Cheers all round as top local beers go on Windermere’s boats!

A long-held dream has come true with hand-crafted local beers originally named after Windermere’s historic “steamers” now available to passengers on the vessels themselves.

It means eleven years after it was first created by a local brewery - passengers can now enjoy a pint of Swan Blonde while cruising England’s longest lake on the “steamer” MV Swan!

Windermere Lake Cruises has teamed up with the award-winning Bowness Bay Brewing Ltd to form “a perfect partnership” to get locally produced beers on the popular cruise boats.

“It really is a dream come true,” says Richard Husbands, owner of Bowness Bay Brewing Ltd: “We are so proud to see it come to fruition after all these years and we’re delighted that passengers on the Lake District’s biggest paid for attraction can now enjoy our beers onboard.”

The Bowness Bay Brewery first started brewing beers back in 2012. It was originally based in Bowness but has now moved to a bigger site in Kendal.

“I live in Bowness-on-Windermere and have fond memories of going on the boats and in particular MV Swan,” explains Richard.

“When I launched the brewery I thought it would be great to name the beers after the vessels and hark back to the great experiences I had on them.

“I never thought back then I would get the opportunity to get the beers onto the boats. I’m very proud we have now been able to do it.”

Swan Blonde is the brewery’s best-selling beer and will be available as a draught beer on MV Swan and MV Swift. The brewery’s other beers, including Swan Black and Swan Gold, will also be available in bottles on Windermere Lake Cruises’ flagship Tern and on MV Teal.

Windermere Lake Cruises’ traditional “steamers” all return to full time regular service for the main season on Saturday, April 1.

Jennifer Cormack, Sales and Marketing Director at Windermere Lake Cruises, says: “I can’t think of a better way of enjoying a pint of Swan Blonde than cruising across Windermere on MV Swan! What a perfect way to while away some time over the Easter break!”

Jennifer adds: “We have always believed in working together with local attractions and companies to showcase the best the Lake District and Cumbria has to offer. This partnership with Bowness Bay Brewing Ltd is a perfect example of that.

“We are delighted to have been able to make this dream come true for the team at the brewery. It’s great for us too as it widens the service we can offer to our passengers.”

Having started life in Bowness-on-Windermere, Bowness Bay Brewing now has a four-vessel steam-heated brewhouse in Kendal with the capacity to produce 30,000 litres of ale per week.

The award-winning microbrewery supplies hotels, restaurants, pubs and bars, as well as independent shops and grocery stores. It can now add cruise boats to that list!

MV Swan, after which its most popular beer is named, has carried millions of passengers over the past eight decades on Windermere and even operated a limited service in the early years of the Second World War.

More information

• Bowness Bay Brewery is not the only drinks sold on our vessels. Our 'steamers' have a full bar with lagers, bitters, ciders as well as soft drinks, wines and spirits. Our modern launches have smaller bars which sell soft drinks, bottled beers and personal bottled wine. Prices are competative for the local area and compare well with other local bars & pubs - pints range from £4.90 - £5.30. See our bar price-list here.
• Bowness Bay Brewing Website