A toast to our on-farm breweries
Approach the local county enterprise board for advice on supports, research, training and legislation. On-farm micro-breweries have the advantage of convertible buildings, and the potential to service their region with a distinct product. Capital expenditure will most likely be at least €30,000, and could be up to €150,000. Second-hand equipment, including casks, sometimes become available, though less so in Ireland than in Britain. There are generous tax reliefs for micro-breweries producing up to 20,000 hectolitres.
If you are interested in brewing in east Cork, Rupert Hugh Jones’s microbrewery on three acres is for sale at Rathaha Upper, Ladysbridge. Jones hopes to upscale his brewing business and move down the road to Shangarry to grow hops and brew beside Ballymaloe, where his mother-in-law Darina Allen runs the cookery school.
