A micro brewery in Horwich is out to capitalise on the surge in interest in real ale by launching its own shop specialising in bottled beer.

Blackedge Brewery has opened The Tottering Temple, which now forms part of its premises in Hampson Street.

Boss Wayne Roper and his business partner, Shaun Reynolds, have always sold their beer in bottles, but the shop now stocks more than 180 different types of beer from all around the North West.

“We knew from selling our own beer in bottles that there was massive demand,” said Mr Roper aged 38, who was brought up in Horwich and Blackrod.

“People like drinking interesting beer and there is an obvious demand for real ale in a bottle.

“The big supermarkets sell real ale, but it is mainly the more commercial brands. They don’t stock the beers from the local breweries like we do.

“By local, I also mean beers from Manchester, Yorkshire, and Cheshire. But we also sell American and continental beers as well as ciders.”

Mr Roper and Mr Reynolds, aged 37, started the brewery in 2011.

And it is a family business in the true sense of the definition as their wives are sisters — Rowena Roper and Kerry Reynolds — and they are also part of the business.

“What started out as a hobby is now a fully operational five-barrel micro brewery,” said Mr Roper.

“The name of the brewery is derived from a combination of the areas of our respective homes — Blackrod and Edgworth.”

The pair say they have been inspired not only by the history of British beer making but also by their visits to the US Pacific West Coast, where they have drunk many different beers in craft breweries in Portland and Seattle.

“We like to think we have found a good balance between traditional British beer and the American craft revolution,” added Mr Roper.