A Co Tyrone craft beer enthusiast will realise his dream of opening a brewery in his hometown of Castlederg.
John McHugh, from the Co Tyrone town, started to take an interest in brewing after several visits to Europe and after experimenting with making his own beer at home during the coronavirus lockdown.
Now the car salesman has put the wheels in motion to set up his own brewery for his ‘Deirge’ beers, named after his hometown.
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“I’ve always had a bit of an interest in craft beer and used to wonder when I was a bit younger about how beer was actually made,” John said.
“The craft beer sector is growing here but it still has a long way to go compared to other countries.
“I’ve been on a few trips to the likes of Berlin and Prague in central Europe and I’ve just been blown away by the quality of beer that they have there.
“It was the beginning of the pandemic that got me going, everyone was sitting in the house and it was fairly apocalyptic.
“I found myself looking at beer making equipment and I just clicked purchase on it and that was that. I soon realised I was going to need a lot more than what I had bought to get going properly!”
John’s have already garnered acclaim from a number of craft beer reviewers in Northern Ireland, and he says once he saw his first bottles labelled he knew it was the time to go for it. Local designer Simon Byrne provided his first label for him.
“Simon came to me and I just thought it was unbelievable but I had to tell him I had only one problem - I don’t even have a product to sell yet," he said.
“It put me under a bit of pressure but slowly and surely I got into the swing of it and I have around five or six different beers ready to sell.
“We’re still in the early stages of getting going but it’s something I’m really excited about.
“There’s a lot of challenges and uncertainties at the minute no matter what business you are in and it might not go for me, but I’d be fairly optimistic about it.”
Working at a local car dealership, started by his father in the 1970s, John adds that he comes from a long line of entrepreneurs in the family.
“My great grandfather started up a bicycle shop and that was passed on through generations, my grandfather took it on and then my dad started up the garage in 1972," he said.
“It’s always been something that’s been in our experience in the family, although moving into drinks is certainly a first.
“I’m going completely off the beaten track but it’s something new and why not give it a go.”
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