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Breweries — it’s beer and it’s brewed here
Okells’ island story … Thirty odd years later, I return to Man, a nostalgic trip certainly, but also a practical one to see the island’s main brewery Okells (there are also a couple of smaller ones, Bushey and Old Laxey). I have long nurtured a theory that brewing on an island is a different mash tun of malted barley to brewing on the mainland. Surely, the sense of isolation drives innovation and develops local pride in the beer, while the difficulty in getting raw materials must have led in the past to unusual drinks being developed with whatever was available. Or perhaps there was something special about the water (like Islay) or even locally grown hops. However, in the last two years I have visited breweries on Guernsey and Malta and each time my theory has been disproved. Malta’s biggest seller is the Bavarian style lager Cisk, while Guernsey’s beers showed no inclination to look across the water to France’s bières de garde for inspiration. There’s one way, however, when living on an island can help and that is in selling the beer, or in that catch-all, much used phrase, the branding. Maltese brewery Farsons makes much play of the fact that they produce ale (in dwindling qualities) in the middle of the Mediterranean, while I remember Channel Isles-based Randalls calling one of their beers a Guernsey mild, whatever that meant. Islands certainly do have a sense of otherness: the laws can be slightly different and the tax regimes seem to be more benevolent to business in some cases, but on the other hand we’re all apparently part of the global village (and other clichés) now — so expect signs for Carlsberg or Becks or John Smith’s taps at the bar.
Despite these thoughts, as the plane skims in low over the Irish Sea to Man I am ever hopeful that I might discover something particular to the island. Perhaps the Scandinavian heritage in the Isle of Man would reveal evidence of a green beer, an old Danish brewing custom to welcome spring, or beers made with various herbs. They might not be commercially viable but at least would represent evidence of a beer culture separate from the mainland. Okells’ beers are long established favourites in the island’s pubs; in fact they own 50% of of the 100 or so on the island. Their beer is part of the Manx lifestyle that is promoted in tourist literature. 1875 was the date when a certain Dr Okell brought his steam-driven brewery to life (he first started brewing in 1850) and 132 years on the name is still given to its home-grown beer, brewed according to the Manx Beer Purity Law. This is the Reinheitsgebot of the island, which only allows beer to contain malt, hops, sugar and water. Ingredients not permitted included raw cereal, corn syrup and opium. ‘It doesn’t hinder us in any way,’ says the brewery’s affable and splendidly mustachioed head brewer Mike Cowbourne. ‘If you want to do a non Purity Law beer then you have to ask the Tynwald (the Manx Parliament) for permission. We have had to do it for our wheat beer, Mac Lir, which took six months to be approved, while we also permission to do fruit beers.’
Cowbourne is a softly spoken Yorkshireman who learnt his craft at Watney Mann in the East End of London, before moving onto Wilson’s of Manchester. He turned up at Okells about 20 years ago, where he inherited the beer recipes and was told to keep them the same. I would guess that his decision to come to the island was as much as about lifestyle as about furthering his career. In the time I spent talking with him, I also discovered that he kept a small herd of Loghtan sheep, a Manx speciality. This is someone who won’t be going off the island fast. When Okells moved to its current site in Kewaigue, just outside Douglas, in 1994, Cowbourne felt secure enough to start bringing in American and Czech hops. At the time Okells also brewed lager under contract for Labatts, a determinedly commercial decision because Formula One champion Nigel Mansell lived on the island and Labatts was one of his sponsors. When Mansell left the island, the lager went too. This means that Okells’ production is all ales these days, 85% of which are cask-conditioned — there has to be some smoothflow beers, it was explained, otherwise Okells’ pubs would be dominated by John Smith’s. The two main ales of Okells are a mild and a bitter. The 3.4% mild is sadly a low percentage of sales on the island and it was intimated that something had to be done about the sales or its future could be very uncertain. ‘It’s mainly Maris Otter pale ale malt, plus crystal and chocolate malt in the grist,’ says Cowbourne, ‘while Fuggles and Goldings are the hops. It’s a traditional northern type mild and the drink of the typical mild set, the older generation who are dying off. As they go the market disappears.’ It’s a smooth and refreshing beer that deserves to survive. On the other hand the 3.7% Bitter is thriving and the brewery’s bestseller on Man (what sells best on the mainland is another story). It has a tangy, spicy nose courtesy of the Fuggles, an enticing bittersweet character on the palate followed by a long bitter finish. I tried it at the Creek in Peel, a harbourside pub with dark wood fittings, nicotine coloured ceiling and the feel of an old-fashioned station buffet, which it used to be.
One of the intriguing aspects of Okells and their bitter is that it can be customized if asked for by one of the brewery’s landlords. At the Raven in the small village of Ballaugh, sited on the TT racecourse, I tried Raven’s Claw, which was a version of the bitter that had been dry-hopped. This had a well-pronounced spicy, herbal character to the nose with a touch more spiky hop on the palate than the ordinary bitter. Until the 1980s, mild and bitter were the staples of many a brewery and Okells was no different. However, the opening of the guest beer market, more bottled beers being drunk at home and the growth of speciality beers has changed things. This means that there are now regular monthly specials such as Olde Skipper (4.5%), Spring Ram (4.2%) and St Nick (4.5%), but also the development of Doctor Okell’s IPA (4.5%), the wheat beer Mac Lir (4.4%) and a luscious smoky peaty porter Aile (4.8%). The IPA majors on Cascade for aroma and Target for bitterness, but there are also four other hops in the mix. This leaves it with bags of citrus fruit on the nose, joined by the characteristic hopsack aroma, while in the mouth a soft maltiness opens the proceedings before the hops belt out fruit and bitterness. This has an impressive 43 IBU (international Bittering Units) and is the brewery’s bestseller on the mainland. There is also a stronger and hoppier version, Doctor Okells’ Elixir, which weighs in at about 6.5% and is full of hops. It was introduced for first time in 2007. I ask Tony Temple, the brewery’s ebullient sales manager if it is a struggle to sell such a beer on the island ‘It’s a bit strong for the island,’ he says, ‘we suggest it be sold in half pints, I think it should be an aspirational drink. Some of the fellas out there drink it, glug, glug, glug, and next thing you know there’s an ambulance outside…’ Even though nearly 20% of Okells products are now sold to the British mainland, with a sizeable amount going over to Scandinavia, there remains a Manx spirit of independence about Okells and their beers. Mike Cowbourne keeps an eye on what is happening on the mainland and is open to the development of beer styles. Bitter on the island and IPA on the mainland are the mainstays, and maybe their beers are never going to be world-beaters, but on the other hand they have a great branding tool in the presence of the Isle of Man. Even though the island’s identity seems to be much diluted with many from the northwest of England settling there, producing a Souse-style lilt to the island’s accent, it is the good life. The weather is mild, crime is low, tax is reasonable, the countryside is beautiful, the pubs are cosy and comfortable and at the end of the day you can sit down with a pint of Okells Bitter and toast your good fortune. Perhaps that’s really what island life is about — divorcing you from the fast and frenetic life on the mainland along with a pint in the hand. April 2007
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