Welcome to our Meet the Team series of blog posts! As we count down to the reveal and launch of our beer, we’ll be introducing you to the people behind the scenes with a Q&A. First up is George Easdon – NSB’s Marketing Manager, who is also writing this post and feeling very uncomfortable about talking about himself in the third person!
Tell us a bit about yourself and your brewing journey up to this point?
I’ve had a fairly unconventional route into the industry: after finishing an English degree with grand plans of becoming a teacher, I fell / slipped into the black hole of insurance, where I stayed for nearly 10 years. A lockdown-induced quarter life crisis gave me the push I needed to jack in a pretty dull corporate career, start reading up on the far more interesting world of brewing science, which landed me a place on the Heriot-Watt Brewing & Distilling MSc programme and – eventually – Natural Selection!
What’s your role in the project?
I’m on the marketing side of things, so am responsible for the dire levels of chat you’ll see on our social media, the creative side of the project, planning our launch event (more on that to follow…) and generally anything that involves words & pictures.
What are you hoping to get out of the project?
A lot of fun, some valuable exposure to the practical side of brewing (given that I’ve sat behind a desk for most of my working life!), and the chance to learn as much as I can.
What part of the project are you most excited about?
I should probably say something marketing-specific (and throwing a launch party is definitely up there!), but for me it’ll be the moment of walking into a pub and ordering a pint of our beer. It’s a totally surreal thing to even consider at this stage, but that’ll be such a cool experience!
Without giving away too many spoilers, describe the beer in three words?
Summery, sessionable, zesty
What’s your favourite Edinburgh pub?
Got to be Carriers Quarters – and not purely because it’s right round the corner from my flat. Always a class beer selection, great tunes, and a quality atmosphere. Ideal!
Tell us about your favourite beer?
As someone who drinks (almost) anything & everything, I hate this question – far too much to choose from! I’ll give the classic brewer’s answer and say a well balanced, super-refreshing, probably-German lager. Something like Augustiner Helles is about as good as it gets for me!
You’ve got three songs to add to the brewery playlist – what are you picking?
The Libertines – Don’t Look Back into the Sun
CHVRCHES – The Mother we Share
Idlewild – Ghost in the Arcade
Outside the brewery, what can people find you doing?
Running, watching or (very badly) playing rugby, jumping about at a gig, or sitting on my phone at the gym.
Natural Selection Brewing 