Plans have been unveiled for a £1.2million brewery in Market Drayton, creating a dozen jobs for the town.
Businessman Steve Nuttall has tabled a planning application for the “flagship brewery” on land behind the Red Lion pub on great Hales Street.
Mr Nuttall, who owns pub chain Joules Brewery, said he hopes the purpose built brewery will enable him to revive the former Joules beer, which was last produced in the 1970s before the former company ceased trading.
He said the brewery would be medium in size and would produce the original Joules pale ale, supplying to his 14 pubs which includes The Red Lion and Lord Hill in Market Drayton and The Fox and Hounds in Cheswardine.
Planners at Shropshire Council are due to make a decision on the application by August 7, and Mr Nuttall hopes to have the brewery up and running by the end of the year.
He explained planning permission for a brewery was granted last year but the design had been amended.
“We have already started on site because we already have planning consent so we are doing preliminary ground work and we hope to be brewing by the end of the year, if not definitely by early next year,’ he said.
“The building is quite stunning, it’s not just about brewing, it’s about trying to brew with authenticity and style, because the way we do things is very important to us, it will be a real flagship brewery.
“We are not brewing on a mass scale, it will be much more artisan than that.
Details of the planning application can be viewed online at www.shropshire.gov.uk, and neighbours have until June 19 to respond to consultation on the scheme.
By Joseph Masi
