In 2017, he was named brewer of the year by the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group and his latest beer, Maravilla Sour, is a ruby red, Belgian-style raspberry sour. The creativity of Vialan’s beers has earned a variety of trophies and medals over the past decade and Purity’s Longhorn IPA has made a significant impression on London’s booming craft beer market.

“We want to truly dominate the Midlands area before pushing our beers harder in different places, but we’re in a very exciting place right now,” adds Vialan.

Founded on a working farm in 2005, Purity employs more than 40 people and has expanded its sales across England. With six core range beers and a variety of seasonal add-ons, the brand is in a firm position to pounce as an emphasis on locality rises in the craft beer industry.

PEDALLING ALONG

There seems to be an unwritten rule that retired rugby players turn to cycling as an alternative form of fitness. England rugby legend Martin Johnson CBE is a fine example.

The 47-year-old was an ambassador for the Vélo Birmingham Business 100 Challenge, an event dedicated to increasing the use of bicycles in the city, and Vialan joined in the race with his brewing team.

“I cycle six miles to work every day regardless of the weather, but that was the first time I’d been involved in any kind of organised ride. It was great fun.

“We have a strong relationship with cycling at Purity. We attract a lot of cyclists to our brewery and as a company we have an emphasis on protecting our environmental impact.”

Purity’s black IPA, Saddle Black, is a seasonal beer dedicated to cycling and the story goes that the site for Purity’s brewery was discovered during a bike ride.

England will play France in the Six Nations on March 10 and, while the rest of the country will be supporting the team in white, Purity will be hoping their Frenchman can outplay the English, certainly in its beer market.