Horsington pub to be first in UK to sell '˜Island Brew'

The Elder Tree Inn in the Lincolnshire village of Horsington is to become the first in the UK to sell '˜Island Brew', the unique beer brewed on the Isle of Man by Bushy's Ale of Man, using ingredients from the most remote inhabited island in the world, Tristan da Cunha, in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean.
The launch of Island Brew at the Great British Beer Festival 2015 in  London. (Left to right: Chris Bates, Martin Brunnschweiler, Dawn Repetto and Robin Repetto).The launch of Island Brew at the Great British Beer Festival 2015 in  London. (Left to right: Chris Bates, Martin Brunnschweiler, Dawn Repetto and Robin Repetto).
The launch of Island Brew at the Great British Beer Festival 2015 in London. (Left to right: Chris Bates, Martin Brunnschweiler, Dawn Repetto and Robin Repetto).

The beer has a unique flavour from the use of “Island Berries” (Empetrum rubrun) which are picked on this UK Overseas Territory 1,750 miles from Cape Town and more than 2,200 miles from Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay. They are sent to Bushy’s Ale of Man Brewery at Mount Murray and infused into the beer, in accordance with the Manx Pure Beer laws.

Island Brew was launched at the Great British Beer Festival in London in 2015, with the first pints pulled by Tristan Islanders who had been undertaking vocational training on the Isle of Man.

Vouchers for free pints were handed out – but were only redeemable in the Albatross Bar on Tristan da Cunha, the world’s most remote pub.

Retired Tristan da Cunha UK representative, Chris Bates, who lives in Horsington, took some to use on his recent return to Tristan as part of its 200th Anniversary Celebrations.

When Tristan’s Chief Islander, Ian Lavarello, visited Chris during his current round of meetings in the UK and Europe, Elder Tree landlord, Richard Brown, flew the Tristan flag (with its motto ‘Our Faith Is Our Strength’) outside the pub to mark the occasion.

Bushy’s Founder, Martin Brunnschweiler, who has been to Tristan to help establish brewing on the island, contacted Richard Brown, who in turn jumped at the opportunity to become the first pub in the UK to sell Island Brew.

Island Brew will go on sale in the Elder Tree on Friday December 2, and Richard anticipates it will all sell very quickly.

He said: “There’s a lot of interest in Tristan in the area and the pub is well supported by the people of Horsington.

“This will be a unique opportunity to sample this ale. I understand it’s only brewed occasionally, when the berries can be sent the 6,000 miles from Tristan to the Isle of Man, so I don’t know whether it will be possible to obtain more in the future. We’ll have to see how it goes“

Martin Brunnschweiler said: “Tristan is a fascinating and unique community with a population of just 270 and I’m delighted to be able to make it possible for the people of Horsington to share this unique ale with them.

“In the past, we have only supplied beer festivals in the UK, as well as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, for their annual reception for Overseas Territories’ Chief Ministers and the UK Government counterparts and guests and the conclusion of their Joint Ministerial Council”.