Select a region
The Second Meridian Brew Co., has reached its goal of brewing beer through solar power, writes Poppy Murray.
Friends Sam Hamperl, Joe Baines, Matt Ashworth and Will Steele-Moore, who established the business – also known as 2M – in 2018, said they were keen to show that using green energy to brew beer was possible.
“Turning our hobby into a business as friends has been incredibly hard work, but also hugely rewarding and it gives us the freedom to do what is important to us. Using renewable energy was always top of our list; brewing beer will mean nothing without a healthy planet to drink it on,” said Mr Hamperl.
“We would like to see every business in Guernsey across any industry look at how they could be using renewable energy.”
The 2M brewery is powered by sixteen 460-watt panels, generating 7.4kwh of energy. The panels are fitted with eight to the West and eight to the East. “Guernsey can often be a bit cloudy, but when the sun is right overhead and the sky is clear, the photovoltaic strings can produce up to 6kwh of power,” said Mr Hamperl.
“A lot of the brewing processes use a lot of power. ‘Cold crashing’ the tanks to zero degrees and cold storing the beer through summer uses a lot of energy. Utilising solar energy made the most sense as we need more power to cool everything through summer and less through winter.
“On days when we are not brewing, the power generated by the solar panels is fed directly back to the island’s grid, which offsets any days where we have used power beyond what was generated by the panels. Ultimately, we generate more than we use, but some days we may utilise power from the grid.”
The first 2M net-zero beers brewed – ‘Drip’ and ‘Ripples’ - will be available at the Herm Beer and Cider festival at the end of April. Fat Rascal and Good Rebel currently offer 2M beers, with Mr Hamperl confirming that the next batch delivered to the local venues “in four or five weeks” will be clean-brewed.
Mr Hamperl said he hoped islanders would support the group’s efforts.
“Whether it be buying local produce, using companies that ensure fairtrade practices or utilise renewable energy, consumers have a lot of power in their choices. We hope anyone enjoying our beer will also feel pleased that they are helping to support the environment.”
Friends’ hobby brews pale ale success
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.