In starting Vibrant Forest, Kevin Robinson helped create a much-loved brewery. But before the Hampshire brewery there was a rich homebrewing journey, which he shares right here.

There’s so much to share, and I’m know I’ve missed many key moments from the start of my journey, but I hope this provide a concise overview of my path from homebrewing to where Vibrant Forest is today.

I started making country wines in 2007, inspired by childhood visits to my grandmother’s house, where demijohns bubbled with homemade wine.

The place smelled incredible! As a young lad, I never tried them but was fascinated by these mysterious concoctions made from foraged fruits and flowers.

Watching shows like River Cottage rekindled those memories, leading me to experiment with winemaking. I loved the process—probably more than the end product to be honest. The wine was drinkable, but nothing more.

In 2009, a brewer at a farmers’ market told me that homebrewed beer could be better than many pub offerings. I was sceptical but intrigued. I quickly immersed myself in homebrewing books, forums, and online research.

Although I wasn’t a huge beer drinker then, a pint of Theakston’s Old Peculier in the Peak District opened my eyes to how good beer could be.

I started with a malt extract kit, but it was rather underwhelming. Determined to brew properly, I built a full-mash system from insulated plastic boxes and buckets—common practice back then due to the limited homebrew equipment market.

I take pride in knowing that the principles I developed in my garage still guide our work today, Kevin Robinson

My first all-grain beer, Foldings Guggle (a well-hopped bitter with Fuggles and Goldings hops), was a great success and did not hang around!

I brewed constantly, refining my skills and experimenting with new recipes. I shared my beers with friends and family, whose enthusiastic feedback gave me the confidence to approach The Flowerpots Inn brewery in Hampshire.

The brewers, Steve and Iain, were incredibly supportive, letting me volunteer and gain hands-on experience at a commercial brewery. Their encouragement played a huge role in my decision to shortly pursue brewing professionally.

By 2010, I had the opportunity to purchase a 1BBL brewing kit—perfect for testing commercial brewing still in my garage while keeping my full-time IT job. My homebrew recipes scaled up well, and I secured raw ingredients from The Flowerpots Inn.

Attending a local CAMRA meeting in Southampton with bottled samples gave me another boost—the positive feedback that evening reinforced my growing passion for the amazing world of beer.

When I received my brewing license in July 2011, I began selling to local pubs and CAMRA beer festivals. Just three months in, something extraordinary happened—my hefeweizen, Wheatwave, won runner-up for Hampshire Beer of the Year at the Basingstoke Octoberfest. More festival awards followed, proving that my scaled-up homebrew recipes could compete with established breweries from all over the country.

Faced with a major decision—continue my IT career or take the leap into professional brewing—I clearly chose the latter. I secured a commercial unit on the outskirts of Lymington, investing my life savings into a 12BBL brewery from Malrex Fabrications, delivered in April 2014.

In the early days, I did everything—brewing, sales, deliveries, and admin—sometimes running out to deliver beer while the kettle was getting to the boil!

As demand grew, I hired my first employee, Steve, to handle sales, allowing me to focus on brewing more. The business then grew organically until we ran out of space and simply had to relocate to continue to grow.

In 2019, we moved to a much larger purpose-built site in Hardley, and today, 16 years after my first homebrew, we employ eight fantastic people.

Vibrant Forest still holds the same philosophy—creating great beer with a passion for quality rather than chasing trends.

While I’ve taken a step back from the day-to-day, I take pride in knowing that the principles I developed in my garage still guide our work today and basically we are advanced homebrewers all in it together for the passion.

To check out one of Kevin’s early recipes, just click here!