Month: October 2024

It’s back! Our much acclaimed Old Ale went down an absolute treat last year, and we’re delighted to announce that the 2024 vintage is now available!

The history of old ale as a style is a long and complex one, just like the beers themselves – beginning around 400 years ago. Hops had just been introduced into the brewing repertoire of England – they’d been used in continental Europe since around the 9^th century, but prior to the 1600’s we were happy using yarrow, heather, mugwort and other such adjuncts. Hops, however, had several advantages – they were cheaper, grew relatively easily, and rendered beer much more stable. The extended shelf life which hops gave to beer meant that beer could be stored for long periods and aged, meaning that flavours would be allowed to develop over time, mellowing and melding to create something unique.

The beer would be brewed to a high gravity to achieve a high alcohol content, and stored in large casks or vats, emerging from these vessels as “stock”, “stale” or “old” – flat and entirely lacking in carbonation.  This would then be blended with “mild” or fresh beer before being served – the intense, oaky flavour of the old ale being rounded and enlivened by the addition of the more recently brewed, unaged beer.

So that’s what we’ve done for this year’s release! 50% 2023 Vintage and 50% freshly brewed in 2024. The result is a blend of two years of craftsmanship – rich, mellow and well balanced.  Bottled at 8% ABV, expect flavours of toffee, fruitcake and raisins, coupled with a light oak character and a subtle spiciness from the UK grown Fuggles and Olicana hops.  At the time of bottling, creamy vanillins and notes of rich caramel are evident, alongside a lingering warmth in the finish.  The perfect drink to sip beside a fireside on a cold winter night, or to act as a delectable accompaniment to a richly flavoured dish such as roast beef or lamb (dare we go so far to suggest it as the ideal pairing for your Christmas dinner?!)

The artwork, created by our designer James Murphy, pays homage to our history, featuring an illustration of Beauchief Abbey, the old ruins of which inspired our brewery logo. The map in the background shows the location of the abbey, and dates from the early 20^th century. And under the vintage you will see a leaf from one of the trees that can be found in the ancient woodland of Ladies’ Spring and Park Bank woods which surround the abbey grounds – for 2024, a rowan leaf has been selected, replacing 2023’s Sessile Oak.

Old Ale 2024 is available now, in cask, keg, and 750ml bottles designed for savouring and sharing. As with the 2023 release, half of this year’s brew has been blended in with the remainder of the batch left to quietly rest, ready to be blended back and form part of next year’s vintage. We also squirrelled away the last few cases of bottles from last year to make up some extra special gift packs featuring one of each to compare and contrast.

Inspired by heritage, made for today.

We’re excited to announce that we’ve opened an on site shop! After many years of our offering being online only, you can now pop down any weekday afternoon and buy your beer in person.

Our opening hours are midday-5pm Monday-Friday. As well as two massive fridges full of deliciously chilled beers, you can pick up full cases of cans which we’ll bring to you straight from our cold store. Party coming up? We can sort you a full 72-pint cask along with everything you need to serve it. And in addition we’ve got plenty of merchandise, glassware and other goodies for your home bar along with a myriad of gift ideas!

We also have special weekend openings planned for the run up to Christmas! On Saturday 7th, 14th and 21st December we will be open from 12-4, with an additional one off Sunday opening on 8th December, 12-4, to coincide with the Independent Abbeydale Winter Festival taking place in the neighbourhood, so it’s the perfect opportunity to support local.

For those of you that prefer to order online, our click and collect service remains unaffected (but with extended collection hours to mirror when our shop is open) and please note the offering in store will be the same as online, although we do have some in store exclusives to come! All beer is served on a strictly takeaway basis only – unfortunately we don’t have a taproom.

Please do come down for a browse and a chat – we’d love to talk you through our brews!

You can find us on Aizlewood Road – S8 0YX. We hope to see you soon!

HUGE NEWS! We’re incredibly excited to announce that Abbeydale Brewery is changing hands… and the new owners are all of the staff who make up Team Abbeydale!

Ever since brewery founder Patrick Morton started Abbeydale Brewery back in 1996, he knew he wanted to do things a little differently, and we’ve always been people powered at heart. But now that’s a legal reality, and entrenched into the very core of our existence as we become an Employee Ownership Trust (an EOT).

As we approach our 30-year anniversary, and with owners Pat and Sue beginning to look forward to a very well-earned retirement, they started to look towards how best to ensure the legacy and success the business has enjoyed over the past three decades could continue after they fully step back from their day-to-day responsibilities (which, we hasten to add, won’t be for a while yet… they’re still here!). And we’re thrilled that they’ve decided that the best long-term custodians for the business – encompassing both the brewery itself and our pub, The Rising Sun – are all of us, the people who’ve helped them to build it, together.

There are 57 members of staff in total who make up Team Abbeydale (split fairly evenly between the two sides of the business) and between us we have almost three centuries of experience here! Both the brewery and pub will now come under the new umbrella of Sheffield Beerworks EOT Ltd.

There’s no selling out to the big boys here – just an independent brewery and thriving community pub, renewing our commitment to independence through business succession and strengthening the legacy we’ve already worked so hard to build.

It’s leaving the business in the hands of those who know it best, as well as recognising the contribution our employees have made and continue to make. For us as employees, it means entrenching our stake in the business and a say in how things are run (a privilege we all enjoy informally already), as well as enhancing the sense of pride and empowerment we share, ensuring a strong understanding of who we are, our values, and how we’re going to use that knowledge to get to where we want to be.

The name we’ve democratically chosen for the new Trust, Sheffield Beerworks EOT Ltd, is a nod to our past – some of our longstanding customers may remember that our early beers, including all of the original Doctor Morton’s series, were released under the Beerworks brand – so it already has a connection to us. It seems like fate to be able to bring back something which was important to our history to now be a part of our future too.

To celebrate, look out for our special beer, Trust. It will launch at The Rising Sun on Monday, 14^th October and Sheffield Steel City Beer Festival on Wednesday, 16^th October, so please join us for a pint of it and have a chat with the team about what this means to us. This beer recipe was collectively voted for by all of Team Abbeydale – our new owners – and is a representation of what we think we do best. The “Big 3” hops from our core range, Willamette, Nelson Sauvin and Mosaic, in an easy drinking, sessionable, hazy pale ale with plenty of character. Combining our legacy with our future in a people-powered beer.

In terms of the day-to-day operations here, nothing will really change. It’s the same staff, doing the same things, just with the addition of also being co-owners! We’ve always known we’ve got something a little bit special going on here, and a distinct ethos that’s always put the team at the heart of everything we do. We’re hugely excited for this next chapter in Abbeydale Brewery’s story, and looking forward to having the opportunity to share in our continued growth.

Thank you to everyone who’s supported us over the past 28 years. We do hope you’ll come with us on the next exciting stage of our journey.

Cheers!

Team Abbeydale – Co-Owners of Abbeydale Brewery and The Rising Sun

First brewed on 29^th January 1997 and not seen since our silver anniversary three years ago, we’re THRILLED to announce that Last Rites is finally back, and it’s available now, in (very limited) cask, keg, and 750ml bottle!

One of our most iconic beers, our delicious barley wine has truly stood the test of time. Last Rites was originally created from the first runnings of our flagship pale ale, Moonshine. That very first brew almost 28 years ago therefore resulted in two beers (one each of Moonshine and Last Rites) – gyles 49a, and 49.1. We’ve never done things the simple way around here.

Last Rites is at heart a strong barley wine with tons of flavour. Our brewery founder and beery mastermind Patrick Morton originally set out to create a high gravity beer which somehow still managed to be eminently drinkable. Last Rites is just that – full of rich flavour to tease and satisfy the palate, an unusually smooth beer with tempting tones of caramel and a hint of roasted sugar. The bitterness from the hops keeps the sweetness in check and allows the full spectrum of flavours to reach the palate without becoming cloying. In keeping with the original recipe, this brew has been single hopped with Willamette (still the key hop in Moonshine too), for delicately spicy notes alongside hints of zesty lemon.

The brewday itself was relatively straightforward, but has the key challenge of enabling the conversion of sugars from our malted barley to ensure a highly fermentable wort, so that the beer can reach the desired strength of 11.0% ABV. To achieve this, Last Rites is mashed in at a lower temperature (63 rather than 68°C) and is fermented warm so as to not limit the yeast potential. We used an American ale yeast, which gets less stressed at higher alcohols and temperatures than our house culture. It took around three times as long to ferment than our beers usually do, requiring concentration, care and attention all the way through the process. The beer has also already had a longer conditioning period before packaging than is usual for us, and it will continue to age well.

First given a new look by our designer James Murphy in 2019, when it was re-imagined to bring it in line with our Brewers Emporium range, the 2024 release sees a refined update to the distinctive artwork, and the move to 750ml bottles gives it more a sense of occasion which we feel is befitting of this very special beer. A thoroughly delicious drink which has been brewed with every care for depth of flavour and true drinkability. Smooth and robust with a huge depth of flavour and a lingering finish, it’s one to truly savour and a beer we’re very proud of.

Next in our series of introducing you to the people who make up Team Abbeydale, we’ve headed back to our pub, the Rising Sun, to say hello to someone who our regulars there will find very familiar! And if you don’t know him yet, make sure you get up there for a pint. Over to Fin.

First up, the basics! What’s your name and where do you come from?

I’m Fin MacDonald, and I’m from Sheffield born and bred. My mum is Dutch and my dad is Scottish, though! (Editor’s note – Fin then said he can speak a bit of Dutch, in Dutch, which I’m not going to attempt to type out!)

What is your role at the Rising Sun?

I’m a bartender, I’ve been working there for 6 and a half years. My first day was also our GM Garry’s first day! I am also the self-proclaimed social secretary for the pub and recently initiated the first Rising Sun vs Abbeydale Brewery football match, where we were the proud winners of the inaugural Daily Bread cup!

What’s your favourite beer and why?

You can’t beat a Daily Bread – specifically, in a pint glass with a handle. But after finishing a shift at work, I’d usually pick an Absolution.

What’s your favourite thing about working at The Rising Sun?

It sounds a bit soppy, but it’s the people that I work with, they’re a great group. I also love the regulars, it’s always great to have a chat with them over the bar.

Favourite place to enjoy a pint?

Two answers locally – well, everywhere’s my local! – but I like the Beer House on Ecclesall Road and the Hally House (Hallamshire House) up on Commonside, especially their GM Doug and also their snooker table!

Where did you have your first (legal!) pint?

Well, I’ve got a story for this one. Me and my dad went up to Scotland and to the most remote pub in the whole of the UK, you can only get there either by boat or a two day hike. We chose the boat option. I was 17 at the time and dad panicked so I only got a pint of lemonade – to this day he regrets not getting me a beer!

Favourite snack to enjoy alongside a beer?

Jalapeno pretzel pieces. The best were Snyder’s but post-Brexit they aren’t available in the UK.

When you’re not behind the bar, what do you get up to?

I’m actually a qualified teacher and finished my PGCE this summer. I’d like to teach abroad in the future. I also like to play tennis and am a qualified coach. But I reckon the best part about a game of tennis is the pint afterwards – normally a Heresy shandy!

And finally… If you were a fictional character, who would it be?

I feel like my cartoon icon, not necessarily who I’m like, is Homer Simpson. I think that might be my future.