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The Story of The Twt Beech Tree
In the lovely Welsh market town of Cowbridge lies Twt Park (the ‘w’ is pronounced like the ‘oo' in book), enjoyed by generations of children and adults alike over the years as a glorious place to play and pass the time.
Until February this year Twt Park was presided over by the Twt Beech, a magnificent tree estimated at over 230 years old, planted around 1770, the time that the town’s famous former resident, Iolo Morganwg, would have been strolling about. To what it has borne witness, we shall never know. If only trees could talk…
Anyhow, for all that time, people have enjoyed its shade, leaned against it, carved their loves into it, sat in it – we’ll leave the rest to your imagination. But a lot has happened to this tree in recent times, too.
Worried that its age might make it unsafe to those enjoying the park, an x-ray was commissioned and, sure enough, the insides weren’t looking great. Reluctantly, the decision was made to take it down, for the safety of all.
Happily, it doesn’t end there. As the Twt Beech Project beautifully put it, this is the life of a tree after the life of a tree. A local artisan or two asked for a bit to work with and before we knew it, everyone was celebrating the long, lustrous life of this wonderful tree, turning it into other things. See some of the amazing stories, here.
We got in on the act and we’ve made a celebratory beech beer from it – it’s delicious. A super pale lager with woody notes, a sharp citrus attack and a lovely summery grapefruit aroma. The first taste was made available at Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival on May 27th & 28th 2018.
We've since re-named the beer as Iolo so look out for Iolo Beechwood Lager at our events this summer!
PS Here's a picture of Rob looking unnecessarily pleased with himself.
The Story of The Twt Beech Tree
In the lovely Welsh market town of Cowbridge lies Twt Park (the ‘w’ is pronounced like the ‘oo' in book), enjoyed by generations of children and adults alike over the years as a glorious place to play and pass the time.
Until February this year Twt Park was presided over by the Twt Beech, a magnificent tree estimated at over 230 years old, planted around 1770, the time that the town’s famous former resident, Iolo Morganwg, would have been strolling about. To what it has borne witness, we shall never know. If only trees could talk…
Anyhow, for all that time, people have enjoyed its shade, leaned against it, carved their loves into it, sat in it – we’ll leave the rest to your imagination. But a lot has happened to this tree in recent times, too.
Worried that its age might make it unsafe to those enjoying the park, an x-ray was commissioned and, sure enough, the insides weren’t looking great. Reluctantly, the decision was made to take it down, for the safety of all.
Happily, it doesn’t end there. As the Twt Beech Project beautifully put it, this is the life of a tree after the life of a tree. A local artisan or two asked for a bit to work with and before we knew it, everyone was celebrating the long, lustrous life of this wonderful tree, turning it into other things. See some of the amazing stories, here.
We got in on the act and we’ve made a celebratory beech beer from it – it’s delicious. A super pale lager with woody notes, a sharp citrus attack and a lovely summery grapefruit aroma. The first taste was made available at Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival on May 27th & 28th 2018.
We've since re-named the beer as Iolo so look out for Iolo Beechwood Lager at our events this summer!
PS Here's a picture of Rob looking unnecessarily pleased with himself.
We have joined Discover Delicious
The new purveyors of all things delicious from Wales have welcomed us to their online store, where you can now go online and buy:
- A Variety Case including a mix of 12 ales for £39
- A Case of Rosemary Ale, our first and most popular ale for £39
- Make your own Celebration Beer Experience for £120 - £360
Find out more here
Christmas with Tomos a Lilford
We'll be opening every Thursday, Friday and Saturday in December for you to stock up on stocking fillers.
On Saturday 16 December You should also join us and El Chilango Cocina Mexicana for our Festive Street Food Special supporting #ElisLegacyFund and @tyhafan #FatherChristmas
Open 1pm - 1pm
Vist Santa 2pm - 5pm
To find us click here
Tomos a Lilford brewery celebrate Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival with launch of new limited edition beers
Tomos a Lilford Brewery have announced that they have developed three new limited edition beers, which will be available to the public for the first time at the Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival (28-29 May 2017).
The new exciting, experimental beers, add to the brewery’s existing range of 9 popular ales. The brewery’s ethos of collaboration, local ingredients, Welsh themes and adventure have been taken to new heights with the Maté Sour, Quince Charming and Soaked Oak.
The first, Maté Sour, uses Yerba Maté tea to create a gently-soured pale ale. At 5.1%, the short batch experiment using wild yeasts, allows nature to ferment the beer and create a more complex taste - taking the popular Gaucho Beer, developed in 2015 to celebrate 100 years of Wales’ relationship with Patagonia, to a new level.
The second, Quince Charming (6.8%), has been brewed in collaboration with the Elephant and Bun Delicatessen in Cowbridge, who approached the brewery to create a beer to partner with their range of cheeses. A Belgian style beer with a subtle hint of orchard fruit and slightly smokey undertone, the ruby ale has been brewed with quince. Jack from the Elephant and Bun recommends pairing the beer with Lampeter’s Hafod or Old Winchester cheeses.
The third, Soaked Oak (4.3%), created in collaboration with the award-winning Dà Mhìle distillery, has been aged in gin–soaked barrels for a year. The cucumber pale ale has developed in a barrel with a bloodline of American Bourbon (3 years), Dà Mhìle single grain organic whisky (14 years) and Dà Mhìle Oak Barrel aged gin (12 months).
Guests at the Cowbridge Food Festival will be able to taste and buy the beers at stand number M23 between 9am and 5:30 on the 28 and 29 May.
Beers on draft include OPA, Hay, Annwyl and Gaucho and bottles on sale will include Gaucho, OPA, Maté Sour and the brewery’s first creation – Rosemary.
“It is great to be back at our 4th Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival, which offered us our first opportunity to share our adventures in beer with the unsuspecting public,” said brewery director Rolant Tomos.
Tomos a Lilford Brewery have announced that they have developed three new limited edition beers, which will be available to the public for the first time at the Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival (28-29 May 2017).
The new exciting, experimental beers, add to the brewery’s existing range of 9 popular ales. The brewery’s ethos of collaboration, local ingredients, Welsh themes and adventure have been taken to new heights with the Maté Sour, Quince Charming and Soaked Oak.
The first, Maté Sour, uses Yerba Maté tea to create a gently-soured pale ale. At 5.1%, the short batch experiment using wild yeasts, allows nature to ferment the beer and create a more complex taste - taking the popular Gaucho Beer, developed in 2015 to celebrate 100 years of Wales’ relationship with Patagonia, to a new level.
The second, Quince Charming (6.8%), has been brewed in collaboration with the Elephant and Bun Delicatessen in Cowbridge, who approached the brewery to create a beer to partner with their range of cheeses. A Belgian style beer with a subtle hint of orchard fruit and slightly smokey undertone, the ruby ale has been brewed with quince. Jack from the Elephant and Bun recommends pairing the beer with Lampeter’s Hafod or Old Winchester cheeses.
The third, Soaked Oak (4.3%), created in collaboration with the award-winning Dà Mhìle distillery, has been aged in gin–soaked barrels for a year. The cucumber pale ale has developed in a barrel with a bloodline of American Bourbon (3 years), Dà Mhìle single grain organic whisky (14 years) and Dà Mhìle Oak Barrel aged gin (12 months).
Guests at the Cowbridge Food Festival will be able to taste and buy the beers at stand number M23 between 9am and 5:30 on the 28 and 29 May.
Beers on draft include OPA, Hay, Annwyl and Gaucho and bottles on sale will include Gaucho, OPA, Maté Sour and the brewery’s first creation – Rosemary.
“It is great to be back at our 4th Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival, which offered us our first opportunity to share our adventures in beer with the unsuspecting public,” said brewery director Rolant Tomos.
Tap House Opening - Agor Ty Tap
Our tap house is open on the first Saturday of every month.
Come over to taste the whole range of our beers and a few new ones we're working on.
Our aim is to create a relaxed atmosphere - no TV, no beard-stroking, family-friendly - a nice place to sup a pint.
We'll also be opening the bottle shop on Monday, Tuesday and Friday for you to stock up on your favourite beers.
We look forward to seeing you.
Our tap house is open on the first Saturday of every month.
Come over to taste the whole range of our beers and a few new ones we're working on.
Our aim is to create a relaxed atmosphere - no TV, no beard-stroking, family-friendly - a nice place to sup a pint.
We'll also be opening the bottle shop on Monday, Tuesday and Friday for you to stock up on your favourite beers.
We look forward to seeing you.
There's a new street food pop up in the Vale of Glamorgan If your idea of food heaven on the weekend is supping some decent craft beer and wolfing down an artisan pizza, then you'll be thrilled with the news of a new pop-up event. Tomos a Lilford brewery are launching a series of Street Food Saturdays, on which they team up with foodie guests. Read more here |
28 Brilliant Welsh beers you need to start drinking now
Drop what you are doing now - and pop down the pub, advice from Wales Online - and our Rosemary Ale is no.27! See more here |
New Slow Food Group launches in Vale of Glamorgan
The group want to encourage people to think about their food and choose tasty, nutritious food from sustainable, local sources. Members of the group will be able to take part in a wide range of Slow Food activities like meetings with guest speakers, campaigns on certain issues, awareness-raising programmes and diverse events. Read more here |
Tomos a Lilford become local food champions
Away from the coast, the geology of this region has produced a rolling, fertile landscape with a mild climate, known as the 'Garden of Cardiff'. Find out more about the Vale of Glamorgan Local Food Champions here |
Osian has a boot full
Osian, from Tafwyl, came to collect the 162 special edition ales for their VIP guests attending the one day festival on the 12th of July at Cardiff Castle. We look forward to hearing which of their guests enjoyed it the most! Don't forget you can taste the Tafwyl Ale from the Syched Bar all day! |
Potelu ar gyfer Tafwyl
Fflat owt yn llenwi a photelu cwrw tafwyl. Fydd y cwrw arbennig hwn ar gael ar ddrafft yng Ngwyl Tafwyl yng Nghastell Caerdydd Dydd Sadwrn 12fed.
Mi fyddwn ni hefyd yn son am sut i fragu cwrw. Os ydych chi am wybod yr holl gyfrinachau dewch draw am 4.00pm. Manylion yma
Fflat owt yn llenwi a photelu cwrw tafwyl. Fydd y cwrw arbennig hwn ar gael ar ddrafft yng Ngwyl Tafwyl yng Nghastell Caerdydd Dydd Sadwrn 12fed.
Mi fyddwn ni hefyd yn son am sut i fragu cwrw. Os ydych chi am wybod yr holl gyfrinachau dewch draw am 4.00pm. Manylion yma
Read some of the coverage in the press about our launch
1st July Buzz Magazine Launch of new brewery (page 30)
18th June Western Mail School-run dads start beer business
16th June Insider Media Vale of Glamorgan brewery unveils new look
15th June Radio Wales Country Focus programme (listen and go to 24 minutes in)
1st July Buzz Magazine Launch of new brewery (page 30)
18th June Western Mail School-run dads start beer business
16th June Insider Media Vale of Glamorgan brewery unveils new look
15th June Radio Wales Country Focus programme (listen and go to 24 minutes in)
Invitation to the Official Launch of Tomos a Lilford Brewery
Rolant Tomos and brothers Rob and Jim Lilford, founders of an exciting new brewery in the Vale of Glamorgan
have pleasure in inviting you to their official launch at the Old Swan Inn, Llantwit Major on:
Saturday 21st June 2014, at 2pm
The trio would be delighted if you could join them to celebrate the launch of their brewery and are excited to share with you their experiences of delving into a new industry right here on the Glamorgan Heritage coast in Llantwit Major.
Llantwit Major will be a hive of activity on the 21st June as it also plays host to the Summer Fayre. We hope that you are able to come along and enjoy a great day out. Please could you confirm your attendance by Wed 18th June by following the link here
Rolant Tomos and brothers Rob and Jim Lilford, founders of an exciting new brewery in the Vale of Glamorgan
have pleasure in inviting you to their official launch at the Old Swan Inn, Llantwit Major on:
Saturday 21st June 2014, at 2pm
The trio would be delighted if you could join them to celebrate the launch of their brewery and are excited to share with you their experiences of delving into a new industry right here on the Glamorgan Heritage coast in Llantwit Major.
Llantwit Major will be a hive of activity on the 21st June as it also plays host to the Summer Fayre. We hope that you are able to come along and enjoy a great day out. Please could you confirm your attendance by Wed 18th June by following the link here
Where you can find us - Summer 2014
5th - 7th June: Great Welsh Beer and Cider Festival, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
21st June: TOMOS A LILFORD OFFICIAL LAUNCH EVENT, The Old Swan, Llantwit Major
4th - 6th July Beyond the Border - Wales International Storytelling Festival, St Donats, Vale of Glamorgan
12th July: Tafwyl, Cardiff Castle, Cardiff
13th August: Vale of Glamorgan Agricultural Show Food Court
6th - 7th Sept: St Fagans Food Festival (TBC)
5th - 7th June: Great Welsh Beer and Cider Festival, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
21st June: TOMOS A LILFORD OFFICIAL LAUNCH EVENT, The Old Swan, Llantwit Major
4th - 6th July Beyond the Border - Wales International Storytelling Festival, St Donats, Vale of Glamorgan
12th July: Tafwyl, Cardiff Castle, Cardiff
13th August: Vale of Glamorgan Agricultural Show Food Court
6th - 7th Sept: St Fagans Food Festival (TBC)
