CRAFT beer maker Black Isle Brewing Co has sealed its first export deal to Japan and secured a further listing in Sweden.
An initial batch of organic Scottish beer, around 38,000 bottles featuring a variety of tipples from the Munlochy brewery, is being shipped in a container to a Japanese distributor called Liquor Land.
From there it will go into cities around the country including Tokyo and Hiroshima plus specialist craft beer and microbrewery bars.
David Gladwin, managing director of Black Isle, said: "We received an email from an importer looking for an organic beer.
"We think it came about through someone in his embassy who told him about us.
"So there is now a container of 22 pallets going out which is quite exciting.
"We haven't been out to Japan yet but if things go as we expect we will have to go across."
The company has also won a special listing in Sweden, where it sold 130,000 bottles last year, to coincide with the traditional Oktoberfest beer celebration.
The Swedish government alcohol monopoly called Systembolaget tendered for beers to go into the system for the weeks surrounding the event and Black Isle was successful.
Mr Gladwin said: "We entered one called Jocktoberfest into the tender and won the listing which is nice. So that will be 15,000 more bottles across September and October.
"It also coincides with our own Jocktoberfest celebration at the brewery in September.
"Exports will add about 10% to the business this year."
Black Isle, based near Inverness and founded in 1998, brought its £1 million brewhouse into operation last year which increased capacity for production and bottling.
It also began exporting for the first time in 2011 with Sweden followed by Italy, Switzerland and Finland.
Export sales alongside a strong performance in the UK helped it to grow around 50%.
Mr Gladwin said there had been no noticeable decline in performance during 2012 in spite of the uncertain economic conditions.
He added: "There is an increasing demand for craft beer and quality products.
"People know a lot more about beers now and are willing to go to the outlets they need to get it.
"But there are also more craft breweries which means it is a very competitive market.
"We have to play to our strengths with quality ingredients and that brand of the Highlands and Scotland which is very strong."
As part of its sustainability ethos the brewery installed a biomass system from Fort William based HWEnergy last year.
It has since brewed a special batch of beer – called Wood Fuelled Fury – for HWEnergy.
Mr Gladwin added: "We are always looking at ways of improving. We use our own barley, our own water and our own yeast to make organic beer.
"The spent grains from the ash tun is then fed to our native breed sheep who then eat the weeds and fertilise the ground to grow more barley for brewing.
"What they can't eat is then composted with straw, hops, cardboard, the ash from the wood burner and other waste from the brewery to add as a soil conditioner to the land."
Abbreviated accounts for the year to April 30, 2011 showed an increase in the profit and loss account from £97,165 to £177,523.
Black Isle's beers include Yellowhammer, Red Kite, Porter, Goldeneye and Heather Honey.
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