Brewery dream comes true for friends who share a passion for beer

Northwich dads Simon Appleton, 40, and Chris Birtwistle, 38, have been creating home brews for years and longed for the day when their beers were on tap in a pub.

After searching for the ideal location, Hush Brewery was born - in a garden shed.

Hush brewing co born in a garden shed

“Me and Chris have been champing at the bit to have a brewery,” said Simon, of Little Leigh. “In lockdown we bit the bullet. We found mash going cheap online and acquired a shed. Put the two together and opened a brewery.”

A quirk of luck led them to discover specialist equipment which has already helped other brewers fulfil their ambition.

Chris, an analytical chemist, of Castle, said: "We bought vessels that used to be belong to a brewery in Cornwall. They began with craft brew and have now upscaled into a multi million pound brewery. We've got their original kit.

Vessels that helped Cornish brewers develop a multi million pound brewery are now being used by Chris and Simon

"We're following their lead."

After months of painstaking preparation, their first eight casks of Northwich Pale Ale and My Grain Is Earl, their core range, were unveiled at The Salty Dog. In just 24 hours, every pint sold out.

"Northwich Pale Ale is a zesty, grapefruity and citrus," said Chris. "My Grain Is Earl is an Earl Grey tea beer. Our next beers will include England IPA which is hazy, hoppy and modern and an American IPA."

 Chris Birtwistle and Simon Appleton

Great feedback from customers has fuelled their confidence and their next beers will be coming out in keg.

Both brewers are married with two children and work full time and devote all their spare time to pursuing their goal.

Simon, an instrument and control engineer, said: "It is an absolute labour of love. We spend every minute of the evening and weekends brewing and packaging. It is massively exciting, we're loving it.

"We get a buzz every time we work in the brewery.

"I want to share my knowledge and passion for food and beer with people. I love spontaneous brewing."

Creating a special identity to celebrate their roots is key to all their products.

Hush brewing co has developed its own unique brand

Local artist Antony Poynton said: "I'm very proud to be involved, it's quite an honour to be asked to produce the artwork for something as momentous as this."

Simon, founder of Northwich Homebrew Crew, said: "We want to showcase Northwich. All our art work features local landmarks such as the bridges, salt towers, the old gasometer and Anderton Boat Lift, as well as modern bits of the town."

When it comes to taste, the pair are keen to develop their own unique style.

Chris said: "Fusing my science and food passions, I've been home brewing for more than 10 years. I love to brew and drink everything from a sessionable cask beer to an impy stout.

"My aim is to share my passion for beer with my home town."

Simon added: "We're going to be trying various styles. Each style has got a different challenge.

Chris Birtwistle and Simon Appleton

"The support of all the staff at The Salty Dog has been phenomenal, how excited they are about our beers.

"They have been following us from being home brewers all the way to releasing beers in their bar.

"It's early days but we are moving in the right direction. We've proved to ourselves that we can do it. We've got a few plans in place. Our ultimate goal is to have a bigger facility in the Northwich area."

For more details visit Hush brewing co on Facebook.