Pierhead to bring in fruit beers from South Africa

Tuesday, 18 November 2008

Pierhead Purchasing, the imported beer company, is extending its portfolio with a new range of fruit beers and ales from South Africa's The Shongweni microbrewery.

The craft brewery produces a range of beers under the Robson's brand, including three tropical fruit beers, a Durban Pale Ale, an East Coast Ale and a wheat beer.

The Robson's range, produced by Stuart Robson, is said to blend traditional European brewing methods with more unusual ingredients native to the region.

This means the fruit beers are made with local mangoes, pineapples and strawberries, which are abundant in the region, and there are no concentrate or syrups used in the brewing process.

The wheat beer is based on a "centuries old recipe" and the Durban Pale Ale is a South African take on the classic Indian Pale Ale. The brewery's flagship beer, the East Coast Ale, is an attempt to "bottle the spirit of the region".

Michael Cook, Pierhead's director of imported beers, said: "The Shongweni brewery is a real diamond in the South African brewing industry and we expect huge interest for the Robson's range of ales in the UK market.

"They only use the finest natural ingredients and craft techniques to produce a range that couldn't be replicated anywhere else in the world.

"The beers offer retailers and licensees alike an opportunity to excite consumers and give themselves a real point of difference, which is especially crucial in times of economic downturn."

Mike Dennis