Ale's well at brewery's 'outdoor off-licence'
A brewery has created a special 'open-air off-licence' so customers can still pick up their favourite ales during the lockdown
Enville Ales, near Stourbridge, has set up a 'no contact' collection point where customers can pick up their beer without having to make contact with anybody else.
Brewery manager Helen Briggs said it had been a huge success, with up to 200 customers visiting the site in the South Staffordshire countryside every week.
Customers can telephone the brewery with their order, and pay by debit card, and then collect their beer at an allotted time from an outdoor table where it will be left.
Mrs Briggs said while overall sales had fallen by about 70 per cent since the coronavirus outbreak, the new system had at least helped the brewery to carry on trading.
She said the number of members of the public calling to buy beer direct from the brewery had grown considerably since the measures were put in place, particularly in the run-up to Father's Day.
"We've always been open to anybody who wants to come and collect their beer direct from us, but before the outbreak it was mainly trade customers, and the odd person who has got a special function or party on," she said.
"We used to see maybe one or two people a day coming into our little office, but since we have had 20 or 30 people coming in every day, maybe more. We are extremely grateful to all our customers who have continued to support us.
"We hope, now that they have found us, they will continue to come to us."
