London Beer Quest: Redemption Brewery, Tottenham

Dave Haste
By Dave Haste Last edited 165 months ago
London Beer Quest: Redemption Brewery, Tottenham
Andy no longer works in the City. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Andy no longer works in the City. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Beer straight from a conditioning tank. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Beer straight from a conditioning tank. Photo by Jason B. Standing
 Photo by Dave
Photo by Dave
The purple and pink colours were chosen to avoid Redemption’s casks being mistaken for those of any other London brewer. Photo by Jason B. Standing
The purple and pink colours were chosen to avoid Redemption's casks being mistaken for those of any other London brewer. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Andy has to climb inside the conditioning tanks in order to clean them. Photo by Dave
Andy has to climb inside the conditioning tanks in order to clean them. Photo by Dave
Fermentation in the fermenter. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Fermentation in the fermenter. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Using milk bottles to test the effectiveness of the ‘finings’ (a material used to strain out yeast to leave a nice clear liquid). Photo by Dave
Using milk bottles to test the effectiveness of the 'finings' (a material used to strain out yeast to leave a nice clear liquid). Photo by Dave
The main brewery floor. Photo by Dave
The main brewery floor. Photo by Dave
The ‘grist case’. This is where malt is gravity-fed into the ‘mash tun’. So now you know. Photo by Dave
The 'grist case'. This is where malt is gravity-fed into the 'mash tun'. So now you know. Photo by Dave
The inside of the grist case. Photo by Dave
The inside of the grist case. Photo by Dave
Hops, for flavour and aroma. Don’t eat these. Photo by Dave
Hops, for flavour and aroma. Don't eat these. Photo by Dave
The interior of the ‘ice bank’, used to produce ice-cold water to cool down the wort after boiling. Photo by Jason B. Standing
The interior of the 'ice bank', used to produce ice-cold water to cool down the wort after boiling. Photo by Jason B. Standing
Ready-crushed malt. This one tastes quite toasty, with a hint of Digestive biscuit. Another, used in making Urban Dusk, has a sharp coffee taste. Photo by Dave
Ready-crushed malt. This one tastes quite toasty, with a hint of Digestive biscuit. Another, used in making Urban Dusk, has a sharp coffee taste. Photo by Dave
Various vessels as seen from the malt loft: a ‘copper’ in the centre, hot and cold ‘liquor tanks’ to the right and an ‘underback’ to the lower left. A heat exchanger is mounted between the liquor tanks and the copper. Photo by Dave
Various vessels as seen from the malt loft: a 'copper' in the centre, hot and cold 'liquor tanks' to the right and an 'underback' to the lower left. A heat exchanger is mounted between the liquor tanks and the copper. Photo by Dave

Welcome to our ongoing mission to explore what London has to offer the discerning lover of excellent beer - from pubs and retailers that take pride in the quality of their hoppy offerings, to local breweries and beer events. In this instalment we visit one of London’s newest independent breweries…

Andy Moffat has an odd way of describing his job:

“I’m basically a full-time professional cleaner who also brews once a week.”

Andy is being gently facetious. He’s not really a professional cleaner, at least not in the conventional sense. He’s actually the head brewer at Redemption Brewing Company, a new north London brewery. However, as the company’s founder and sole employee, he is also the cleaner. And the delivery driver. And just about everything else.

He’s not joking about his cleaning commitments being full-time though. When we walk into the brewery - a unit in an industrial estate slightly north of Tottenham Hale - the first thing we notice after the slightly heady smell of fermentation is the size of the equipment. Various massive stainless steel containers with impressive names such as ‘hot liquor tank’, ‘copper’ and ‘mash tun’ are dotted around the unit, linked by an array of pipework. The stuff that happens in these vessels is certainly messy, but before that stuff begins every week, the equipment needs to be spotlessly clean. That’s a lot of scrubbing for one man.

We are handed a couple of pints of beer straight from one of the massive conditioning tanks - a very well-balanced pale ale that we could happily spend an evening with. We know from pleasant experience that Redemption also produces an excellent darker ale, known as Urban Dusk, but as a more wintery brew this is not in evidence during our visit. Andy mentions that he has been considering producing a third ale to tie in with the Redemption’s home, speculatively named ‘Tottenham Hop Spur’. With puns like that, it’s quite clear that Andy is also Redemption’s head of marketing.

Redemption’s first ever brew was produced almost exactly six months ago. Before that there were several months of construction to install the necessary drainage, cooling and hygiene arrangements to turn the industrial unit into a brewery - a process that is documented on the brewery’s now-dormant blog. Now that the space is filled with arcane containers and odd equipment it has become, whilst certainly not ‘messy’, about as ‘busy’ as you might imagine a one-man brewing operation could be. Empty casks, measuring jugs, hydrometers, thermometers, fearsome-looking tools and ladies’ tights filled with spent malt are liberally distributed around the area.

A couple of years ago, Andy’s job was a very different one - working for a bank in the City. When asked about his change in career direction, he talks about his love for beer, recognition of what he calls “the beer renaissance” (where properly-crafted beers are becoming ever more popular) and his desire to “actually make something”. He notes that there are few (if any) independent brewers in north London, effectively leaving the door open for him to do his thing in Tottenham. As we look around the stainless steel vats, the tools, the casks, the pipes, the bags of malt and the boxes of hops, we start to suspect that we are looking at Andy’s dream.

Redemption currently produces about 2,800 pints of ale every week, most of which are dispatched to various pubs around London. We would certainly recommend trying Redemption’s beers if you ever come across them.

If you’re interested in hunting down a pint of Redemption ale, they regularly supply The Pineapple (Kentish Town), The Charles Lamb (Islington), The Bree Louise (Euston) and various other pubs that serve independently-brewed beer.

Last Updated 17 June 2010