Moorehouse’s toast new brewery opening
THE £4.2m Moorehouse’s cask ale brewery was launched in Burnley today..
Glasses were raised at the historic brewery, which will now be able to treble its production capacity to more than 1,000 brewer’s barrels a week- the equivalent of 15 million pints a year.
Founded in 1865 Moorehouse’s now has a turnover of £3m a year and is owned by Manchester businessman Bill Parkinson
The first traditional style ‘tower brewery’ to be constructed for many years the project took four years of planning and construction.
It has created more than 20 jobs and includes a a visitor centre attraction, complete with restaurant. A training school on site will serve the licensed trade.
The opening ceremony was conducted by brewing industry commentator Roger Protz, who said: “Moorhouse’s is a remarkable success story — a brewery that has gone from strength to strength in recent years.
“With the opening of the new brewery, it becomes a major British beer producer, twice or three times the size of many older family and regional breweries. But, of course, size isn’t everything: Moorhouse’s has grown because people like drinking its superb beers.”
The project was financed by directors and bank support together with aid from the North West Development Agency and Burnley Borough Council.
Managing director David Grant said: “Brewing and pubs have been hit hard in the economic crisis. However, all industry evidence shows that well crafted cask ale is the only sector of UK brewing in growth.
“We intend that our world class ales will play a big part in that growth to win new markets nationally. Burnley will become famed throughout the land as the home of top quality cask ales and our first class visitor centre will be a significant attraction and further help the town’s revival.”
As recently as In 1985 Moorhouse’s was making only ten barrels a week and faced closure until Mr Parkinson bought the brewery ‘because he liked the beer’.
He said: “This is a tremendously exciting occasion for me. We have bucked the recession to invest for the future and today marks the dawn of a new era for Moorhouse’s
