A few years ago, I came across
the bottle of Monty Python’s Holy Grail Ale (4.7%) by Black
Sheep. The beer was a collaboration between the brewery and the Monty Python
team first released in 1999, marked to celebrate the 30th
anniversary of the comedy troupe’s founding. When it came to naming the beer,
they took influence from their film Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), the
title is an obvious play on words given its links to ale. In keeping with theme, the pump clip design
uses Terry Gilliam style illustrations with a group shot of the Python team
from the film standing inside a goblet (aka the Holy Grail). Its promotions
describe it as being tempered over burning witches. Brewery founder Paul
Theakston humorously described it as “a light golden beer with a fresh, zesty
taste and a long crisp bitter finish... goes beautifully with Spam, albatross
or battered herring.” Since its release,
it has become one of Black Sheep’s most popular products, the beer has been
widely sold in supermarkets, it even has its own official beer glass, and
building on its success the brewery has released a slew of beers under the
Python brand.[1]
This beer has a popular following, when the musical Spamalot held a residency
at the Playhouse Theatre, Darlington in 2013, supplies of the beer ran dry
within the first two weeks, this resulted in the brewery having to make emergency
shipments to the theatre, in order to keep the bar stocked. Since the days when
Black Sheep dabbled with the Pythons, a number of other breweries around the UK
have taken influence from the world of cinema when it comes to naming and
producing their beers, from catchphrases to pun filled titles and famous faces
of the silver screen, there is a range of talent out there.
There is a slew of beers out
there named after movie titles, like The 39 Steps (3.9%) – Durham,
influenced by John Buchan’s famous novel and subsequent film adaptions, its ABV
incidentally is 10% of the number 39. Moreover, Close Encounters (4.8%) –
Fyne Ales, is named after Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind
(1977), in reference to the alien crop circles that featured in the film, keeping to the alien theme the brewers appropriately produced it as a wheat beer. Another example of a themed movie inspired
beer is Shot in the Dark (5.5%) – Lincoln Green, although its name highlights
the fact its an American style stout, its release in 2024 coincided with the 60th
anniversary of the film of its namesake. Another beer named after a classic
1960’s film is The Italian Job (4.7%), a collaboration between Rooster’s
and Italian brewers, Birrificio Italiano. A pale ale made with the addition of
black pepper and lemongrass, they named the beer after the classic 1969 film,
taking influence from the plot that deals with a gang of English criminals
travelling to Italy to steal a shipment of gold bullion. The premise of a group
of English brewers working in Italy making a golden ale for the British market is not too dissimilar,
yet a whole lot more legal. While some breweries dabble with one off releases,
Acorn brewery bucked the trend with their Decades series, starting in November
2018 they released a series of six beers celebrating films made between the
1950’s to 2000’s. Every few months they a ran a poll where customers would
submit film names for upcoming releases marking each decade, the winners included
Rear Window (1954), Cool Hand Luke (1967), Every Which Way But Loose (1970),
Short Circuit (1986), GoldenEye (1995) and Dodgeball (2004) respectively.
Another beer inspired by classic of British cinema is Titfield Thunderbolt
(4.2%) – Great Oakley, named after the 1952 film, it features a steam
locomotive on the pump clip. A NEIPA style beer, it was described as a thirst-quenching
delight, brewed with two types of New Zealand hops. Since its release it has
become one of the brewery’s signature products, winning a haul of SIBA Midlands
awards and gongs on the national stage including overall Silver Award in the
National Independent Beer Awards in March 2017.[2] One of the most noteworthy beers with movie links is Pale Rider (4.2%) – Kelham
Island, the former brewery’s most iconic beer, named after the 1985 film of its
namesake starring Clint Eastwood. The beer was first released in 1993, which
came about following suggestions from customers at the brewery’s taproom The
Fat Cat in Sheffield. Founder, Dave Wickett subsequently produced a beer
inspired by American Pale Ales that was pale blonde in colour, with a light
bitterness and brewed with German and American hops, giving its distinct punchy
aroma. It was considered a trailblazer, inspiring many craft beers that followed,
and it helped raise the fortunes of the brewery, in time becoming its flagship
brand, putting Sheffield firmly on the brewing map.[3]
Its also one of the most successful movie themed examples out there, winning a slew of awards
including Champion Beer of Britain in 2004. Such was it’s following when
Thornbridge brewery inherited Kelham Island's brands after the latter’s closure
in 2022, they added the beer to their core range.[4]
While there are beers out there which are directly named movie titles, some brewers take it further and mince it through the pun machine. Notable examples come to mind like Blazin’ Barrels (5%) – Wye Valley, a take on Blazing Saddles (1974) or Reservoir Hogs (4.3%) – Hoggley’s in connection with Reservoir Dogs (1992). In keeping with the animal theme, Elgood’s boasted a menagerie of animal influenced movie titles like The Hound of Music (4.4%), Goatbusters (4.5%), Hen in Black (4.5%), Crocky (3.7%), The Prawn Identity (4%) and the hilariously titled Harry Trotter and the Deathly Swallows (4.5%), with the original poster designs spoofed in the pump clips. Some breweries use pun filled titles to promote the flavour contents of their beer, like Belma and Louise (4.5%) – Durham, a session IPA brewed with Belma hops; Citrazen Kane (4.2%) – Iron Pier, a pale made with Citra hops, Live and Let Rye (5%) – Elland, which points to the fact it was a Rye IPA brewed with rye malt, or Full Nutty Jacket (4.3%) – Kelham Island, an American Red IPA made with four different malts, giving it a distinct nutty flavour. Meanwhile some examples namecheck hops (a principal product of the brewing process) in their promotions, like The Hopfather (3.9%) – Wye Valley, a session IPA brewed with Target and Goldings inspired by The Godfather (1972), A Fist Full of Hops (4.5%) – Falstaff, a golden bitter made with a number of hops named the spaghetti western A Fist Full of Dollars (1964).[5] Keeping to the hop theme, Beverley Hills Hop (7.1%) – Brew York is a tribute to Beverley Hills Cop (1984), appropriately the beer was produced as a West Coast IPA, a beer style which originates from the region where the film is set in. Likewise, Hop Back to the Future (4.4%) – Goacher’s, a wry take on Back to the Future (1985), the beer makes direct reference to a vital component of the brewing process. Likewise, there’s Hop Gun (4%) – Robinson’s, a take on the film Top Gun (1986), which derives its name from a piece of brewing equipment used for extracting flavours from additional hops to conditioning tanks in a process known as dry hopping. The brewery trialled with the ‘big screen’ theme with this beer in 2016, following successful sales of 135,000 pints in 2 months, subsequently the following year they decided to roll out a film and TV theme across their entire seasonal range.[6] Many of the above beers tend to be limited edition specials, though some have gone onto become core brand favourites like Jurassic Dark (5.9%) – Dorset Brewing Co., a Dunkelweizen named the film Jurassic Park (1993), its pump clip was inspired by the design of its iconic poster that featured a stencil outline of T-Rex. It also has connections to the brewery’s location near the Jurassic Coast, and is a companion to their flagship product Jurassic (4.2%). The beer was launched shortly after the brewery was established in 1996 and quick became a firm favourite, it first gained prominence in 1998 when it won the National Wheat Beer challenge that year. The brewery subsequently added the beer to their core range, and it has gone onto win a number of awards including Gold in the Taste of the West awards in 2017, Gold at SIBA South West Independent Beer Awards 2018 held at Tuckers Maltings Beer Festival, and it recently was awarded Bronze (Speciality) at the Champion Winter Beer of Britain awards.[7]
The pun and games continue with
beers inspired by noteworthy catchphrases in films. The likes of Yule Be
Back (4.3%) – Hydes and Ale Be Back (4.4%) – Dorset Brewing Co. are
named after the Terminator T-1000’s notable catchphrase that frequently pops up
in the Terminator film series. Not Now Cato (4%) – Vale, is based on
Inspector Clueseau’s frequently repeated command to his manservant Cato who
constantly attacks him whenever his boss returns home in the Pink Panther
series of films. Another example with links to iconic catchphrases is Yippie
IPA (4.2%) – Robinsons, one of their seasonal releases from 2017, it was
derived from the iconic line "Yippee-ki-yay, motherf*cker!"
regularly uttered by John McClane in the Die Hard film series. The pump clip features the New York skyline, which was the setting for the
film, the beer’s promotions include a parody of the catchphrase, “You asked for
miracles I give you… YIPPEE IPA motherhopper!”. Robinsons continued with the
catchphrase theme with Blonde, James Blonde (3.8%), a wry take on James
Bond’s iconic introductory line which first featured in the debut film in the series
Dr No (1962) and has been reused in nearly every subsequent Bond film since. In
this case the name implies that is a Blonde ale. Away from the all the puns,
there are more obvious instances like To Infinity and Beyond (4.5%) – St.
Austell, named after Buzz Lightyear’s frequent line in the Toy Story
series, the beer was released in April 2024 as part of the brewery’s cask club
showcasing small batch beers, a NEIPA made with the classic bitterness of
Aurora hops intwined with fruitiness of Solero to create what the brewery
dubbed an out of this world flavour! Memorable lines in films have also featured in other beers like It’s a Beaut, Clark! (4.7%) – Wye Valley, derived from
cousin Eddie’s line in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989), or Dunkel
Me Shirley (5.2%) – Moor, a wry take on the famous line uttered by Dr.
Rumack (played by Leslie Neilsen) in Airplane! (1980), after he responds to
reluctant pilot Ted Striker with the hasty retort “I’ am serious, and don’t
call me Shirley”, arguably one of the most memorable lines in film history.
Don’t is replaced with Dunkel, promoting the fact this beer is a Dunkelweizen,
and the pump clip featured Neilsen’s likeliness from the film. Notable title
sequences have also been under the spotlight like Born to Be Mild (3.7%) –
Elland, named after the song ‘Born to be Wild’ by Steppenwolf, which
features in the opening credits of Easy Rider (1969), though Wild is replaced
with Mild, advertising this beer is a dark mild, released as part of CAMRA’s
Mild May promotion. Likewise, In a Citra Galaxy Far Far Away (6.7%) Wylam, the
brewers also promote the ingredients of their beer whilst marking a notable
movie reference, in this case the title card that opens each film in the
Star Wars series, in equal measure the name is also a play on words, since the
beer contains both Citra and Galaxy hops.
Moreover, some examples are less
obvious on the label, 3 Clicks (4.3%) – Lincoln Green is a reference to
the climax of The Wizard of Oz (1939), when the Good Witch informs Dorothy
that if she clicks her ruby slippers three times then she will be sent back
home to Kansas. Quite appropriately given the theme, the beer was developed as
a ruby ale and the pump clip features Dorothy wearing the slippers as she stands
on the Yellow Brick Road with Emerald City in the distance, all in glorious technicolour.
Likewise, Scoundrel (4.1%) – Leatherbritches features the likeliness of
Oliver Reed in his most famous role as the villainous Bill Sikes in Oliver
(1968) on its pump clip, keeping to the Victorian theme of its setting it was produced as a
porter, which was predominate during the time the musical is set in. The beer was
also a tribute to Reed, who was an infamous boozer with a penchant for excess
drinking and legendary pub crawls like the Wimbledon 8.[8]
Blue Parrot (4.5%) – Mighty Oak is even more vague; the pump clip makes
heavy reference to the final scene of Casablanca (1942) where Rick and Ilsa say
their farewells at the airport before she leaves off with her husband. Bogie is
replaced with the brewery’s mascot embracing Ingrid Bergman, and the iconic
catchphrase is remodelled as “we’ll always have beer”, instead of Paris. Mighty
Oak has produced a slew of beers marking iconic moments in classic cinema
history like El Rancho (4.3%) which references Citizen Kane (1941) in
the pump clip, Top Hat Porter (4.3%) which namechecks the film of its
namesake Top Hat (1935) to more obvious examples like Faye Wray (4.1%)
which plays tribute to her signature role in King Kong (1933).[9]
Other breweries have paid their own tributes to luminaries of the silver screen
like Go-Lightly (3.8%), the beer is named after Holly Golightly (played
Audrey Hepburn) in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), the pump clip features her
likeliness as the character in the film. The name also is a play on words, since the beer
is a light session pale ale.[10]
Or the likes of High Time (3.9%) – Vale, a take on the film Safety Last
(1923), the title is in reference to the climax of the film when Harold (played
by Harold Lloyd) climbs the department building, after he accepts a promotional
stunt organised by his workplace. The pump clip features the memorable shot in
the film where Harold hangs off from a clockface, which has become one of the
most iconic images of early cinema, and has been copied a number of times.[11]
Other instances include Cogburn (4.3%) – Rooster’s¸ which references
Rooster Cogburn (as played by John Wayne) who appears in True Grit (1969) and Rooster Cogburn (1975), given that the brewery is named Roosters, this oppertunity was too hard to resist. Robinsons has a slew of examples like Dark Vader (4%), Hannibal’s
Nectar (3.9%), Freddie Brewger (4.3%) and Hoppy Wan Kenobi (4%)
respectively. In the case of The Simcoe Kid (4.5%) – Maxim, the brewers
not only pay tribute to the iconic Western character The Cisco Kid, the name
also promotes the fact that the beer is brewed with Simcoe hops,[12]
the beer was originally produced as a one-off for a Wetherspoons beer festival,
much like the character it emulates it amassed a popular following and the
brewery subsequently added it to their core bottle range.[13]
There are countless beers out there named after famous movie actors, yet Brew York
took it step further with their pun-filled titles like Kirsh Russell –
Escape from L.A. (6.5%) and With a Spoon (12%), in the pump clips they also
make reference to the actors respective signature film roles. Occasionally non-actors have also
been referenced like Stay Puft (5.2%) – Tiny Rebel, inspired by the
giant marshmallow creature that terrorises New York at the climax of
Ghostbusters (1984). The development of the beer was spearheaded by the brewer’s
concern about how dark beers were being massively outsold by pale beers at the time. In
late 2015, they immediately thought of ways of improving the marketability of
their darker beers. Early the following the year, they produced a porter that
combined sweet flavours with the familiar roasty, coffee and chocolaty notes
associated with stout. In keeping with the theme, it was brewed with lactose from
creaminess, and naturally marshmallows. The beer was launched in January 2016,
the first two casks sold out within 36 hours. It was originally a one-off but
public demand encouraged the brewery to produce it on a regular basis and subsequently producing a popular series of beers within the Stay Puft brand.
Breweries up and down the country have produced movie themed beers over the years, though the vast majority have tended to be purely one-off efforts available for a limited period, which makes it harder to track down evidence due to the scant information on them. While some brewers have dabbled with the occasional movie themed release or two, other brewers have produced ongoing series like Robinson’s entire 2017 season schedule of ‘pun-y’ titled beers inspired by notable films and TV shows, Mighty Oak’s homage to iconic movie actors and films of the silver screen, Elgood’s animal themed parody movie titles, Brew York’s pun-filled gallery of cinematic luminaries or Vale’s cinema influenced range of seasonals that celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2015. Occasionally, these seasonal offerings have gained enough popularity and fruitful sales to encourage brewers to add it to their core range, this was the case with the runaway success of Stay Puft (5.2%) – Tiny Rebel and The Simcoe Kid (4.5%) – Maxim. Some of these core range beers have even gone onto become flagship releases for their respective breweries like Jurassic Dark (5.9%) – Dorset Brewing Co. and Titfield Thunderbolt (4.2%) – Great Oakley which have won a number of local awards. Pale Rider (4.2%) – Kelham Island not only built the brewery’s reputation through its slew of industry gongs, it’s success also helped inspire a number of craft brewers to get into the industry and it also established Sheffield as a major brewing area. Breweries have even collaborated with the filmmakers directly in the case of Black Sheep, with their collaboration with the Monty Python team which resulted in Monty Python’s Holy Grail Ale (4.7%). It subsequently became one of the brewery’s most successful releases, spurring them to build an entire series of beers under the Python banner, even taking inspiration from the same film with Monty Python’s Black Knight Reserve (5.7%) named after the ill-fated villain in the film.[14] In the rare case of a follow up release being inspired by another follow up, in late 2016 Black Sheep released Monty Python’s Brian (3.9%), a sequel to their earlier release Holy Grail Ale, it was the brewery’s second collaboration with Monty Python. Named after their follow up film The Life of Brian (1979). The name came about following a vote to name their latest beer on Python’s Facebook page. It was launched for the Christmas market, the blurb on its pump clip stated it being a very naughty pale ale, in reference to the iconic line from the film uttered by Mandy Cohen (the mother of the so-called prophet Brian) when she yells at a crowd who have assembled outside her house, after he’s caught in the act. The tagline was suggested by Michael Palin, who confessed he’d quite like to see the word ‘naughty’ on a beer bottle. Movie themed beers, much like their counterparts in television have proved to be a profitable enterprise for their respective breweries, from pun-filled names, imaginative pump clips, affectionate tributes to blatant cross-promotion of the beer’s ingredients; long may the credits roll as beers continue to go to the movies.
[1] Building
on its success, the brewery have released a number of beers under the Python
brand, including Monty Python's Flying Circus (4.5%), Monty Python's Black
Knight's Reserve (5.7%), Monty Python’s Dead Parrot (4.1%) and Monty Python's
Brian (4.1%), incidentally named after another Python movie ‘The Life of Brian’
(1979).
[2] Other
awards have included SIBA Midland Region Competition October 2016 - Silver:
Overall Champion of the Competition, SIBA Midland Region Competition October
2016 - Gold: Best Bitters & Pale Ales, and SIBA Independent Beer Awards
2018 – Gold - Regional Cask Winner - Session IPA (up to 4.3%).
[3] The brewery has also produced a sister beer, Easy
Rider (4.3%), itself named after another film.
[4] Thornbridge
owe their existence to Kelham Island, in 2004 Dave Wickett visited his friend Jim
Harrison’s newly acquired property at Thornbridge Hall. After walking past the
former stable blocks, he suggested to Harrison, this would make a perfect place
for a brewery. Thornbridge was subsequently created in order to manage demand
at Kelham Island, Wickett himself hired two brewers fresh out of brewing
school, Stefano Cossi and Martin Dickie.
[5] The
brewery later released The Good, the Bad and the Drunk (6.2%), based on another
film in the trilogy, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966).
[6] Robinson’s
seasonal themed releases for 2017 included Magnum I.P.A. (4.1%), Pint of
Thrones (4%), Robohop (3.6%), Yippie IPA (4.2%), Dark Vader (4%) and Bah Humbug
(4.3%).
[7] In
2023, a barrel aged version at 6.5% was released, matured in bourbon barrels
for 6 months.
[8]
Unlike many of its contemporaries, this beer is a core range product.
[9] Rather
appropriately it was brewed as a blonde ale, in reference to the hair colour of
her character in the film.
[10]
It is one of a number of beers released by Vale, celebrating iconic actors from
the golden age of cinema,
[11]
In keeping with Lloyd’s all American go-getter image, the beer is appropriately
an American Red Ale.
[12] The
name is a tribute to the Cisco Kid, a Mexican desperado played by various
actors in Westerns made between 1928 – 1950. The pump clip is a recreation of
the poster for The Return of the Cisco Kid (1939).
[13] The
beer is available in cask every September.
[14]
Tiny Rebel have taken a leaf out of Black Sheep’s book, and produced a series
of beers under the Stay Puft banner, these included Imperial Puft (9%),
Chocolate Stay Puft (5.2%), Irish Cream Stay Puft (5.2%), Oreo Stay Puft
(5.2%), even a festive version Sleigh Puft – The Chocolate One (5.2%) to name a
few.
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