The success of BBC drama Shetland has resulted in the beer sales from a small island brewery going through the roof.
Lerwick Brewery is a small operation nestled amidst the rugged beauty of the Shetland Islands, and their sales have been flying since viewers of the popular crime series spotted what they believed to be its beer on screen.
Depleys was a beer branded created solely for the show and doesn’t exist in real life, but it has launched Lerwick Brewery into the national spotlight.
The confusion started during series four of the show, when a character is shown drinking bottles of the fictional beer before several bottles appear in another episode with a label for one of Lerwick Brewery’s beers.
Viewers then put two and two together and believed Depleys was one of its drinks.
The confusion led to a surge in online searches for the beer and the brewery’s website traffic spikes, with the search term now ranking as its third most popular search query.
It’s not the first time fictional brands have left viewers confused about real products, with stuff such as Duff Beer from The Simpsons, Alamo Beer from King of the Hill and the fast-food chicken chain in Breaking Bad, Los Pollos Hermanos.
Graham Mercer, who owns the brewery, said: "We were completely taken aback. We hadn't even realised our beer was in the background of Shetland until a viewer pointed it out.
“The labels were obviously different, but people saw a similarity and the excitement started building."
The brewery has now enjoy a huge boost having previously had minimal brand awareness on the UK mainland despite a loyal following on the Shetland Islands.
But they are now inundated with orders from across the UK and are struggling to keep up with demand, although they have now relaunched its brand onto the mainland market.
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"We're a small team and suddenly we’re fielding orders from across the country,” Graham admits. “We never expected this kind of attention."
Founded in 2012 by three brothers, Lerwick Brewery's initial product, 60° north Shetland Lager is named after the islands’ northerly latitude, which they share with Finland and Alaska.
The brewery's range has since expanded to include a variety of award-winning craft beers, including Lerwick IPA, Tushkar oatmeal stout, Skipper’s Ticket Shetland Bitter, Hamefarin pale ale, and Lerwick Haze session pale ale.
Further boosting its profile, Lerwick Brewery was recognised recently in several awards, including winning a bronze medal at the Scottish Beer Awards, and being shortlisted in the Scottish Food and Drink Awards.
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