Hearts fan brews beer called Rudi’s Skac-ale to save cash-strapped Tynecastle club

Jack Mathieson

25 Jun 2013 07:21

CRAIG DUNLOP'S home brew is named after former club hero Skacel and will be given to every fan who donates £15 to the club as supporters try and save it.
Craig Dunlop and Mike Dodds with their home brew Craig Dunlop and Mike Dodds with their home brew
Gordon Jack/Scotimage.com

A HEARTS fan is trying to save the cash-strapped club – by brewing his own beer.

Supporter Craig Dunlop hit on the idea of making an ale to encourage fellow Jambos to plough money into the empty Tynecastle coffers.

The home brew enthusiast is making 20 gallons of Rudi’s Skac-ale. The beer is named after former club hero Skacel and has an alcohol content of 5.1 per cent – the score when Hearts hammered Hibs in the Scottish Cup final last year.

Craig can’t sell the beer. But fans who pledge to donate £15 to the club will be rewarded with half a dozen 500ml bottles.

The lifelong Hearts fan was staggered by the response to the idea when he floated it on an internet forum for supporters.

Craig, 25, from Sighthill, Edinburgh, said: “I was trying to figure out a way to raise money to donate to the club.

Home brew enthusiast Craig Dunlop is making 20 gallons of Rudi’s Skac-ale Home brew enthusiast Craig Dunlop is making 20 gallons of Rudi’s Skac-ale

“I saw it as a great opportunity to do something I love to save something I love. Next thing I knew, I had
20-odd orders.

“I am looking to create an amber ale with a nice malt backbone. I did something similar a couple of months ago and I got some great feedback.

“It is a case of making changes to make it more Hearts-orientated so it will act as an incentive for people to donate money.

“The idea has become so popular that I have stopped taking orders for the moment. I don’t want to spend all my time between now and Christmas making home brew.”

The cash raised from Craig’s beer – expected to be around £300 after costs – will go to a fund to support the club, who went into administration last week.

Taken from the Daily Record