A BROTHER and sister have taken the high road to a new lifestyle on the Isle of Skye.

For former Bolton mechanic and kitchen fitter Eric Jones is now production director of the island's acclaimed Isle of Skye Brewery and sister Pam, an ex-chef, is Scotland's only female brewer.

Eric's journey from Sharples to Skye began with holidays in the 1980s. "I originally came up on holiday and thought it was great," he says. "And being a keen motorbiker the roads on the island were superb."

But it was meeting wife Rachael, originally from Skye, in Inverness that sealed his love affair with Scotland.

Eric, aged 41, moved to the island in 1993 and began helping a friend who had set up a brewery business. In February 1997, when his mate decided to move on Eric decided to become more closely involved with the brewery. "It could have struggled if I hadn't stepped in," he says.

Discerning beer lovers will drink to the fact that it did not.

Eric's sister Pam, aged 34, was already working on Skye as a chef at a Gaelic College before deciding to also become involved in the brewery business.

Former Sharples School pupil Pam, has no formal brewing qualifications but she was able to learn on the job, from cleaning tanks, filling casks and driving deliveries down to Glasgow.

It's a far cry from the days when she was working as a chef at the Old Vicarage Residential Home in Astley Bridge and Bolton's Beaumont Hospital, but she relishes her role in what is traditionally a man's world.

"People are surprised because it's still seen as a male preserve," says Pam. "It's hard work filling and lifting casks.

"They weigh about eight stones each but I'm not frightened of hard work. I work silly hours, including weekends, but I love my job."

Even before she took over brewing duties, Red Cuillin, the distinctive malty and nutty ale which takes its name from the island's dramatic hills, had already come second in the Champion Beer of Scotland festival.

After that Black Cuillin, Red's darker cousin made with oats and Scottish heather honey, scooped a gold medal at the inaugural Montreal interbeer competition in 2001.

Cuillin Beast, a strong beer made specially for last year's Champion Beer of Scotland Festival, was voted the favourite beer of enthusiasts attending the event.

These ales, along with other concoctions such as Hebridean Gold, made with porridge oats, and the fruity Blaven, are testament to the brewery's philosophy of quality over quantity.

Pam says: "Every brew has to be better than the last one. Every one is special whether it's being entered in a beer festival or just going to a local pub."

On average around 30 barrels a week are produced on the Uig site, while ales for export to places as far flung as Japan, Canada, the USA, Iceland and Finland are produced under licence in Bellhaven, near Edinburgh.

As for the brewery's future, the finishing touches are being put to an extension which will double its production capacity.

Eric admits that he has no plans for a business empire. He does not want his lifestyle to become a victim of the brewery's success.

He says: "I don't have any ideas of grandeur.This is a lovely place to live and I want to enjoy it."

And the rest of the family also share enthusiasm for Skye. Mother, Irene and brother John have joined them living on the island and Eric's son Kurk, aged nine and daughter Rebecca, aged seven together with Pam's 13-year-old daughter, Samantha also live there.

But there is one development Eric would like to see and it is more sentimental than commercial.

While you might be able to drink a Red Cuillin in Montreal or knock back a Hebridean Gold in Osaka, the Joneses hope in the future to find stockists in their home town.

"We'd love the beer to be available in Bolton eventually," says Eric.