New Portsmouth pub The Brewer’s Tap pulls in the punters in its first week

WHEN the team behind the Southsea Brewing Company took on a forlorn newsagents in Milton, it was a whole world apart from the stunning microbrewery it is today.
Lorna and Dave Eastwood with Dan Tonkin at their Brewer's Tap pub in MiltonLorna and Dave Eastwood with Dan Tonkin at their Brewer's Tap pub in Milton
Lorna and Dave Eastwood with Dan Tonkin at their Brewer's Tap pub in Milton

Married couple Dave and Lorna Eastwood and business partner Dan Tonkin have spent months transforming Moorhouse News in Eastney Road, Milton into new pub, The Brewer’s Tap.

The venue finally opened on Friday, April 12 – and business is booming.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Dave said: ‘We’ve been amazed by the amount of people who came along. We started work late last year and opened the business up last week. We did a soft launch with just friends and family before opening to the public. There was a large mix from seasoned beer drinkers, to people who are from the area looking to try something different.’

Dave said the place stands out as most of the pubs in the local area don’t serve craft beers and are all attached to bigger companies, making it very difficult for locals to trial new tastes. He hopes they have found a gap in the market with their new business.

He said: ‘It’s a bit different because we’re not tied to any massive companies and can sell whatever we want. We want to showcase a range of different beers. It’s a community based pub and we’re very passionate about what we do.’

One of the company’s IPAs, Casemate, has already sold out, which Dave says proves how popular a venue like his can be. He claimed this was down to the variety of new drinks on offer, and the interesting layout.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘The set up is so that everyone can talk to each other,’ he said. ‘There is no music or televisions so people can meet and make new friends. When people come to our pub, they aren’t presented with the same drinks as everywhere else. All of the beers and the companies that we buy from are really small and very passionate. And we’ve had to make sure that we have got enough of our own beer to keep everyone happy.’

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.