Eight Degrees Brewery beers are handcrafted in the beautiful Ballyhoura region of north Cork, in the shadow of the Galtee Mountains, by Scott and Cam, a Kiwi and an Aussie, lured to Ireland by two cailins.
Cam, the Aussie, is trained as a chartered accountant, while Scott, the Kiwi, is a water engineer. Their mission is to make modern interpretations of traditional Irish ale and lager styles, providing distinctive malt and hop characteristics for what they call ‘naturally adventurous’ beers.
The story behind the name of the brewery is that Ireland is located at eight degrees west longitude, which also just so happens to be the perfect serving temperature for their beer. Their seasonal Ochtoberfest beer makes a further word play on the number eight.
To get up and running for their launch in 2011, Eight Degrees purchased a 1,500-litre brewhouse from Carlow Brewing Company. Eight Degrees can brew 3,000 litres of beer per day and has tank storage capacity of 15,000 litres. They also invested in a Meheen six-head filler and capper bottling machine, capable of bottling over 2,000 bottles per hour.
The core beers include Howling Gale Ale, Sunburnt Irish Red, Knockmealdown Porter and Barefoot Bohemian Pilsner. The seasonal A Winter’s Ale was developed using a custom-made spice blend from Green Saffron, also located in Cork.
Other seasonal beers and collaborations are also available, such as the limited edition Kindred Spirit beer, a coffee stout aged in 25-year-old whiskey barrels from the Teeling Whiskey Company.
In March 2013, Eight Degrees was one of two winners (and the only food business) in the Best Emerging Business category in the SFA National Small Business Awards, and they have gone on to attract plenty of well-deserved recognition since then.
The beer is available in bottles and on draught throughout Ireland. Check the website for stockists as well as for tasting notes and beer and food pairing tips.
