For Red Kellie, winning brewer of the year at this week’s Women in Beer Awards marks another great moment as her brewery celebrates its 10th anniversary.
Red Kellie
Red, well-known for her foraged beers, is co founder of First & Last Brewery in Bellingham, Northumberland. To win the award, she saw off competition from Laura Gillott (Thornbridge Brewery), Kate Hyde (Hand Brew Co), and Georgina Young (St Austell Brewery).
Red’s nomination celebrates her work in small-batch craft brewing and her innovative work alongside the rest of the team at The First & Last Brewery. They use hyper-local, foraged Northumberland ingredients. Their current 10th anniversary beer range, 10B410Y, sees them working with local small businesses and beer community members to acknowledge the importance of the people and places that have been a part of the brewery’s journey during its first decade.
Located in the heart of rural Northumberland in the village of Bellingham, The First & Last Brewery has built a national reputation for its terroir-led brewing, inspired by the county’s wild landscapes and dark skies.
Central to the brewery’s identity is its seasonal beer releases. Every beer features locally-sourced or hand-foraged ingredients, from wild spruce tips to seasonal fruits and blossoms. The hands-on brewing philosophy not only grounds each beer in the natural climate and soil of Northumberland. Itt also assists with the brewery’s commitment to sustainability, minimising environmental impact by sourcing ingredients right on the brewery’s doorstep.
“The Women in Beer Awards are such a wonderful celebration of all of the work going on up and down the country by women in every aspect of the brewing and beer community,” said Red.
“I met so many inspiring women at the event! It was such a massive surprise to win, and at the same time a really proud moment to celebrate all that is special about what we do at First & Last.”
The brewer of the year title comes in a landmark year for the family-run brewery, which also took home silver overall champion (bottle/can) at the national SIBA Indie Beer Awards earlier this year for its foraged Spruce Saison.
