A couple of years back, when farming was in the doldrums, John came up with the idea of opening up an on-farm brewery. It seemed sensible, because we were already growing barley and we had plenty of spare water. All we’d have to import were the hops.

But the one thing we hadn’t reckoned on were the layers of bureaucracy we’d need to jump through. And so began the long, slow process of trying to obtain planning permission to renovate the old farm steading at Lanton Mill and turn it into a real ale micro-brewery.

It’s 18 months on now, and finally, fingers crossed, we think we’re getting somewhere. Our aim is to start brewing in 2010.

The brewery will be called the Scottish Borders Brewery, to stress the local provenance of the product, and the names of the beers will relate to different places in the valley where the beers will be brewed: Ancrum Ale, Lanton Light, Minto Mild, Ruberslaw and Fatlips. We want to keep food miles to a minimum, and plan initially to only to deliver in cask to pubs and bars within a 50 mile radius.

So if you fancy a pint of something special from the heart of the Scottish Borders, watch this space (or sign up to become a Friend of Chesters for our regular newsletters).

Next: Acting Courses