Stop drinking foreign lagers when there's great Scottish beer, and even Jeremy Clarkson's is good

“People seem to be drawn in by the marketing mirage of foreign beer” – Dougal Gunn Sharp

The founder of Scotland’s best-selling premium lager has called time on the hype surrounding continental beers and praised Jeremy Clarkson for “fighting the fight” with his British brewing venture.

Dougal Gunn Sharp, founder and master brewer at Edinburgh-headquartered Innis & Gunn, believes much of the allure of some of the continental lagers currently popular with UK drinkers can be attributed to “pure marketing waffle”. He was making the remarks after it was revealed that the firm’s Lager Beer product was the only Scottish-brewed premium lager in the country’s top ten.

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Sharp, who set up his beer producing venture in 2003, said: “What this current wave of Spanish, Italian and other continental beer drinking does show me is that people are ready to drink better, premium lagers, moving away from the bland, gassy mega-lagers of the past. And that is good.

Innis & Gunn's Lager Beer has become a major success story since its launch about ten years ago.Innis & Gunn's Lager Beer has become a major success story since its launch about ten years ago.
Innis & Gunn's Lager Beer has become a major success story since its launch about ten years ago.

People seem to be drawn in by the marketing mirage of foreign beer. But the good news is that there are superb premium lagers brewed right here. And don’t take my word for it - two homegrown lagers have just won gold at the ‘Beer Olympics’, beating the biggest names in beer from around the world.

“These two homegrown lagers are contributing to local agriculture and the rural economy, to jobs and communities in the process. And they require far fewer road miles than driving a lorry from Spain or Italy, so far fewer carbons are harmed in the process. That is, of course, if they actually come from mainland Europe in the first place.”

Several continental lager brands are now contract brewed in Britain while one of the fastest-growing entries into the sector, Madri Excepcional, is the result of a tie-up between industry giant Molson Coors, maker of Carling, and Spain’s La Sagra Brewery, though the beer is made exclusively in the UK.

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Innis & Gunn’s Lager Beer recently won gold at the World Beer Awards. Scooping the top prize in both the country and taste categories, the firm was the only Scots beer producer to win the top prize, beating big names from home and abroad. Hawkstone Lager, launched by motoring guru-turned-farmer Jeremy Clarkson, and brewed in the Cotswolds, won best lager in England, and overall gold, at the same awards, which have been dubbed the “Olympics of beer”.

Dougal Gunn Sharp, CEO and founder of Innis & Gunn, pictured at his Glasgow taproom. Picture: Mark F GibsonDougal Gunn Sharp, CEO and founder of Innis & Gunn, pictured at his Glasgow taproom. Picture: Mark F Gibson
Dougal Gunn Sharp, CEO and founder of Innis & Gunn, pictured at his Glasgow taproom. Picture: Mark F Gibson

Sharp said: “It is great to see Jeremy Clarkson fighting the same fight with Hawkstone Lager in England. He is growing the barley, brewing the beer and showing the huge difficulties experienced by our farmers across the UK. I am glad he is getting behind farming because it’s important to us all.

“We buy all of our malting barley from British farmers, and we are a major supporter of the Royal Highland & Agricultural Society of Scotland, through events like the Royal Highland Show, Scotland’s biggest outdoor event. It’s no surprise that when you pay that much attention to what goes into your beer, it wins prizes. Homegrown lager is a movement worth getting behind.”

Having already been listed as one of the top five premium lager brands in the Scottish on-trade sector, Innis & Gunn’s Lager Beer is now ranked as the number six premium lager brand in the off trade in the latest Nielsen Data, making it the only homegrown premium lager in Scotland’s top ten. The product, available to buy on draft in bars as well as in cans and bottles, has helped the company generate 5.8 per cent growth in total lager sales in the last year.

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“We believe in our lager - there’s nothing else like it - so it’s amazing when that’s vindicated,” said Sharp. “Launching our bottled lager in supermarkets this year was a crucial milestone and we are incredibly proud that more people than ever before are choosing our zesty and aromatic lager. Ultimately, we want to be Scotland’s favourite premium lager. This is another step towards that goal.”

Sharp founded Innis & Gunn in 2003 after he thought of ageing beer in whisky casks. His plan to bring original beer and original ideas to the world took off as he created a super-premium beer with deep, smooth and moreish flavour. He launched Innis & Gunn Lager Beer in 2013.

The company has a brewery at Inveralmond in Perth after snapping up the brewing business of the same name in 2016. Sharp has previously said that building an Edinburgh brewery remains a strategic priority.

“What we do have is a brewery in Perth that is close to capacity, although there are things we can do to extend that,” he said last year. “One of the things we are looking at is putting a small canning line in there. Inveralmond came with a fabulous brand, Ossian, and that is one of the real gems of our portfolio. Ossian Smooth, which we launched a couple of years ago, is just going from strength to strength.”

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Innis & Gunn’s financial results for 2002 showed that turnover grew by 7.8 per cent to £22.8 million, spearheaded by the return of the UK on trade to normal trading after a year of closures due to the pandemic. Internationally, the firm said its total portfolio had also grown both in volume and turnover, which was up 14 per cent. Canada is the brewer’s second-largest market outside the UK, and the largest for its The Original product, accounting for 72 per cent of its volume. It also pointed to product launches and limited editions, such as Islay Whisky Cask, in partnership with Laphroaig.

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