Green beer in support of eco village project

November 16, 2007: Award-winning microbrewer Simon Gillespie has brewed an eco-friendly ale in support of the proposed Eastgate Renewable Energy Village in Weardale.

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	l Gerry Stallard (left), landlord of the Cross Keys pub in Eastgate, and John Topliss, project manager of the Eastgate Renewable Energy Village, pulling the first pint of Green Dale

Eastgate Green Dale is a golden beer brewed with all natural ingredients, including two varieties of English hops, and is the first real ale to be pulled in the Cross Keys pub, in Eastgate, by landlord Gerry Stallard.

Simon said: “When I heard about the plans for Eastgate Renewable Energy Village at Eastgate I thought it was a fantastic idea that would really give Weardale a lift and I wanted to show my support.

"As I try to make our entire brewing process as eco-friendly as possible, I couldn’t think of a better way than to brew them a specialised ‘green’ beer!”

Wear Valley Brewery is attached to The Grand pub in Bishop Auckland and has been brewing for over two years, winning several prestigious awards in the process including Wear Valley Beer of the Year for its Auckland Glory, beating brewers from all around the North East.

Like the rest of Simon’s ales, Eastgate Green Dale is brewed with the utmost attention to the environment. The brewery has installed a heat exchanger to recycle all the heat used in the brewing process. Not even the leftover ingredients are wasted — the spent grains of malt are donated to a local beef farmer in Gainford as fodder for his cattle, and the expended hops are used as fertiliser at the nearby leek allotments.

Simon added: “Our brewing is a completely natural process and we place special emphasis on recycling and saving energy. Everything we use in the process is utilised as best we can and we are even looking into having a wind turbine installed so we can generate our own power.”

The Weardale Task Force — made up of representatives from Wear Valley District Council, Durham County Council, One NorthEast and Lafarge Cement UK — is the driving force behind the proposed Renewable Energy Village.

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