A charity beer named after Cornwall’s favourite rugby son, Jack Nowell, has raised more than £6,000 for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution charity (RNLI).
Over 100,000 pints of the Cousin Jack ale raised £6,350.40 for the RNLI through the St Austell Brewery Charitable Trust.
The traditional Cornish pale ale, which was crafted on St Austell Brewery’s small batch plant, launched in January to coincide with the start of the Six Nations Rugby tournament, with 5p from every pint going to the RNLI.
Jack, who was recently named in the squad for the forthcoming British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand, became St Austell Brewery’s Charitable Trust ambassador in 2016. His father is a trawlerman and the family have had a close connection with their local Penlee RNLI lifeboat for many years.
Jack said: “A big thank you to everyone who enjoyed a pint of Cousin Jack. It’s a great amount raised for the RNLI through the Charitable Trust. Thanks to this success I hope we can make it a yearly event.”
Hugely successful
Ellie Walker, community fundraising manager at the RNLI, added: “The RNLI is delighted that St Austell Brewery and Jack Nowell have supported the charity in such a fantastic way. The Cousin Jack beer has been hugely successful and an enjoyable venture for everyone.
“Jack is a great ambassador for the RNLI and St Austell Brewery. We’re very lucky to have their support and we’re very much looking forward to working with them again in the future.”
The ale, which was sold in pubs throughout the Westcountry, sold over double the amount anticipated by the brewery.
Martin Breading, national sales director at St Austell Brewery, said: “We were delighted when Jack chose to support the RNLI through the Cousin Jack beer, and the success of it has been phenomenal. The sales far exceeded our expectations and we hope to do something similar next year to continue raising money for charities through our charitable trust.”
The funds from the beer will be used for vital training and equipping the RNLI’s volunteer crews. Ellie added: “The £6,350.40 raised is truly phenomenal and will directly support the RNLI’s life-saving work in the South West.”
