Introduction
My name is Shane Swindells, and I am the owner of the award winning micro-brewery “The Cheshire Brewhouse”. I have organically grown and nurtured the business using a successful formula of innovation, hard work, consistently high quality and always using the best ingredients possible. I am now looking to transition the business in to a wider market and export. In order to grow, I need to raise some additional working capital.
Currently, I have interest from two national companies who are looking to buy my bottled beers by the pallet load. I am also in negotiations for partnership with two other artisan companies in order to make specialist beers for national distribution, direct from the brewery. To enable this to happen, I need to fund the costly Salsa Beer + Quality standards, which is currently beyond my capabilities.
Areas of infrastructure improvement:
- Enable some small engineering projects to grow efficiency and capacity.
- Employ more staff and at least one Apprentice Brewer
- Increase stocks of printed packaging and point of sale items
- Implement SALSA Beer + Quality standards
- Research/investigation into ‘Route to market’ to allow the move into export
- Develop the self-contained brewery yard to a community hub and events area
About the Brewery
I opened “The Cheshire Brewhouse” micro-brewery in May 2012, by hand building a 5 BBL (18 casks per brew) Brewery in my spare time. My firm-aim has always been to move the business forward and maintain steady growth. The brewery’s good reputation is organically grown and my beers have gained respect from some of the hardest-to-please beer experts, receiving national awards and recognition in several national publications and podcasts.
In the past six months, demand has seen me self-fund a move, mainly through reinvestment, to a larger bespoke 4000 square foot building. This move has allowed an increase in brewing and packaging capacity to 40-50BBL of beer per week, the installation of five extra 10BBL conditioning tanks, a Moravek bottling machine and a large refrigeration unit to keep the beer cold and fresh.
After moving and expanding, an onsite bar was in demand, so I handbuilt one. The popular, on-site, brewery tap bar looks directly in to the brewery through a viewing window. Here, I offer Cask beers direct to a growing list of regular locals and visitors. The log burner and “Jack”, our canine concierge, provide a very warm, welcoming environment. I built the tap room to recreate the family pub environment that I grew up in, allowing me to share my hand-crafted creations in comfortable surroundings.
About the Beer
I am proud that all my beers are vegetarian and Vegan-friendly, made using the highest quality, mainly UK ingredients. I regularly produce a core range of small-batch, craft Cask, Keg and Bottled beers to satisfy orders from pubs wholesalers and a network of the best independent bottles shops dotted around the UK.
The Cheshire Brewhouse’ reputation is organically built on consistently high-quality, and frankly, great tasting beers. We have won numerous awards and gained high-praise from some of the hardest to please industry experts with coverage in national newspapers, BBC Radio and as many industry-related publications. Recently, our flagship, award-winning Heritage IPA “Govinda”, along with two other beers, stole the show on a special-edition of “The Beer O’clock show”, the UKs longest-running and most well-respected beer podcast. (hear for yourself how industry experts and beer-lovers see us: listen from roughly 24 minutes in).
“I'd advise you, if you haven't already done so, to check out their beer and see, or rather taste it, for yourself. These are IPAs from the old school. They're bottle conditioned, so treat them with the respect they deserve, but they'll repay you with some of the best beer you'll have had in some time, guaranteed”. - Talking about The Cheshire Brewhouse, Justin Mason - Beer O’Clock show.
I am passionate about innovation, the history of beer and about supporting and growing the almost lost art of Coopering (barrel making) as well as producing traditional, “Heritage” beers in wooden barrels.
I am extremely proud to have played a part in bringing back some long-lost Heritage-variety Barley Malts. In 2014 The Cheshire Brewhouse was selected as one of only two breweries in the UK, taking delivery of a test batch of the Heritage malt “Chevallier”. This now certified Heritage Malt, was then part of a viability experiment by Dr Chris Ridout of the John Innes Centre, in collaboration with the Crisp Malting Group. They wanted to see how this once popular, now lost, strain of Barley could be traditionally Malted and transformed to recreate the beers of the Victorian period.
Following a successful experiment, utilising authentic Victorian recipes and processes, the result was the award-winning Govinda Chevallier series. In part, to my hard work, the Heritage Chevallier Malt is now widely available. I still create my Govinda Heritage IPA using the Chevallier Malt and I also use other hard-to-find Heritage Malts, being one of only three UK brewers to currently have access to the Heritage Malt “Organic Plumage Archer”. Read more about Govinda and our other beers from articles on our website.
Awards and Mentions
- Beer O’clock Show Podcast: Hear for yourself how industry experts and beer-lovers see us: listen from roughly 24 minutes in
- https://www.beerguild.co.uk/news/selected-1819-back-2017-chevallier-heritage-malt/
- “Some of the best beer you'll have had in some time, guaranteed”: http://masonjust.blogspot.co.uk/2018/02/opting-out-of-hype-p.html?spref=tw
- “Shane Swindells from the Cheshire Brewhouse was one of the first brewers to use Chevallier Heritage Malt”: https://www.beerguild.co.uk/news/selected-1819-back-2017-chevallier-heritage-malt/
About Me
Being the son of a Pub landlord, I have been closely connected to beer from six years old. I’m a trained engineer by profession and the owner of The Cheshire Brewhouse Microbrewery. I manufactured & installed the brewery from the ground up, manufacturing most of the Brewing Vessels myself, using my own skills and determination. I have progressed the business to this point through long hours, hard work, drive and determination to succeed.
I believe in my vision and have ploughed every penny I could back into the business. I am now looking for investment from like-minded people to help me transition the business to the next level.
I am reaching out for your help to fund the expansion outlined and would love your support on this beery journey.