We absolutely love a bit of collaboration here at Apex Brewing Co. As a small independent British brewery, we’re all about championing other masters of the Indie beer movement. So I was super stoked to get the low-down from our R&D brewer Russ Sykes on his brewing journey and background.

His innovative and unique approach has led to some truly epic beers (wasp's nest yeast anyone?!) so I just had to quiz him to find out more!
Here he gives me the low down on his path into the business, his ethos and methodologies, and his encounter with marauding terrorists.

Trust me, this interview really is a wild ride!

Hi Russ! Thanks so much for joining us for a bit of a grilling. First things first... can you share your journey into brewing and how you started out at wild Beer Co?

I first had the idea to train as a brewer as a teenager, but somehow or another I ended up going down a different career path. When I relocated to Dorset 20 years later, I took the opportunity for a fresh start, and again began to wonder what it would be like to be a brewer. I contacted Wild Beer to ask if I could spend the day with them to find out. To my surprise, I left with a job - as a brewer’s assistant. Over the next 8 years I progressed to Lead Brewer and manager of their second brewery site – brewing over 120 different beers along the way.

Wow, that's a pretty impressive start! When it comes to brewing, what is your approach to creativity?

I’ve always been intrigued by how things work and what would happen if these things were worked differently. I’ve heard brewing described as a mixture of science and creativity, and breweries categorised as to where they sit on a spectrum between the two – on one side technically perfect, consistent, efficient mass-produced beers and on the other one-off specials, using innovative raw material choices and processes to extract the best from these.

Much of my interest comes from taking a creative approach to the science aspect and exploring whether brewing and fermentation can be worked differently. Beers without hops, without water, without gluten, and with yeast from a wasp’s nest. Beers made without boiling, without industrial wort cooling systems, without temperature control and sanitised steel vessels. There’s so much to see and learn by straying off the path once in a while. And much of that learning can be applied to improve mainstream production.

Efficiency is increasingly important - how do you incorporate that into a brewery?

I’d rather talk about when efficiency should be incorporated. Safety is paramount – for the people working to make the beer and those drinking it. After safety comes quality, then consistency, and finally efficiency. There are many ways to increase efficiency, but there’s little point making more beer, if it’s not good beer.

What is the most special beer you have created and why?

My favourite beer was Esno, an apricot-infused pale ale fermented with a single strain of yeast, isolated from a wasp’s nest. It took over a year to develop and I learned a lot about microbiology (and wasps) along the way. After multiple trials of different isolated yeast strains, I found one that worked and brought a unique honey character to the beer. From a single isolated yeast cell, I propagated enough to make around two and a half thousand litres of beer. I’m obviously biased, but it tasted pretty good too.

Russ playing with fire!

That sounds amazing! What was a memorable collaboration brew?

In the twenty years it took me to take the plunge and become a brewer, I worked with young people experiencing homelessness – delivering, researching and developing services. Part of this involved setting up and running different social enterprises. A few years into my brewing career I learned of Tap Social and Ignition– two social enterprise breweries working to change the lives of people in their communities. Over the next two years we collaborated with both and encouraged our friends in other breweries to do the same. There’s a real community amongst brewers and it was great to see these breweries integrated within this.

I love that - we're all about collaboration and community here at Apex Brewing Co. What advice would you give me?

Give your brewery a personality and values, and be consistent with these. Get involved with communities – your local community and the community of brewers. Share what you know and seek out opportunities to learn from others. Focus on safety, quality and consistency. And don’t forget to have fun.

Brilliant advice. Now, what exciting projects have you got coming up?

Since leaving Wild Beer Co I’ve worked as a freelance trainer and apprenticeship assessor. This role is growing and evolving, but also allows me freedom to explore new projects. I’m enjoying watching Apex develop and it’s great to be able to provide a helping hand – setting up quality and lab procedures and supporting research and new product development.

And we are thrilled to have you on board! Final question - what activities do you enjoy outside of brewing?

I’ve recently joined an acting group, which is definitely outside of my comfort zone. We provide casualties for training exercises, and so far I’ve been rescued from marauding terrorists, cut out of a crashed car, and strapped to a stretcher and lowered down the steps of a double decker bus. And I’m gradually learning to do my own makeup.

Woah, that definitely is something different! Thanks so much for coming to the farm today to chat all things ale, Russ. I'm looking forward to more collaborations and community projects of our own in the future.