Rudgate Brewery - 17 August 2009

Rudgate Brewery, Tockwith, North Yorkshire - Photographs taken by Roger Putman - 17 August 2009

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  Rudgate was founded in 1992 by two Bass executives; Bruce Awford and Richard Louden
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  The brewery is situated in the old armoury of a wartime air base at Tockwith near York
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  Mash tun and hot liquor tank
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  Rudgate Ruby Mild was Champion Beer of Britain in 2009 and is the brewery's second biggest seller
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  Other Rudgate beers; Viking is the biggest seller and Battleaxe is third
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  375kg of pre-crushed malt is emptied into this bin ….
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  …and and augered up to the hydrator
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  The mash tun
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  The brewplant
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  The drilled base of the mash tun
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  The 35kW heating elements in the copper
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  The wort heat exchanger uses chilled liquor at 2oC
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  There are two 15brl chisel bottomed FVs, 1x15 and 3x10 brl uprights
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  FV2 was a sugar dissolving vessel from Bass at Tadcaster
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  Attemperation coils protrude from trhe yeast heas
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  There is 75brl of fermenting capacity and cask racking takes place direct from FV.
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  The peracetic acid trough for implements
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  Two station cask washer by AB(UK)
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  E casks are a useful way to market as you do not have to worry about getting the empties back
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  The brewery effluent tank is emptied every three weeks
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  The rear entrance to the brewery
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  One of the brewery vans
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  Another van telling us 'you will get a liking for Viking'
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  Current proprietor is Craig Lee who joined in 1995 and gradually bought out the original partners to become sole owner in 200