As we kick-off 2022 we thought it would be a good idea to give a little bit more insight into the (brains?!) behind Lacuna Brewing.
After having been open for a little over eight months we have finally managed to get most things ticking along nicely. The constant mending, tinkering and fine-tuning has given way to a period of planning and reflection. With this in mind we thought we should make the most of this slight stability to get on with all those things we had intended to get to months ago. One of which is this, our belated introduction!
So, who are we?
As briefly mentioned on our website, we are Ben and Tristan. Two friends who have thought, dreamed and chatted about opening a brewery for many years. Our journey together began at work, in London, as commodity analysts - hardly the typical route into brewing! Much of this part of the story was handled in our first post here. What we'd like to do now is to give a little more of the background as to what makes the two of us tick - or something like that anyway.
The brewer
Tristan is Lacuna’s Head Brewer and the true brains behind what you find in your glass when drinking our beer. He's been brewing in various guises for over a decade and has an encyclopaedic knowledge of styles, hops and recipes. Hailing from St Agnes, Cornwall, he is a local lad and has gladly returned home after a couple of years brewing beer in the glorious sun of Mallorca - I'm not really sure why either?! ☔🌧️
Self described as ‘neither a Punk nor anarchist’. He's never been particularly rebellious, but is precise, thoughtful and considered - you'll pick all of this up within about 30 seconds of chatting with him! Brewing speaks to his love of both science (he's a trained geologist) and art and the way in which a truly great beer is a mix of both these areas, with a dash of luck thrown in for good measure.
The jack of all trades
The other half of Lacuna is Ben, with a focus more on the drinking of beer than making it. I typically help out with the simpler side of the process and of course all of the lovely admin that comes with running any sort of business.
Perhaps slightly more of a talker than Tristan. I was always the more ebullient after a few beers sampling the many great breweries in London, encouraging our nascent plans to ‘make this stuff ourselves’. Less of a scientist and more of an artist 🤔I offered ideas and drive around our branding and design work, along with the wholly less glamorous sales and invoicing stuff that keeps us ticking over. Always keen to design and build despite a complete lack of professional experience, the early fit-out of the brewery and taproom saw me in my element!
What brings us together?
Together we have always focussed on creating a brewery that is sustainable from both an environmental and social perspective. It isn’t just about brewing great beer, but doing so in a responsible way. Whenever our beery conversations would turn to brewing and dreaming, chat about the importance of the natural world was never far behind.
As a result we have created Lacuna to reflect both our personalities and beliefs - or so we hope! This all means that we offer easy drinking, relaxed styles of beer to be enjoyed by all beer drinkers. Our beer is uncomplicated and tasty, something you can drink over and over again while not worrying about the environmental impact because we do that for you!
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