Eight Degrees returns to bottling

Since its introduction earlier this year, the Re-Turn deposit system for cans has had a number of knock-on effects on the beer market. Several breweries and distributors have expressed frustration with the expense and bureaucracy of the scheme, especially when it comes to limited-run beers.  Today, Eight Degrees launched a new bottled beer range, with the latest special edition being bottled only. They don’t mention the Re-Turn scheme specifically, but it’s not likely to be coincidental that the brewery has begun bottling again now.

From the brewery:

Eight Degrees Brewing has just released its newest beer – Double Irish Double IPA – in bottle format. The independent Irish microbrewery based in Mitchelstown, Co Cork, has taken customer-favourite, Full Irish IPA, packed it with even more hops and amped it up to 7% ABV. It’s big, bold and naturally adventurous. It’s also only available in 500ml bottles.

“This is something that people have asked us for many times over the years,” says founder / owner Cam Wallace. “We started off in 330ml bottles, moved into 440ml cans – with a few limited edition detours to 750ml bottles en route! – and now, with a new bottling line recently installed, our 500ml bottles are out there in the world.”

“The Double Irish DIPA was a natural choice for the 500ml bottle,” adds co-founder / owner Scott Baigent. “We also wanted to showcase a bright and fresh new label design and we’re delighted with the feedback that we’ve been getting from retailers and customers.”

The brewery has also released three other beers from its core range in bottle format with the new label design: Howling Gale Irish Pale Ale, Citra Single Hop IPA and Full Irish IPA. These will also be available in 440ml can format.

It’s been a busy time at Eight Degrees with the release of Déjà vu Hopfenweisse, The Crux Double IPA and Cumulus Lupulus Cloudy IPA over the last eight months, getting back into the beer festival swing of things, opening the brewery for popular Friday afternoon tours and installing a new bottling machine.

“It’s a challenging time across the board for those of us in the independent microbrewery world,” says Baigent. “But we’re happy to be back at Eight Degrees with our fantastic team, focusing on producing a great core range and having fun brewing new beers.”

“The eighteen months where we weren’t working in the brewery just feels like a very strange dream now,” adds Wallace. “It’s good to be back in beer!”