Responsible for brewery tours and events, Pure Quality cellar training and our brewery shop, it could be said that John is the face and voice of Purity. For most that visit us here at Purity, John is the first person you meet upon arrival and embodies all that it is to be a Puritan with his infectious enthusiasm for our brewery. If you’ve been fortunate enough to attend a brewery tour, you’ll know that you walk away with a wealth of brilliant stories and fascinating facts you won’t find anywhere on Google.
So with this in mind, we thought it only right to sit and get to know John a little better.
So lets start with the most important question…. Favourite Beer?
Easy, Stella Artois (when it was 5.2%)
On a serious note, Pure Gold has always been my favourite of Purity’s beers. Brilliant balance of premium malt and quality hops.
As I always explain to guests on tours, stripping away alcohol really exposes a brewers true skills and this is a masterful, full flavoured low ABV session beer. Best in class in my opinion.
What brought you to Purity?
I made the unusual jump from bikes to beer (probably the right way round to do it I guess) Having worked for Pashley Cycles in Stratford upon Avon for nearly 10 years a mutual friend of both Pashley and Purity saw a space for my brand engagement skills at the brewery.
I remember my first pint of Purity at an event in Alcester way back in 2006 and had enjoyed the beer ever since then. An opportunity to work for another premium and much loved local brand couldn’t go unmissed.
What have you enjoyed the most about your time here?
The beer! It’s all about the beer. I love sharing my enthusiasm for something that is relatively simple and natural to produce but can be made to shine and bring real joy when done with passion and character like Purity do.
Getting an award for the brewery tours and the great guest feedback through things like Trip Advisor is always nice personally but the work I do with trade accounts on Pure Quality cellar courses is the most satisfying. Getting publicans and their staff enthused about cask ale and making sure that with a few very simple hints and tips any pub can serve the beer at its very best. There really is no mystery to serving a Pure Quality Pint everytime. If I can do it, anyone can. Trust me.
Any funny stories from the events you've hosted?
They say you should never work with children or animals. The children we can avoid (over 18s only on the tours) but being based on a working farm means the animals can play their role in creating some unexpected experiences for our guests. Having all the farm dogs (3 black labs, 2 wippets, 2 collies and a daschund) bounce around the guests as we show them up to the brewery is always fun. Seeing peoples smiles when they see the real characters of the lawless goat, longhorn cattle or noisy cockerels and it dawns on them that their favourite beer names are all based on true stories is a real treat.
Last week the ice was broken for one lucky job interviewee when Michael the sheep (warmed up in the farmhouse AGA when he was born on deaths door and now a farm pet) wandered into the tap room where he was having his meeting. I had to shoo him out and apologise. Hope he got the job!
Favourite fact that people may not know about Purity?
UBU was a real pain in the arse and we have the pawprints at the brewery to prove it!
What would we find you doing away from Purity?
Teaching my little boy to cook as food is a big passion for me and I want to make sure he can show off his skills when he’s older. You’ll also catch me trying to spot hares in the local fields as they’re my favourite animal or coaching the under 7’s at Stratford Rugby Club.