GCHQ: THE BREWERY
We think life’s too short not to enjoy what you do, so we decided to brew. First and foremost we brew beer for you to enjoy. But we also think the art and science of brewing is fascinating so we’re going to share that with you.
We’re interested in creating good chemistry in its broadest sense – not just in the quality of the beer we brew, but using that to allow us to celebrate community and relationships across science, the arts, music, food, and social experiences, as well as beer & brewing. We might be biased, but we think Bristol is one of the best cities in the UK, and we’ll shout about that as much as we can.
The brewery was started by Bob and Kelly in 2015, finding a home for our 10 barrel kit in St Philips in East Bristol. Our team now comprises Dan, originally brought in to run the brewery tap in April 2018 and now responsible for social media and design work, head of engineering Liam who takes care of our deliveries and packaging, brewers extraordinaire Elliot and Ed, lightening the load for Bob and getting stuck into the canning line, our head of sales Will and sales representative Jim, making their way around Bristol in a heroic attempt to meet every single publican, and finally Lorin, keeping everything running smoothly with a calm and measured eye over the brewery and all its operations.
We also have our teams at our award-winning pub, The Good Measure in Redland, and our newest pub, the Kings Head in central Bristol. Hear Kelly and Bob chatting with the Hop Forward podcast about becoming the new custodians of the Kings Head here.
It’s important to us to be open, accessible and inclusive, and ensure thoughtfulness and quality in everything we do. That’s why we pay a living wage as minimum and all of our beers are unfined, unfiltered and naturally hazy, so they’re suitable for vegans. We also want to have FUN doing this, and we want you along for the ride!
Our brewery tap in Bristol hasn’t re-opened for 2023 (see blog for details) except for East Bristol Brewery Trail in April and August. You can pick up cans direct from the brewery between Mondays & Fridays 10am-5pm. We opened our first pub, The Good Measure in Redland, just before Christmas 2018 and sister pub, the Kings Head in central Bristol, in November 2022 (see our blog). In both venues you’re able to try our best, newest, freshest and one-off beers alongside a great selection of other fantastic breweries and not-beer, with the best customer service, all year round. We look forward to seeing you – cheers!
BOB: THE BREWER
Bob’s a bit of a beer geek. He wasn’t always like that – homebrewing is to blame. In fact, he spent years doing temp jobs just to fund his brewing experiments before finally going for a job at Great Western Brewing. His application? Some bottles of his homebrew. Needless to say, they hired him on the spot. After GWB, Bob worked for the renowned Wiper & True where he put his excellent taste to good work. Bob enjoys making big, hoppy beers but is also looking forward to introducing you to some more under-represented styles.
Whatever he is brewing, music plays a big role in the process. Soul, Electro, Disco and steel drums covers of Barry Manilow classics will all feature on the brewery stereo.
When not at the brewery, you’ll find Bob: homebrewing, reading brewing books, listening to brewing podcasts, or watching rugby (Wales, in case you were wondering).
At the brewery, you’ll find Bob: working with our brewers on those marginal gains for improving our beers, cleaning big shiny things, plotting the path of our future brew schedule, and, of course, brewing our beers.
Read about his Bristol favourites on Bristol 24/7 here
KELLY: THE BREWSTER
Kelly’s got a brain for business. It comes from her entrepreneurial parents and led her to create dynamic, innovative ventures such as summer favourite The Festival Elderflower Company (perfect for when you’ve had too much beer).
Brewing is a new one for Kelly though, and she’s having fun learning beer under Bob’s guidance. Studying the styles, learning the language and getting insight into the industry to ensure Good Chemistry has great business practices as well as great tasting beers.
When not at the brewery, you’ll find Kelly: cycling up and down Gloucester Road, or at festivals in the summer months and pubs with bands the rest of the year.
At the brewery, you’ll find Kelly: elbow-deep in spreadsheets, planning the many and varied events we love putting on, ensuring our teams both at the brewery and the pubs are happy, and, of course, brewing our beers.
Hear Kelly talking about navigating GCB through the pandemic on the Hop Forward podcast (recorded Aug 2020) here and about her She Drinks Beer initiative on A Woman’s Brew podcast (recorded June 2023) here.
Read about her Bristol favourites on Bristol 24/7 here
WHO'S SMART ENOUGH
TO STOCK US?
DID YOU KNOW?
The first ever brewers were in fact women.
They were known as ‘Brewsters’.