Go pro??

[Dronfieldbrewer]

Eh Up,

Question for you all, What does it take to go pro working from your own garage at home? Does anyone know of a Commercial Brewer on this small a scale? Reason why asking is that someone has set up a brewery at his home near me, he has been in the local CAMRA newsletter as the smallest brewery 80 litres. ( he intends to supply to festivals, private parties and weddings etc).

 

[Devonhomebrew]

Legally you can brew in garage but cannot sell it to shops and pubs as its a residential area so you need another area to sell it from. Ummm also 2 licenses and tax and duty. :thumb:

 

[Springer]

:hmm:
S

 

[Dronfieldbrewer]

Out of curiosity I rang him,

He tells me that all you need is to inform HMRC to get registered as a Brewery and register with local authority and abide by the health and hygene guidance as offered by the authorities website and expect that you willl be inspected by them periodically.

This surely is not all, what about insurance, I can imagine trying to claim on buildings insurance and the insurance co getting shirty about the policy, don't you also need to register with the water co?

Truth is, if it is this easy, I am sending my form off to HMRC tomorrow

 

[oz11]

My local micro brews in his garage with no problems.

 

[Swift Pint]

Out of curiosity I rang him,

He tells me that all you need is to inform HMRC to get registered as a Brewery and register with local authority and abide by the health and hygene guidance as offered by the authorities website and expect that you willl be inspected by them periodically.

This surely is not all, what about insurance, I can imagine trying to claim on buildings insurance and the insurance co getting shirty about the policy, don't you also need to register with the water co?

Truth is, if it is this easy, I am sending my form off to HMRC tomorrow

Good point, I suspect theres a clause in your insurance stating that the premesis cant be used to comercial use.

 

[jonewer]

You also have to pay duty on ALL the beer you brew

 

[Devonhomebrew]

Residential property can be used to make/ferment beer but it cannot be sold from the premises. I rang HMRC a while back asking about openign a micro and thats what they said oh also if you have a local spring that is on your land then contact local water people and thy might be able to set up a pumping system from the spring to the brewery for you :thumb:

 

[Springer]

You also have to pay duty on ALL the beer you brew

That wouldn't be a problem if my personal consumption was covered by the sales................ :hmm: maybe a problem here :lol:
S

 

[Devonhomebrew]

My local micro brews in his garage with no problems.

25 Sq foot wow thats very small

 

[Springer]

My local micro brews in his garage with no problems.

25 Sq foot wow thats very small

25 sq metres Devon............ thought I could fit one into my kennel at 25 sq ft. :lol:
S
What about the Planners. :?

 

[puravida]

Insurance would be fine.
I think the real barrier is what jonewar said - you have to pay tax on ALL the beer you brew, regardless if you are drinking it or selling it so unless you are really certain about your market and how much you can sell, I can see it sapping a lot of fun out of homebrewing!

Having said that - I'm a huge fan of being able to earn a crust doing something you really love so if you can make the numbers add up, you never need 'work' another day in your life!

 

[Jeltz]

This leads me to wondering why freehouses don't brew their own, I'd have thought that many landlords would be into this.

 

[andylanc1975]

Answer to the insurance bit: hell yes his private household insurance would need and want to be kept informed. This is an example of an insurance principle called utmost good faith whereby insurer and insured promise to notify the other about any material fact that has changed. Now his insurer will probably do nothing apart from note it against the policy but If he doesn't tell and has a claim for something else, it won't look good come renewal. FSA rules state that an insurance company can't repudiate a claim if a material fact wasn't disclosed that had no bearing on the claim (for example a faulty lock in the case of a flood claim), but they would most certainly view him as a bad risk come renewal... And we all share that sort of information.

Landlords not brewing their own beer: probably time and space are the main reasons why we don't brew our own. My pub was landlocked so no expansion for a brewery, cellar obviously has the beer I was selling and running a pub is 24/7 deal. If you've got the space, but no time, well any profit made needs to go into your own pocket and not that of a brewer

 

[graysalchemy]

As has been said you need HMRC registration, comply with local authority and FSA food hygiene regulations and inspections. You would also need third party liability insurance and product insurance and I doubt you household ploicy would cover having a brewery in the garage. also mortgage company may not like a commercial business being run from the property. Finally you may also need planning permission or at least inform the local planning authority and also their is the mater of water suply you would be paying domestic rates for a commercial venture and also discharge consents for waste effluent.

Completely possible but would it be worth it? Not for financial reasons though :lol: :lol:

 

[Aleman]

This leads me to wondering why freehouses don't brew their own, I'd have thought that many landlords would be into this.

Most 'Free' Houses are not actually free of a tie . . . They generally have some sort of loan to cover refurbishments . . . from a brewery / pub co and it is paid back based on the sales of the beers from that brewery. . . . and you have to have the beer supplied by the brewery / wholesaler

There are very few true free houses out there

 

[PD]

I think its worth re-iterating the difference between a business and a hobby, and I understand all the points made above re running a business for hopefully profit.
However as the recent winner of garden shed 2012 shows he has converted/build a shed to resemble a pub/bar ( so did a lot of other entrants ) He is allowed to have guests in to taste his wares and spend a convivial evening....of course they don't pay anything ahem ahem.
They seem to have managed to comply/bypass all the local planning regulations etc. But of course he's not selling ahem ahem
Just there's a big box at the entrance with a slot in it.
This country does not wish us to have fun and enjoyment like this, unless they are getting their whack.If he put the radio on he'd have to pay for a music licence.

 

[oz11]

You also have to pay duty on ALL the beer you brew

Well.. kind of...

17.2 Is duty payable on beer brewed for experimental purposes by registered brewers?
No. Duty relief will be given on any beer brewed by a registered brewer which is to be used only for research or experiments in the production of beer. The relief from duty is subject to conditions.

17.5 Disposal of beer produced by registered brewers
To qualify for relief from duty, you must not sell or give away any of the beer produced. You may conduct taste tests among your employees, but the beer must not be consumed in any other circumstances. Taste tests must not include prospective or actual customers.

CLICKY

 

[Dronfieldbrewer]

The profit is not as important to me as the satisfaction of a good pint. I am only really interested in supplying Beer Festivals and the occasional pub. Its my hobby and not my full time job (for now).

 

[graysalchemy]

Yes You may not make a profit or perhaps want to but if you don't make a profit you will make a loss . Is it really that important??