Business profile: Salt Beer Factory
Salt of the earth Salt Beer Factory is the younger, hipper, sibling of established cask brewery Ossett Brewery, with both operating under shared ownership but in very difierent parts of the craft beer market. The idea for Salt sprung from the emergence of American style, hop forward IPAs and pale ales. A world away in taste and style from the traditional cask ales that Ossett had mastered. And in wanting to explore this new side to the market, the team decided that they could only do it justice if they launched a new brewing brand with a dedicated site and team who could champion hop forward beers without diluting the focus on cask at Ossett. Salt Beer Factory was launched in 2018, with a mission to take beer drinkers on a journey into the new world of American-style hoppy beers, but without throwing them
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Spring 2022 | SIBA Independent Brewer | www.siba.co.uk
straight in at the 8% deep end. The idea that this style of beer could be equally accessible as a session bitter, with a non-daunting entry level 4.2% ABV, underpinned Salt’s belief that these beers can be for everyone. Pubs and retail are at the heart of the Ossett business and that background has also inspired a focus on retail within the Salt brand that has seen it launch four bars – the latest two in London – and a second production site in the capital too. The original brewery and taproom in UNESCO world heritage site Saltaire in West Yorkshire, a village built by leading industrialist Sir Titus Salt – which is also how Salt Beer Factory got its name. Caroline Nodder from Independent Brewer spoke to Salt’s MD Nadir Zairi in early 2022 to hear more about the brand’s ambitious expansion plans
