Family-owned Shropshire brewery which pays tribute to the heritage and history of making local beer

The West Midlands has a long-standing tradition of brewing and beer making.

Breweries have been a part of the region for centuries, providing the welcoming aroma of hops and yeast in the air across the region and many different types of beer loved by thousands.

In the wake of the news of the planned closure of Banks's Brewery in Wolverhampton, the Star wants to support our local breweries and show that there are still many out there producing quality beers to be enjoyed in pubs across the region.

As part of our Backing Our Breweries campaign, we are going to look at what different breweries do, how they grew and built up their reputation, what their products are, how they continue to run in what are difficult financial times and what makes them special.

It started out as a hobby between a husband and wife who really loved their beer and wanted to make something that fit their tastes.

Gary and Alison Walters had been homebrewing beer in the garage at their home in Ludlow, using professional standard equipment to make their beer, when they started to think about brewing on a greater scale.

The history of brewing in Ludlow and the great South Shropshire area was one which had started in medieval times and had lasted until the closure of the Ludlow and Craven Arms Brewery in the 1930s and Mr Walters said he and his wife had thought about bringing back that heritage in 2006.