WIRRAL-BASED Brimstage Brewery has released a new beer, which is grown locally, with all profits going to charity.

'Birkenhop' is Brimstage Brewery’s newest beer made in collaboration with charity, The Callister Trust, and social enterprise Make CIC, whose volunteers grew their own hops and wanted to see what a beer made with them tasted like.

Brimstage’s Head Brewer, Adam Williams, said: "A green hop beer is one that’s made with freshly picked hops, rather than dried ones, and as they were grown in Birkenhead, the name Birkenhop was born.

“We picked a malt recipe along the lines of our best selling real ales and packed as much of the volunteers’ hops in as possible to create a fresh, traditional English bitter.”

The collaboration came from the volunteers themselves.

Wirral Globe: (Credit: Brimstage Brewery)(Credit: Brimstage Brewery) (Image: brimstage brewery)

Rosie Ashton, Make CIC Head of Programme, added: "While Merseyside might not be known for its hop growing, we wanted a project that would take advantage of our gardens and we could have something at the end that would raise money.

“We got hold of some Prima Donna (First Gold) hop rhizomes to plant, contacted Brimstage about making a beer with them and watched the hops flourish.”

Make CIC provides community workspaces in Wirral, Liverpool and Knowsley and at their venue in Hamilton Square, Birkenhead, they have a large garden that gets lots of sun.

Volunteers at The Callister Trust also grew hops in the half-acre Callister Garden itself in Birkenhead but also in their own gardens.

Jane Ward, Project Leader and volunteer said: "We all really enjoyed seeing the hops evolve, tending to them, making sure they were well watered and got lots of sunlight.

"Then we had a great day picking them and most exciting of all, putting them into the brew.

"We’ve been going around the local pubs tasting the beer and can’t wait to have it in bottles. We’re hoping to use the profits on the construction of an eco-friendly pavilion to enable the use of Callister Garden all year round."

The 3.9% ale is available at the following eight pubs in Wirral:

  • Hop, Bromborough
  • White Lion, West Kirby
  • Irby Mill
  • Gallaghers, Birkenhead
  • The Refreshment Rooms, Rock Ferry
  • The Bow-Legged Beagle in Upton, Bromborough and New Brighton

It will also be available in bottles on brimstagebrewery.com in late October/early November.

Make CIC is holding a launch event in Hamiliton Square on Wednesday November, 23 from 5pm-7pm.

Free tickets are available here.