Iron Maiden only here for the beer

 

Nobody would dispute Robinson’s is a very traditional regional brewery so it is all the more remarkable that it finds itself as the brewer of the rock band Iron Maiden’s beers that sells by the millions of units around the world.

But maybe it is not that much of a surprise because the band’s lead singer is prone to taking a path less travelled and marching to the beat of a different drum (he fancied himself as a drummer before taking up the lead singer role).

As well as singing in a major band he is also a qualified pilot of jet aircraft, a high quality fencer, motivational speaker, and a hands-on partner in the brewing of Iron Maiden’s beers with Robinson’s. This beery string to his bow came about after one of his marketing people came up with a wheeze to launch an Iron Maiden red wine.

Speaking at a recent technology conference (hosted by Netsuite) in London Dickinson recalled: “They suggested we could do a wine blend and put our name on the bottle. But I thought it was not what we were known for and that it smacked of just making money for the sake of it. I thought our identity is much more associated with beer so the marketing person then said let’s get somebody’s beer and put our name on it.”

Dickinson had other ideas and wanted to be fully involved in the whole process of producing a bespoke beer under the Iron Maiden name. Thankfully in Robinson’s he also found a partner that wanted the beer to be produced in a serious respectful manner: “I went to the brewery and they wanted to see if I was serious. We went on to design Trooper, which was like writing a song. We’ve since gone on to make other beers.”

Like the other activities Dickinson involves himself in, his beer making activities are done with full commitment and with dedication, and judging by the amount Robinson’s sells it is exactly the same passion being shown by Iron Maiden fans around the world.

Glynn Davis, editor of Beer Insider