Hawkshead Brewery is a remarkable success story � part of the onward march of craft brewing in Britain. It was set up in 2002 in an old barn at Hawkshead by former BBC correspondent Alex Brodie. Among other jobs, Alex had been the BBC�s man in the Middle East and Pakistan, and had also been a presenter on Radio 4�s flagship news programme Today. When he stopped roaming the world, he bought a house in Hawkshead in the Lake District for his family while continuing weekly stints on the BBC World Service.

He switched to brewing when his favourite cask beer was withdrawn from his local pub. He went on a Brewlab course in Sunderland to learn the brewing skills then launched Hawkshead in 2002. Alex�s success encouraged him to move in 2006 to bigger premises at Staveley, between Kendal and Windermere. The complex is a showcase for cask beer, comprising a 20-barrel brewery alongside the Beer Hall, which includes a brewery tap room, a visitor centre and a restaurant. Several of the cask beers are now available in bottled form and have recently been joined by an Organic Stout. The bottles are lightweight as a contribution to helping the environment � they are less than one third of the weight of a conventional glass bottle.

Hawkshead, Lakeland Gold (England) Several of Hawkshead's cask beers are now available in bottled form and have recently been joined by an Organic Stout. The bottles are lightweight as a contribution to helping the environment � they are less than one third of the weight of a conventional glass bottle. Lakeland Gold is a pale bronze colour, brewed with Maris Otter pale and crystal malts and hopped with American Cascade hops and First Gold, the English hedgerow variety. The beer has an enticing and entrancing aroma of hop resins, wholemeal biscuits and citrus fruit. Sharp, tangy fruit and bitter hops dominate the mouth but there is a good balance of grain. The finish is long, intensely bitter, with big contributions from tart citrus fruit and hop resins with a gentle underpinning of biscuity malt. Malt: light. Hops: high. Fruit: high. Lakeland Gold is available in Booth�s supermarkets at �1.60 a bottle or from the brewery at �20 a case or �2 a bottle. Contact [email protected] or 01539 822644. 4.4% ABV, 50cl, �1.60, Booth's, brewery website.