James Brock has been appointed head brewer at East Sussex-based Three Acre Brewery.
Brock, who joined Three Acre Brewery five years ago, has been undertaking his professional qualifications and has also helped oversee a significant capacity increase at the business.
Responsible for brewing and designing an increasing range of popular beers, Brock has made his mark on the brew floor where he can be found stirring in the mash or filling casks and kegs, making sure every drop of beer is just right.
As a classically-trained singer, he has also been known to whack out some opera to keep the yeast happy, the company said.
“When I started at Three Acre, over five years ago, I was excited at the prospect of becoming a brewer, now all these years later, achieving the role of head brewer feels like a dream come true”, said Brock.
“Now running the brewery floor, taking on more of a leadership role, is a proud moment and I’m looking forward to what’s next.”
Among Brock’s favourite Three Acre beers is Best Bitter: “It’s a timeless classic and notable as the first beer Three Acre released which, despite strong local competition has made its mark with a loyal following”.
Another of James’ creations, Amarillo Pale, has become one of the brewery’s top sellers this year. He’s rightly proud of this session pale ale which has turned out to be a real crowd pleaser.
“The first time we met James it clear that, despite no brewery experience, he had an enormous passion and would be an asset to the team here at Three Acre,” says operations director and brewery co-founder Jamie Newton.
“He’s worked and studied hard over the past few years and I am delighted that he’s able to take up the helm at what is an exciting time for the brewery.”
Brock has witnessed enormous expansion in the time he’s been at the brewery.
“When I joined, we had three little fermentation tanks capable of 2,500-litres in total. Today we have got 40,000-litre capacity. It’s been a big learning curve, but super satisfying,” he says.
During his time at Three Acre, James says there have been a raft of lovely beers produced. A standout moment was designing, brewing and releasing his first commercial-scale recipe in 2022 as Chocolate Oat Stout was launched at the Stout Out festival at the Jenny Lind in Hastings.
“Seeing Azacca Haze, another of my recipes, pouring on the main bar at SIBA Beer-X in Liverpool last year was another key moment,” he adds.
“While heading over to Norwich, for a collaborative brew with All Day Brewery, and meeting so many in the trade who had served and enjoyed our beers was the first time I really understood just how far and wide Three Acre’s work was being recognised.”
