Pete Flynn writes on the “Birth of a cool brand”
It’s all about connections and so it was with the evolution of the Oxford Brewery, formerly known as Shotover. It was during 2009 when former owners Pip and Ed Murray, and good friends of the current owners Moira and Alistair Ross, decided they would sell the business. Over a pint or two at their favourite pub the Three Kings in Twickenham, the four shook hands on the deal and so Oxford Brewery had new owners.
This remarkable brewery is set inside some farm buildings in the little village of Horspath just to the east of the BMW plant at Cowley. This is where I met the charming owners who have a real passion for all they do, and they should be rightly proud of their achievements.
Alistair had hitherto embarked upon a career as an architect and had his own practice, and although this has closed subsequently, he still likes “to keep his hand in” by providing planning advice. These days he mostly enjoys getting out and about delivering beer whilst Moira is involved in running the office. Daughter Caitlin, up until the time she married, used to be involved with brewing, sales and accounting.
“Along came Covid and that changed everything and made us decide what we wanted to do for the future,” Moira recalled. When the cost of utilities rises more than three times in a short space of time, it really focuses the mind. It was about this time that a decision was made to rebrand our business and W. P. A. Penfold Ltd were appointed to oversee the exercise, a company involved in transforming the fortunes of Harveys and Theakston both of which will be known to beer drinkers.
Moira remarks, “Even people living in Oxford were not familiar with the name Shotover. It is vital that you have a distinctive identity and having the name the Oxford Brewery gave us that uniqueness; we needed to stand out in a crowded market and it’s about where you are.”
So successful was the rebranding that they won a gold award – Design Effectiveness Awards 2022. “This is a global award so you are up against the likes of Diageo and Cadbury, so we are delighted with our achievements,” Moira proudly told me. “I learned that the exercise encompasses all of the advertising and communication side of the business, and by all accounts Penfold really understands the market and are terribly nice people.”
The distinctive names of the individual beers are testament to the ascendancy of the marketing appeal with such names as Prospect, Trinity, Scholar, and Porter; for a full list of the beers visit their website.
Oxford Brewery also provides beers in bottles with nearby Hitchcox Cider undertaking this process. The very popular Hoptric is sold in cans and, interestingly, all of the beers have a wonderful story behind each name which Moira reminded me is part of the provenance and positioning of their products. All of their flagship beers are recipes from the previous owners and their eight-barrel plant brews two or three times a week.
The summer beer Hoptric, a refreshing pale ale, has also won an award for the can design and these products are known as “crushes”.
Whilst there was a huge increase in off-sales during Covid, this year has seen a big increase in brewing sales with ordering and delivering carried out the same day. Beer from the Oxford Brewery is very popular locally, and tellingly this is down to consistency and the high volume of repeat orders, Moira explains.
By far and away the Lamb & Flag in St Giles, Oxford, is the biggest seller of its cask beer, and winter appears to be the best time for increased sales. Other outlets include the Rose and Crown, Victoria, Jolly Farmers, Jolly Postboys, Angel and Greyhound, Kings Arms, Harcourt Arms, Gardeners Arms (Plantation Road), the Bear, Butchers Arms, White Rabbit, Isis Farmhouse, Teardrop, Kings Arms (Kidlington) and the Abingdon Arms, Beckley. Another useful outlet is Oak Taverns, a small wet-led pubco favouring small brewers.
Being associated with the heritage of Oxford, Christchurch College asked Oxford Brewery to produce a white label beer to carry its branding. This is another way to obtain global appeal and how rebranding can impact on your future success, Moira explained.
Being a small business it is essential to maximise opportunities for growth at every level, and Oxford Brewery is no exception especially with a team of only seven, so it’s all hands-on-deck. Head brewer Angus Wallbank has been with the brewery for seven years and with production nearing capacity, at some point the brewing tanks will require upgrading which will mean a huge investment just to maintain capacity. Sales increases alone are not the answer, so the team have built an amazing taproom in Horspath which has a homely appeal.
The room is well kitted out with chairs and tables mostly bought via eBay, and the full range of core beers is available. Moira recalls, “When we opened for the first time it was April 2021 and the first day of the ending of Covid. We opened at noon and our loyal customers had been queuing since 11am to sample our beer.” The taproom is open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 4-11pm and serves tasty pizzas, whilst the brewery shop is open from 9am every day except Sunday.
Another success story for the brewery is local community support and engagement. Quiz and music nights are a popular feature and offer an opportunity for musicians from all musical genres to entertain customers in a lively environment. Full details may be found on the website.
Moira and Alistair are rightfully proud of their achievements and recognise that it remains a battle to maintain sales and recognise that whilst their sales are up, their profits remain flat. As a result of the pandemic investment was curtailed yet they have only pushed through two price increases since Covid.
I really enjoyed my visit to Oxford Brewery, and I arranged for Moira to open up the tap room a little earlier on a Saturday in August so that Oxford CAMRA could pay a long-awaited visit. I was generously given a bottle of Headless Laud, a cellar aged 7.1% IPA, by my hosts and thought I would share this beer of distinction with a friend as it was too good to keep for myself.