Last updated 16:02, Wednesday, 06 August 2008

AN ESKDALE inn has inspired a brewery in America.

The Woolpack Inn brews its own ale and the owners, Dave Bailey and Ann Wedgwood, have inspired an American visitor to start his own Anglo-American brew pub, in Oregon.

Ted Sobel visited in 2006, shortly after Dave had set up the adjoining Hardknott Brewery.

Ted has always been inspired by English ale and he went straight back home to start his own version.

Although the west coast of America is littered with ‘craft breweries’ it is unknown for any to produce true real ale as defined by CAMRA.

Ted returned to The Woolpack Inn a further three times to learn the details of brewing and cask-conditioning from Dave.

He has now finally brewed his first ales in his pub, Brewers Union Local 180 in the small logging town of Oak Ridge in the Willamette mountains.

Ted said: “Having found the inn on a walking trip Ann and Dave’s enthusiasm for something different made me think that I could set up something similar in Oregon. I knew I wanted to capture the authenticity of English ale, cask conditioned and served in full imperial pints.”