Glasgowist has created a new special-edition lager with Hidden Lane, the organic, environmentally-conscious brewery in Finnieston.

Cases of cans will be available to collect from the brewery shop off Argyle Street tomorrow. You can also order yours for delivery online. The project is inspired by conversations from The Best of Glasgow book I published last year and a mutual sense that now is the time to celebrate local food and drink.

The brewery is a dream project for Rachel Suttle. She started off in hospitality at the age of 13, working as a waitress then gravitating to other roles in restaurants and bars before working for Diageo. For the last ten years she has worked with her husband Graham, managing director of Kained Holdings, which has a portfolio including The Finnieston, Porter & Rye and Lebowskis.  

Glasgow Times:

Rachel took a career break after having kids and decided she would approach working in food and drink in a different way: “when I came back, I knew I wanted to build a brand. I love beer! I like everything about it and so a brewery became the plan. I already felt part of things in Finnieston. When we found the unit in the Hidden Lane, it was perfect for what we wanted to do. It was almost like it was meant to be. A home from home.”

The process of creating the brewery has taken three years, with the first beer being poured last August. “We bought a second-hand kit from Hackney Brewing. It’s this pretty, wooden installation. We then had to change the space to make it suitable for production. That was the biggest challenge. We’ve a head brewer, Pete, who is just fantastic, an integral part of the team. He works on the recipes. Developing a drinkable range is what we are all about.”

Before lockdown sales were around 70% to bars. In their absence, the business adapted, introducing a new process for canning the beer using a local company.

For this approaching summer, we wanted to create an organic lager inspired by the city that could be enjoyed with friends while having some food and listening to music. That simple but profound combination of things. We designed a drink to be part of the neighbourhood social experience that’s been missing from the city. To mark this moment.

The brew, Lager Town, was made over the last two weeks in a meticulously planned single batch using superior quality malt that was selected to complement Progress hops from Charles Faram. The name progress resonated because that’s exactly what we need at the moment. The result is a subtle honey and spice in a 5% ABV organic lager – what you’d like poured on a summer day beside a plate of grilled langoustines or a fully loaded burger.   

There will be a limited number of kegs available at local bars as they reopen and you can order a 12 pack of cans at glasgowist.com/lager.  

It’s inspiring talking to Rachel about how she has built her business, listening to Pete chat with enthusiasm on the timing of the brewing process and seeing for myself how the process can shift with small adjustments.

They’ve been making lager by the Clyde since the first settlement that grew into our Dear Green Place. Now Glasgowist and Hidden Lane are part of that tradition.

The hope is that this lager will be compliment your first meal back indoors at a restaurant when that day comes, or be part of the conversation at a reunion night out for pals who have been apart. It’s an invitation to raise a toast to the more sociable, interesting and familiar version of Glasgow that we are all working towards.