A couple of local people have objected to our planning application on the grounds of noise, smell and increased traffic. Frankly, I can understand anybody having concerns about a new enterprise being developed close to their home. A microbrewery is an unknown quantity to most people and it is perfectly understandable that they might expect noise, smells and general disturbance. But a microbrewery is not Carlsberg. We are craft brewers who are proud to work with our environment. We work on a very small scale in an activity that is mostly silent. We will brew initially on average once a week and, even at our peak, will only reach once a day, in vessels that our not much taller than us. Throughout that brew, the beer slowly evolves through a process from the soaking of grains to a week-long fermentation. During that process the only 'activity' is a one-hour boil of the malted liquor and hops. The by-product of that one-hour process is primarily steam, with a slight odour from the hops which will be expelled across the fields away from any buildings. I would never pretend that this steam is completely odourless, but it is both pleasant and almost indiscernible.
None of the activities, even the cask filling which will take place inside the building, is going to generate excessive noise. The building is part of a working farm which, until the 1960s, produced and dried hops in large Oast Houses. All of the activities on the farm have produced noise and smells. In contrast, a microbrewery is a place of very little activity and almost imperceptible smells – and even then for only a very short period of time. In truth, it is unlikely that anybody would know that the microbrewery even existed if they had not been told.
I am part of the craft brewing movement because I love the process of slowly creating a beautiful product from locally farmed ingredients in a peaceful and creative environment. All waste will be immediately taken to local farms to provide feed and fertilizer, where I expect to encounter smells and noises for the first time during my working week. I would not be involved in craft brewing if I believed that I would be working in a noisy and environmentally destructive business that produced noxious odours. In contrast, we are lovers of our environment and we will work as custodians to produce, peacefully and sustainably, a high quality product that will proudly demonstrate the rich brewing and hop-growing heritage of our County. I expect that we will still be viewed with some suspicion, but I hope that I have been able to alay some of the fears of neighbours and to assure them that our shared environment will be in safe hands.
None of the activities, even the cask filling which will take place inside the building, is going to generate excessive noise. The building is part of a working farm which, until the 1960s, produced and dried hops in large Oast Houses. All of the activities on the farm have produced noise and smells. In contrast, a microbrewery is a place of very little activity and almost imperceptible smells – and even then for only a very short period of time. In truth, it is unlikely that anybody would know that the microbrewery even existed if they had not been told.
I am part of the craft brewing movement because I love the process of slowly creating a beautiful product from locally farmed ingredients in a peaceful and creative environment. All waste will be immediately taken to local farms to provide feed and fertilizer, where I expect to encounter smells and noises for the first time during my working week. I would not be involved in craft brewing if I believed that I would be working in a noisy and environmentally destructive business that produced noxious odours. In contrast, we are lovers of our environment and we will work as custodians to produce, peacefully and sustainably, a high quality product that will proudly demonstrate the rich brewing and hop-growing heritage of our County. I expect that we will still be viewed with some suspicion, but I hope that I have been able to alay some of the fears of neighbours and to assure them that our shared environment will be in safe hands.