Hawkhill Brewers in Mid Wynd was a very short-lived business that started up in 1983 by Bob Welch and partners.Bob was a home-brew enthusiast who used to make Buddon Ale in his garage. So the next step was to get himself proper brewing premises and start filling barrels with his own recipe's.
Hawkhill Brewers main ale was Old Bally (you may recall The Scout changed it's name to Bally's in 1983). They also produced 2 others, a beer called Witch's Brew and another alcoholic treat called Rocket Ale, a drink that was aptly named, because it was so strong it sent you into orbit!
Unfortunately, Hawkhill Brewers couldn't compete with the big dominant companies, and the place closed down just after 2 years in biz, in 1985.
Photo by John Alexander.
I had to take some photographs inside there when I worked on The Dundee Project. I was up a shoogly ladder looking into a big vat of brewing beer and gradually being intoxicated by the fumes.
ReplyDeleteDon't know what happened to the pics.
Cue old joke about someone falling in and drowning in the beer. It took two hours to drown, it would have been sooner but he got out to go to the toilet twice.
I think these guys were just a few years ahead of their time. I remember having a few pints of Witches Brew in Bally's after my last 1st year Uni exam in 1983. When I say remember, I remember the first couple...
ReplyDelete.
ReplyDeleteI used to enjoy a pint of Bally's in the Ladywell. It cost 55p.
The problem Hawkhill had was the stranglehold the big brewers had over pubs. The only pubs that were able to stock it were the free houses.