Interview: Yorkshire’s Black Sheep Brewery ‘leads the flock’ into 2023

On Day 11 of Bdaily’s 12 Days of Christmas, we hear from Charlene Lyons, CEO of Yorkshire based Black Sheep Brewery, who reflected on the brewery’s journey through 2022 and looks ahead to the future of the industry in 2023. Read on to find out more…

How would you sum up 2022 for both Black Sheep and the industry at large?

I’d say it’s been challenging and exciting in equal measure.

Do you have any special festive drinks to commemorate the season?

Yes! So we do Snowflake and Blitzen, which are kind of our two staple brews, and they always sell out way in advance. They’re really popular so all licensees know that they need to get them on the bars quickly.

What does the festive period signify for the business?

Well, Christmas is generally hospitality’s busiest time of the year. That tends to be when it peaks, so a lot of companies and brewers tend to work on the assumption that Christmas is a really busy time that will provide an extra boost for many people.

We’ve not done anything that would be different for business other than what we know works in a tough economic climate, but with the World Cup we’ve had our ‘It’s Coming Home’ beer which sold out. It’s been amazing.

Which festive food/drink pairing is your favourite?

I’m a big beer drinker and I love cheese so I’m a fan of a hot camembert to dip or a lovely gorgeous cheese board with all the smoked and smelly cheeses. With Christmas I do tend to love Blitzen which I think is really nice. Not sure that our brewer would pair it with cheese but for me it works really well.

Any key priorities you’ll be focusing on going into the new year?

I’d say internal management of efficiencies, and just making sure that we are gaining market share and putting ourselves in the best possible position or hopefully when trade and hospitality returns to whatever normal is.

Also, cask beer is actually a bit of a hidden gem. People sort of know what cask beer is, but they don’t really know or appreciate what it is.

If you go on and have a look at some of Maisie Adam’s recent pieces on our news page, it basically tries to talk to you about what cask beer is and why we need to try and attract different and new drinkers. It’s the freshest beer on the market, especially on the bar, and it’s unbelievable.

So we’ve, we’ve basically just been championing it and paying for it because it’s very much the beating heart of a lot of breweries. It’s definitely helped make 2022 successful for us.

By Matthew Neville – Correspondent, Bdaily

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