We are unbelievably proud to share the fantastic news that last week, our brewery founder Patrick Morton was awarded the Roger Ryman Lifetime Achievement Award at the prestigious Brewers Choice Awards, recognising his immense contribution to the modern beer scene of the UK, and his unique legacy in creating the first (and currently only) Employee Owned brewery in the country. Two of our Co-Owners, Laura and Jim Rangeley, were present to receive the award on his behalf – we knew we’d been shortlisted for Beer of the Year and Brewery of the Year, but this particular accolade was a big (and very wonderful) surprise!
We’ve now presented Pat with his tankard in person (which he was delighted with and filled with beer immediately), and his thank you speech was simply: “Well I certainly can’t do what Spike Milligan did and say I did it all myself!”
Renowned beer writer Melissa Cole, who was one of the judging panel and along with the editor of the Brewers Journal, Tim Sheahan, presented the award, said of Pat’s achievement “Pat’s commitment to providing the local community with a brewery that represents them and to then make it employee-owned means this award is not just deserved, it’s a great example for others to follow.”
We thought the best way to tell the story behind this amazing achievement was to share with you a version of the pitch that we put to the judging panel. We can’t think of a better way to celebrate our first year of employee ownership, or a more fitting accolade for our fantastic founder. Cheers to you, Pat!
As we hope many of you will already be aware, Abbeydale Brewery is a Sheffield based, independent business founded in 1996. In 2024, we became the first and currently only employee owned brewery in the UK. The brewery was sold (as an Employee Ownership Trust) to the 50 members of staff who work at the brewery and our pub, The Rising Sun, by founder Patrick Morton, and his wife Sue – herself also a remarkable figure. Although Pat is now therefore beginning to enjoy a very well-earned retirement (almost – he’s very much still on speed dial whenever anything breaks down, as well as remaining on the Board of Directors, and of course carrying out all important quality control), we really wanted to see his past three decades of ingenuity and passion recognised, and felt he would be an incredibly worthy contender for the Lifetime Achievement Award as a result.
The legacy Pat has trusted us with is one of the largest and most highly regarded breweries in “real ale capital” Sheffield, capable of producing 240 brewers’ barrels per week, employing 25 talented, dedicated members of staff from the local area, and running a successful community pub. The business comes to us, after 29 years of organic growth, in a strong position to continue driving forwards and building on our reputation, despite the significant challenges our industry continues to face. Pat and Sue could have gone down the route of selling the business for likely a much greater sum to a large corporation, as we are seeing happen more and more frequently in the beer world at the moment – but in their own words, “that really wouldn’t have been very Abbeydale”. The decision to instead leave it in the hands of those who know it best – our team – is indicative of Pat’s attitude, trust, and commitment to independence.
Pat hasn’t always worked in the industry, and came to brewing in the early 1990s at the very start of the real ale revival following many years of working in engineering (and a number of homebrewing experiments of varying success!). Pat’s career in beer began with four years at Kelham Island Brewery, where he was instrumental in the creation of many of their recipes including previous Champion Beer of Britain winning beer Pale Rider, before setting out on his own and establishing Abbeydale Brewery almost thirty years ago.
Pat took a hands-on, slightly eccentric approach to building his own business – and it blossomed because of this, at times against all odds. The beer world was a very different place in 1996 – there was no small brewer’s duty relief, very few independent breweries existed and almost all lines were tied. Economically speaking, you could say that it was folly bordering on madness to start a small cask focused brewery… but that’s what Pat did. The kit was cobbled together from four old 5 BBL tanks and, somewhat oddly, some curtain netting, and the first brews were ready to be produced. The fashion at the time was for what Pat refers to as “boring brown beer”, so true to form his first creations were a US hopped pale ale (Moonshine, still far and away our biggest seller) and Black Mass, a Cascade single hopped black IPA. Pioneering the use of new world hops is one example of how Pat has always been either ahead of the curve or willing to embrace new trends – we’re still not entirely sure which!
Pat has instilled in our team the value of education and training. The whole team is encouraged and supported to gain qualifications in the industry such as the GCB, and two of our brewteam are currently working towards their Diploma. It is typical of Pat to enable a brewer with specific interests to receive the investment, training and support required to develop their skills to a point where they have the confidence and knowledge to flourish. A great example of this is our Funk Dungeon barrel ageing and mixed fermentation project, where our brewer Jim was empowered to build the project from scratch, with significant investment into equipment, barrel stock, and continual professional development – resulting (amongst other things!) in Jim being named Brewer of the Year at the Brewers Choice Awards 2024. Pat began by making the beer he wanted to drink, after all, so this spirit is something which has always been integral to us all, and passed down through the entire team. It is this which enables the brewery to still be pushing boundaries almost thirty years after its inception. In Pat’s words – “you stand still, you die”.
Pat and his wife Sue (who joined the business in its early years, bringing a wealth of experience alongside a level headed, methodical approach to balance Pat’s rather more gung ho attitude!) have been a familiar presence at pubs and beer festivals for decades, and are champions of independence, quality and locality, working with small Sheffield businesses for everything from manufacturing our barrel racks to the coffee that keeps the brewery running! Alongside this, they make friends with fellow brewers wherever they go – meaning Abbeydale Brewery have had opportunity to collaborate with a whole host of amazing breweries worldwide, including GABF gold award winners GriffinClaw (Michigan) and NoDa (North Carolina).
We’re known for being a humble bunch who generally fly a little under the radar, getting on with what we do in an understated way – and although we don’t have any grand plans to change that despite it now being all of us “in charge”(!), we’re absolutely thrilled to see Pat’s unrelenting resolve, unfaltering faith, and indefatigable good humour recognised for his outstanding contribution to the beer scene of not just Sheffield, but the UK as a whole.
Thank you to the Brewers Journal for organising the Brewers Choice Awards – judged by a panel of industry experts who share decades of experience between them.
You can always check the Gluten Free status of each of our beers by looking for the logo shown to the left – it is clearly visible on the 
