re-named Ilkley Gold (3.9% ABV) in the company’s stable of beers and these were quickly followed by the famous Mary Jane (3.5% ABV), a light, hoppy beer with citrus flavours.
Autumn 2009 saw bottles of Ilkley Best go on sale in six Yorkshire Asda stores.
A string of awards followed with a gold medal for Mary Jane at the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) northern region competition in November 2009 and then a bronze win in February 2010, again for Mary Jane, at the SIBA national competition.
In February 2010, Ilkley Black (3.7% ABV) was launched at the Bradford Beer Festival where it won gold for best mild. Further gold medals for Mary Jane were won at Ilkley, Horsforth, Guiseley and Leyburn beer festivals.
In April 2010, Richard Shelton joined the company as a director alongside Chris and Stewart.
Spring 2010 saw bottles of Mary Jane and Ilkley Best go on sale in 14 Booths supermarkets and later in the year, Mary Jane and Ilkley Black also joined Ilkey Best on sale in 12 Asda stores.
The summer of 2010 saw Mary Jane go on sale at the House of Commons’ Strangers Bar.
Stout Mary (4.5% ABV), an oatmeal stout, was launched in autumn 2010.
Ilkley Pale, Ilkley Black and Lotus IPA all scooped bronze medals at the SIBA northern region competition in November 2010.
In January 2011, Chris, Stewart and Richard secured a debt and equity package from Glentrool Capital Partners LLP, who also provide corporate support to help grow the company. This enabled Ilkley Brewery to move from its premises on East Parade to a new 2,600 square foot brewery on Ashlands Road, Ilkley. A new 20 barrel brewing plant was installed allowing the brewery to produce 23,000 pints a week.
In October 2011, a new 30 barrel fermenter was acquired, tasking production to over 32,000 pints a week. At the same time, Stout Mary, the brewery’s 4.5% oatmeal stout, scooped bronze medals at the SIBA northern region competition 2011.This took the number of the brewery’s SIBA award winning beers to five.
In November 2011, a range of three craft keg beers were launched called MJ Artisan Ales: MJ Pale (3.7%), MJ Summit (5.4%) and MJ Fortis (4.1%)
In January 2012, Ilkley Brewery was crowned one of Yorkshire’s most promising companies in the Government backed Local Business Accelerators campaign.
As of January 2012, bottles of Mary Jane, Ilkley Best, Ilkley Black and Ilkley Pale were available in 15 Morrisons, 20 Asda and 20 Booths supermarkets.
Katy Barraclough MCIPR
Conway PR
M: 07813 094945
T: 01943 430257
Twitter: @conwaypr