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The landscape of the British beer industry has seen a seismic shift over
the last few years as the influence of American craft beer culture has
become ever more pervasive.
But what we’re seeing now is breweries that were influenced by U.S. beer
culture when they were young are now shaping this to form their own ideal.
A new, brighter, and more energetic British beer community.
One of these breweries is Beavertown, of Tottenham, North London, which was
founded by Logan Plant—son of none other than Led Zeppelin frontman
Robert—in 2012. After finding inspiration in the beer and food culture he
discovered in Brooklyn, Plant returned to London and opened a restaurant
called Duke’s Brew and Que in a little pocket of East London called De
Beauvoir town—"Beavertown" to the locals.
In less than four years, Plant has gone from brewing by himself on a
six-barrel kit in the kitchen of his restaurant, to employing a 40-strong
team at a state of the art 30-barrel facility. In part, this has been
thanks to the great beer his brewery produces, but much of Beavertown’s
success is also due to the strength of its brand and its great design.
Creative director Nick Dwyer joined Beavertown part time shortly after they
opened, even pulling a few shifts at Duke’s Brew and Que while the brewery
got on its feet. His unique design work, featuring signature skulls and
spacemen, has rapidly ensured that Beavertown has become one of the most
instantly recognizable beer brands in the UK. And the brewery is already
gaining traction in the U.S.—they were the only UK brewery invited to pour
at the Firestone Walker invitational last month.
Nick’s story of how he accidentally found his way into the beer industry
after graduating from art school is a fascinating one. Working in beer
might never have been his intention, but now, through his artwork, he’s
helping to drive and inspire the UK’s new breed of craft brewers. |