Castle Rock Brewery

About

Castle Rock Brewery

Castle Rock is a brewery and pub group which operates Nottingham’s largest independent brewery. Established in the seventies by then CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) chairman Chris Holmes, Castle Rock is firmly established as a favourite in local and national beer drinking circles.

Named “Pub Group of the Year” three times, Castle Rock currently operates twenty two pubs in Nottinghamshire and beyond. When founded, the idea was simple: ‘Create friendly, welcoming pubs and serve high quality beer’. This mantra has remained at the core of Castle Rock, with unique venues run by dedicated and passionate teams. Castle Rock pubs in Nottingham include the Vat and Fiddle brewery tap, craft beer haven the Canalhouse, the Kean’s Head in the Lace Market, and the stunning Embankment at Trent Bridge.

On the Bar

Alongside Castle Rock beer you will find guest beers from regional breweries, local breweries and microbreweries. Castle Rock Brewery is a strong local supporter of real cider, and a changing range is available to enjoy in many of their outlets. On Castle Rock bars you’ll also find carefully selected wines, soft drinks and premium spirits, as well as locally sourced coffee. Each pub serves food whether it is the traditional pub grub or contemporary dishes inspired by the Mediterranean.

Castle Rock is also at the forefront of Nottingham’s craft beer scene through their Discover World Beers initiative. The aim is to celebrate and encourage the availability of world beers in Castle Rock pubs, with Discover World Beers present in a majority of their outlets. The most prestigious bottles and craft keg beers are fleeting, so be sure to follow @DiscoverWBeers on Twitter to stay in the loop.

To learn more about Castle Rock pubs see the Castle Rock Brewery website.

Tours

Tours of Castle Rock Brewery are usually conducted by Nottingham’s official ‘Robin Hood’ (Tim Pollard), bringing some fun to an educational experience. He’ll show you all the tricks of the trade and tell you true stories from bygone years. After your tour you can spend some time in the Visitors’ Centre at the Vat & Fiddle - Castle Rock’s Brewery Tap - and sample some beers. You’ll be invited to pour your own pint, and will send you a snap to remind you of your ‘perfect pour’!

Tours start at just £12 per person.

For full details and to book a tour with Castle Rock Brewery, click here.

Our Beers

Using only the finest ingredients available to deliver the highest quality real ales, Castle Rock produces eight regular cask ales, showcasing an innovative range of beer styles. To view the full permanent range visit the Castle Rock Brewery website. Castle Rock is highly regarded for the consistency and quality of its beers, with a small and close-knit team of passionate brewers skilfully crafting each brew. The refreshingly crisp session ale Harvest Pale is at the forefront of Castle Rocks work, as the company’s flagship beer after being crowned Champion Beer of Britain in 2010. Castle Rock also brew an array of special, one-off and charity beers, raising money for the likes of the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, Amnesty International and Nottingham Trent University based John van Geest Cancer Research Centre.

Embracing the extreme innovation of the craft beer scene, the Traffic Street Specials are an ongoing range of recipes created by brewer Dan Gilliland. The range focuses on unique flavours and styles of beer, as well as experimenting with the brewing process. The beers are exclusive, brewed in small batch length and highly demanded, so if you spot one on the bar, be sure to give it a try!

Find out more about the Traffic Street Specials on the Castle Rock Brewery website.

What else?

So much more! Castle Rock also run a BIIAB accredited beer school; a training centre for the licensed trade, and hold a Green IIE accreditation by reducing their impact on the environment, having already attained a silver award in the ‘Investors in the Environment’ scheme.

Read Castle Rock's blog here!