A BIRTHDAY beer brewed in secret by Arkell's brewery in celebration of its managing director James Arkell's 50th birthday in May has proved so successful that the brewery is making it permanently available to drinkers across the region.
Staff at the brewery worked behind closed doors in April and May this year to develop and brew the beer and Mr Arkell was only told as the brewery rolled into full production and the secret could not be kept any longer.
Landlady Liz Bailey at The Freke Arms at Swanborough, Hannington, near Swindon, said: "We have all Arkell's cask ales on tap here, but JRA has proved incredibly popular with our customers and everyone who drinks it raves about its unique flavour."
Liz is challenging her customers to a blind Arkell's Ale tasting, to try to match up the beer to its name.
She said: "Each beer has it's own distinctive flavour, but sometimes it's not as easy as it sounds to match up them up. This is a great way to develop a 'nose' for each ale."
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