THE boss of Scottish brewing firm Innis & Gunn has underlined the potential for expanding the brand in China, as he revealed the company is poised to release the first fruits of a collaboration with a major Irish distiller in key global markets in January.

Innis & Gunn first announced its move into the world’s second biggest economy earlier this year, when it signed a distribution deal for its brand for mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, with Dxcel International.

Dougal Sharp, who founded Innis & Gunn in 2003, said the beer has only been launched in Chinese two cities so far, Shanghai and Beijing, noting that moves to establish itself in the vast market are very much in their infancy. But he said the early signs are encouraging in China for the firm, whose biggest markets are currently the US, Canada, Sweden, the UK and, increasingly, France.

Analysis: Brewer has no plans to part with craft crowd

Mr Sharp, a one-time head brewer at Edinburgh’s Caledonian Brewery, said: “We are particularly pleased with the progress we are making in China. China is obviously an enormous place, but the early signs are that the Innis & Gunn brand is being very well received. People love the taste, and there is a craft beer revolution happening in the cities. It could become a very big market.”

Mr Sharp was commenting just weeks after his company secured a £15 million injection from L Catterton, the US-based private equity firm which also has holdings in consumer goods brands Kettle Foods, Elemis and Pepe Jeans & Hackett. The brewer reiterated that the investment, which saw L Catterton acquire a near 30 per cent stake in the Scottish firm, will accelerate its growth strategy. That includes the roll-out of the Innis & Gunn lager in Scotland, its barrel-aged beers and IPA (India Pale Ale) domestically and internationally, and the expansion of its Beer Kitchen bar estate.

There are currently four Innis & Gunn Beer Kitchens, the most recent – and largest - of which was launched in Glasgow’s Ashton Lane this year, complete with in-outlet brewery. And Mr Sharp revealed the company will begin looking for further sites in Scotland and elsewhere in the UK early next year.

Analysis: Brewer has no plans to part with craft crowd

Asked whether the company had yet seen any benefits from the L Catterton investment and expertise since the partnership was announced in September, Mr Sharp said: “We said at the time that L Catterton were very much up for being part of the team and up for supporting the growth of the business and focusing on the strategy we set out. And they are, in very way that they are able to, helping us. It’s been a brilliant start and we are very excited about the coming 12 months with them and us working in partnership.”

One innovation giving cause for excitement at Innis & Gunn has been the development of its barrel-ageing techniques. The brewer, which has also recently introduced new packaging, has devised two techniques. One involves rum or bourbon barrels being broken into pieces before being toasted. Beer is then circulated through the pieces to take on the barrel flavour. The other method involves putting beer into rum or bourbon barrels to absorb the wood’s flavour. The new barrel-ageing technique has been employed on a collaboration with Tullamore DEW, the Irish whiskey distiller owned by William Grant & Sons. Using Tullamore DEW barrels, the two have teamed up to create a beer called Kindred Spirits, which Mr Sharp said is “absolutely fantastic – it’s just testament to this new technique that we have, and the capability we have in the business”.

The limited-edition Kindred Spirits will be launched in January, before being rolled out widely.

He added: “We have made beers using Irish whiskey barrels before, but not in this collaborative fashion or with Ireland’s second-largest whiskey brand.”

Analysis: Brewer has no plans to part with craft crowd

Meanwhile, Mr Sharp refused to rule out raising further investment through crowdfunding. Innis & Gunn raised £2.4m from nearly 2,000 investors in a campaign launched last November, and Mr Sharp said crowdfunding is effective in forging links with consumers.

“We’ve certainly seen the benefit of crowdfunding,” he said. “Crowdfunding is not just about the money that it raises – it’s about the community it helps you to create and the relationships that then allows you to build.

“We’ve had fantastic success with our crowdfunding community in terms of engaging them in our product design, our packaging design, [and suggesting] some of the new names for our beers.”