reproduced from Pints West issue 61 - http://www.camrabristol.org.uk/

Not all of the aforementioned venues are known as being supporters of microbreweries and some people were concerned that after the initial enthusiasm it would be difficult for Tom Newman to get his beers into pubs in the area. How wrong we were - the last three months has seen the brewery go from strength to strength, with Tom’s main problem being trying to keep up with demand.

Wolvers Ale has now appeared in 30 to 40 pubs and clubs in the area, with many of these customers now taking the beer on a regular basis. Aside from the aforementioned venues, "Wolvers" has been in lots of other places in Weston - The Regency, The Dragon, The White Hart, The Conservative Club - and slightly further afield at The Woolpack in St. Georges; The Anchor in Bleadon, The Ship in Uphill, The Winscombe Club, The Red Lion in Cheddar, The Prince Of Orange in Yatton, The New Moon in Biddesham, Old Inn and Plough in Congresbury, and at both The Crown and Lamb in Axbridge.

Customers at the latter emptied their two casks in less than three days. Word must be getting around that the beer is popular as Tom’s phone keeps ringing, both from existing and new customers. The beer will soon be appearing at Jack Stamps Beer House, Weston Golf Club and The Whistling Duck in Banwell.

Aside from having to more than double his early weekly output (he is now producing around 25 nine-gallon casks a week), Tom has also won his first award. In January Wolvers Ale beat about 30 beers to win the Beer Of The Festival award at the Alternative Winter Beers Festival held in Manchester. The organiser picked his beers for the festival from breweries that have started up in the past two to three years and, according to Tom, he collected all the beers himself from the breweries and took all the empty casks back afterwards! This success for Wolvers Ale was recognised with a big splash in the Bristol Evening Post as well as a piece in the Weston Mercury.

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