WEST, on Glasgow Green, is celebrating its 15th anniversary, having become a vital part of the city’s hospitality scene.

WEST 15th anniversary
Getting set to celebrate: left to right are WEST head brewer, Simon Roberts, founder Petra Wetzel, and Glasgow North East Food Bank volunteer driver, John McCusker. Photograph: Elaine Livingstone

Originally conceived as a nod to an authentic Bavarian beerhall with attached microbrewery, today WEST is home to two production breweries. There is also a unique and airy dog- and child-friendly restaurant and bar, with arguably Glasgow’s best beer garden.

WEST has been brewing in accordance with the German purity law (the Reinheitsgebot, which dates back to 1516) since its inception. It 2016 it added a dedicated events space, The Courtyard, which has seen it play host to many memorable events.

The same year WEST also opened its second production brewery, which increased brewing capacity tenfold and which has allowed the brewery to supply more than 1,000 pubs, bars, and restaurant UK wide with draught lagers, ales, and wheat beers.

Now it is celebrating its anniversary by launching the WEST Brewery Birthday Box — a beerhall dining and beer experience for two. If you want to join the fun early, they are celebrating on 10th March with a Facebook Live beer tasting event.

Authentic beerhall experience

Brewery founder, Petra Wetzel, said: “The Beerhall Birthday Box is an authentic Bavarian beerhall dining experience with four classic German dishes, available as a meat, a vegetarian and a vegan option, all accompanied with six of WEST’s top vegan beers. And what makes it special is that £5 from every box go to our local food bank.

“The WEST team racked their brains on how to safely celebrate a big milestone birthday with an appropriate celebration during a pandemic lockdown, so executive chef, Joanne Munro, and head brewer, Simon Roberts, put their heads together and came up with The WEST Brewery Birthday Box Beerhall Experience for two!”

Petra added: “One in four children in Glasgow go to bed hungry, and one in five households are living below the poverty line. Our beloved hospitality industry has been decimated during the lockdown, which has put many businesses at the brink of collapse. However, we are well aware that many families do not even qualify for the government’s furlough scheme and are struggling on Universal Credit.

Petra Wetzel beerhall
Petra Wetzel in the WEST beerhall. Photograph: Elain Livingstone

“We therefore wanted to make sure that our Birthday Box celebrations also provide food for many in our immediate neighbourhood. That is why £5 from the price of every Birthday Box will go to the Glasgow North East Food Bank in the Calton.”

John McCusker, a volunteer driver for the food bank, said: “This is very generous and it will certainly help many in need. Last year we fed 5,000 families, and this year, even more.

“It might sound a wee bit cheeky, but if WEST customers who are coming to collect their Birthday Boxes could maybe bring down a food bank food donation and leave it with WEST… that would be really magic!”

Executive chef, Joanne Munro, said: “It was quite a challenge to pair four great German dishes with our award-winning beers and ensure the beer suits a meat, however I am really delighted with the results. I wanted to make sure that everyone could manage the easy-to-follow instructions for each of the four delicious dishes at home, and enjoy the online beer tasting with Simon’s chosen beers.

“Our founder, Petra, who is not renowned for her cooking skills, trialled the vegetarian box for us last week, and if she can follow my instructions, anyone can!”

Diverse range of beers

Head brewer, Simon Roberts, chose six beers to make sure that there was a diverse range to enjoy. He said: “This line-up illustrates the story of WEST. Over these six beers we demonstrate malt, hops, and yeast influences. We have beers from our core, discovery, and experimental ranges. We have the beer that has been here since day one, the first release in our WESTwerk range, and our most recent release.

“In short, we have six beers that we are proud of, that offer discussion points and obvious sensory differences for the tasting itself, and with this line-up we can show how proud we are and really celebrate our development!”

Petra added: “In all my years, I never envisaged celebrating a milestone birthday in a pandemic and I know that we will bounce back once the lockdown restrictions allow us to.

“I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to welcoming our customers back, and that’s why we thought of another birthday celebration —  the golden ticket!  As a special surprise, one of our Birthday Boxes will have a golden ticket, which is a brewery tour and dinner for four!”

Join in the celebration

If you would like to join WEST Brewery’s birthday celebration and purchase the Birthday Box Beerhall Experience for two, click here or go to westbeer.com/clickdeliver/ and then click ‘collection’ or ‘delivery’ (delivery is within a seven-mile radius of WEST).The Birthday Box is priced at £65 with the option to add on extra beers and a wee dram. The vegetarian and vegan boxes start at £60.

You can order from today and last orders will be 3pm on Wednesday, 10th March. Delivery and collections from WEST on The Green are available on 12th and 13th March.

For those further away, you can join in the celebration on 10th March with a beer tasting kit. It features five beers, a half-pint WEST tankard, and a 15% off discount code that can be used in the online shop until the end of April 2021. The tasting kit can be ordered from shop.westbeer.com/beer2.html

The Facebook Live event starts 7.30pm on Wednesday, 10th March, and anyone can join in.