13 August 2020
Botanical Beer Company is named finalist in entrepreneurs' awards
A SMALL brewery run by a Horsell woman has been shortlisted in the Food and Drink Entrepreneur of the Year categoryfor the South East region.
Danielle Bekker, co-founder and head brewer of Binary Botanical, has created a beer and low-alcohol version, with has a less bitter taste than most others and aimed at appealing to wine lovers.
Danielle has more than 20 years’ experience in the brewing industry and worked for SABMiller in South Africa and then its UK headquarters in Woking.
She moved to Horsell with her husband Brett Venter and their children, Aaron and Tamara, and then the company was bought out by AB Inbev in October 2016.
Danielle stayed on for 18 months and turned down posts in Belgium and New York to set up her own brewery.
“It was an opportunity to do what I’ve always wanted to do, which is to develop a completely different beer that I’d want to have with food,” she said.
Danielle and a former colleague created the Binary Botanical recipe in her Horsell kitchen, followed by some pilot brewing in Johannesburg, and went from selling beer at Surrey farmers markets to being stocked by Ocado, Amazon and bars and restaurants around the UK, including Michelin-starred L’Ortolan in Berkshire.
The main difference between Binary Botanical and other beers is that it uses hop leaves, which grow on a climbing plant stem called a bine, hence the name of the beer.
Danielle, a chemical engineering graduate who was awarded a scholarship by SABMiller to do a master’s in brewing, said: “The hop leaf is normally thrown away at harvest so it’s actually a waste product. We are quite passionate about sustainability and so we also use brown recyclable boxes, and recycle the bottles.”
The leaves were initially sourced in South Africa, but are now supplied by an organic hop grower in Worcester.
“He picks the leaves, dries them for us and keeps them separate and that’s what we infuse into the beer to give it that tangy taste. So what was a waste product is now a key ingredient,” Danielle said.
She said Binary Botanical aimed to get people to think differently about beer.
“It’s not only a drink that’s for guys down at the pub. We want people to think they can drink it out of a wine glass; you can have it with a meal; men and women can drink it and it can make nice cocktails. It can be so much more versatile than when people just think about beer.”
Danielle is enjoying being based in Woking. 
“We love it here. Surrey is such an exciting place because actually it’s a bit of a drinks innovation hub.”
She said it is a great honour to be a finalist in the Great British Entrepreneur Awards.
“This year has been particularly challenging, which has forced us to focus 100% on our retail business while our pub and restaurant customers closed.”
The awards were founded in 2013 to acknowledge the hard work and inspiring stories of entrepreneurs.
Previous winners include the founders of BrewDog, Tangle Teezer, The LADBible Group, ClearScore and the Cambridge Satchel Company. The regional ceremonies will be held online on 23 September.
FOR more information, visit binarybotanical.com and https://www.greatbritishentrepreneurawards.com.
Credit: Woking News and Mail Editor
