An event in Edinburgh on Wednesday will see the unveiling of the ‘Swannay Brewery’ brand, which showcases its Orcadian heritage and the rich maritime history of the islands.
The family-run Highland Brewing Company was originally set-up at the site of Swannay Farm in the north west corner of the Orkney mainland in 2005, with its first beers being produced the following year.
As the company grew and sales increased it became clear that the Highland title conflicted with the Brewery’s Orkney location, and didn’t provide enough scope to grow the brand.
Now it is hoped the move to the Swannay Brewery name will allow the small team to build on a decade of success.
New bottle labels and pump clips have been produced by a London based design team.
The work will see an updated look for the brewery’s eight core brands, including Scapa Special and Island Hopping.
The Swannay Brewery range will also include a number of innovative and modern beers in both keg and bottle, with a full release scheduled for 2016.
The rebranding project comes after the brewery received more than £120,000 of financial support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise to help expand production and build sales activity in new countries.
Lewis Hill, from the Swannay Brewery, said: “This is the next step in the evolution of our brand. We’ve been proud to produce our beers under the Highland title, but we always felt that it didn’t allow us to build on our island heritage in Orkney.
“We’re delighted with the new design work and we’re excited about building a genuine brand following through the Swannay Brewery name.”
“Our sales have increased year on year and we have big plans for the future, including exporting more beers internationally. But we also want to engage the local market more, both here in Orkney and in the rest of the UK, and bringing the brand home to Swannay will really help us do that. ”
Edgar Balfour, development manager for Orkney Food and Drink, said “It has always been known as the Swannay Brewery locally, and the team there has build up an incredible reputation for the quality of its beers.
“This move really highlights how much the company has grown. Orkney is a special place with some of the best food and drink products on offer anywhere in the UK, and we’re delighted that the Swannay Brewery will be using its local roots to promote its products around the world.”
The new Swannay Brewery brand will be officially launched with a ‘tap takeover’ at Cloisters Bar in Edinburgh on Wednesday.
The re-designed range will also be showcased at the Brewery’s inaugural ‘Orktoberfest’ at the Stromness Hotel in Orkney between Friday and Sunday.
Beers from Orkney, Scotland, England and the United States will be available.
The Swannay Brewery’s eight core brands include Scapa Special, Island Hopping, Pale Ale, Orkney IPA, Duke, Orkney Blast, Orkney Porter and Imperial Stout.
Since its launch in 2005, the Brewery has claimed one hundred national and international awards for its beers, including SIBA, CAMRA and IBA titles.
