Crisis - what crisis 
Friday, March 30, 2007, 04:16 PM
Forget the last entry. Supply chain problems mean the bottling equipment is not coming today. It will be here on Wednesday of next week - or thursday (summer timetable) so its going to be a busy old run up to Easter. But who would start a brewery on a remote Atlantic island is they were not up for a bit of a challenge.

The sign is up, however, and now everyone knows where the brewery is. Picture soon.

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I P A 
Wednesday, March 28, 2007, 11:09 PM
Success - The IPA is brewed - and it all went reasonably well. George reckons better than that. We are now on course to begin bottling when George returns to the Island on Friday. We haven’t told him the summer timetable starts on Friday so when he turns up late for the 12 o'clock boat he will be delighted to find out that he's actually early for the 5pm boat.

We expect to sent up the bottling line early on Saturday morning and begin bottling the lager first.

That means historic first sales will take place this weekend. What joy. What a journey from four folk sat in the bar last Easter saying lets start a brewery - and we did. The excitement of opening, and drinking, the first bottle will be immense. We have already tasted, at some length, the beer and lager from the conditioning tanks and we reckon its pretty bloody good.



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The Devils Work 
Saturday, March 24, 2007, 01:52 PM

Can you believe it? George made it on Friday - and it was the early boat. In fact he was found in Tesco's canteen at 9am complaining that there's not much to do in Oban at eight in the morning having apparently made it to town in the early hours of the morning.

So work has been done on the brews fermenting currently and preparations are in hand today to begin the IPA tomorrow. Some say that man should not brew on the Sabbath - but there's no holidaying minister at the moment, the manse is empty so we should just about get away with it.

Bottling equipment is due to arrive next week - it left its Italian manufacturer last week - and so product will be on sale by Easter as planned.

There is talk of an opening party at some point over Easter. A veritable p++s up in the brewery. We will have to find someone to organise it.


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Stop Press 
Wednesday, March 21, 2007, 07:55 PM
The brewery blog is not yet a week old and already we have an employee of the month, step forward Bob the Brewer. Single handedly he shifted 1697 boxes (and counted them) and did not complain once. Here they are, stacked beautifully high up in the brewery. Well done Bob.

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Just Reward 
Wednesday, March 21, 2007, 06:07 PM
Often in a business relationship one side of the bargain feels the other side may have contributed more to the project that one has oneself. Terms are agreed at the outset but by the conclusion one side feels rather in debt to the other. And so it is with George. We think we should buy him a small gift over and on top of the agreed consideration for building the brewery and so we shall. Quite what is easy. A WATCH. He missed the boat AGAIN.

How long does a man have to be involved with an Island business before he realises time, tide and Caledonian MacBrayne wait for no man.

IPA brewing to commence on Friday ( George please note Friday boats go at 10. You missed the 12 noon on Wednesday what chance of making one two hours earlier).


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