Little Black Dog Beer Company Ltd, Carlton Towers, North Yorkshire.

Our background

After taking a "short" respite from homebrewing back in the 1980's we rekindled our love for homebrewing once again in 2010. Initially the family built a small all grain brewing system in the home garage, we then had the chance to re-locate the "family brewery" to Carlton Towers.

At the time, we simply wanted to brew the beers we loved to drink, some traditional ales and some new style ales but finding them was proving to be a challenge. Real Ales have been enjoyed in every great beer brewing nation for centuries, yet in recent years drinking real ale had gone out of fashion in the UK and the range of choice had become somewhat restricted.

We set out to brew the classic real ale styles from England, Europe including Germany and Belgium, as well as exploring how real ales from the U.S.A, Australia, New Zealand and other blossoming beer nations are transforming beer drinkers expectations. It’s proving one thing to us, that beer drinkers like these choice options, and we promise to give them that.

We are still fundamentally a small brewery whose beers are inspired by the history, character and flavour of traditional styles but we like to add some modern twists. We brew and package all of our beer at our brewery and use traditional brewing methods and ingredients to produce our crafted beers. We like to think that the terms Real Ale and Craft Beer are interchangeable.

We pride ourselves on brewing beers that are packed full of flavour. Our beers are 100% handmade using traditional brewing methods alongside some modern day practices.

We are unpasteurised, unfiltered & unfined, meaning our beer is vegan friendly & chemical free.

Whether it's "real" or "craft" it's just good, freshly brewed beer.

The family

Little Black Dog consists of 4 family members; Nigel (Dad), Christine (Mum), Emily (Daughter), Jordan (Son).

The majority of the brewing is done by Nigel and Jordan. Jordan is our resident 'core beer brewer' and enjoys brewing beers that will consistently be in stock. These are anything from a bold, hoppy APA right through to a deliciously creamy Yorkshire stout.

Nigel is our resident 'limited edition brewer' and enjoys brewing beers that are likely to be limited edition & smaller in batch size. These are anything from a lemon meringue pie ale right through to a chilli-chocolate stout.

Christine is the brewery assistant, an extra pair of hands in the brewery and venue oberfuhrer. Whether it's gathering & weighing ingredients to bottling & delivering, she'll always be busy somewhere, doing something to help the brewery run as smoothly as possible whilst keeping an eye on the venues too .

Emily assists in the brewery in between managing the admin side of the business. She creates all of our beer labels & pump clips, promotional

artwork, manages our social media platforms & website along with being the first point of call for the brewery.

Both Christine & Emily are consistently developing their brewing skills and are actively training up on the brewing equipment with the hope of brewing independently in the near future.

All in all, we're just a small family team, trying to make a big difference to the local beer drinking scene; One beer at a time!

The name "little black dog"

We often get asked where the name 'Little Black Dog Beer Company' came from. It's all down to Casper, our family pet. Our Patterdale Terrier whose character was big, bold, fiesty and all consuming. Just like some of our favourite craft beers!

Our very own 'little black dog', sadly no longer with us but he will always be part of our family & now our brewery.

The Brewhouse & Tap

Our family brewery is located in the grounds of Carlton Towers, North Yorkshire. Our small brewery was originally located directly behind the stately home in the Old Coach House.

The new brewhouse and taproom has located to new purpose refurbished building situated off Main Street in Carlton village. The new brewery is now sited in a barn that was originally used to house livestock for Duddings Farm, one of Carltons oldest farming family homes.

The barn comprises of the current brewhouse together with a large tap area located in the brewhouse itself. The tap will feature live music events each week and also offer a range of street food from visiting vendors.

We also have a meeting room that is available to hire for private events