Indian craft beer Effingut Makes Debut at J D Wetherspoon Beer Festival 2025

Effingut, one of India’s most pioneering and awarded craft breweries, has been invited to brew for the J D Wetherspoon Beer Festival 2025 - the UK’s largest celebration of beer, pouring across more than 900 pubs nationwide. 
The J D Wetherspoon Beer Festival is a biannual celebration that transforms pubs across the UK into a stage for brewing innovation. Running this autumn from 1–12 October 2025, the festival will showcase 30 beers, including five international collaborations. For the very first time, a beer from India will be featured - a landmark moment for Effingut and a testament to the festival’s growing global outlook.
The invitation led to a landmark collaboration with Hook Norton Brewery, a family-owned British brewery that has been crafting traditional ales in Oxfordshire for over 175 years. Effingut’s Founder and Head Brewer Manu Gulati personally travelled to the UK for the collaboration, carrying with him not just recipes and brewing expertise but also the flavours, philosophy, and story of Indian craft beer. At Hook Norton’s historic Victorian brewhouse, Gulati brewed alongside lead brewer Andy Thomas and his team - Robin Underwood, Rob Thompson, David Daniels, Tessa G, George Clarke, and Ed Clarke - bringing together two traditions separated by continents but united by a shared respect for craftsmanship.
The Beer: A Golden Ale with an Indian Twist
The beer shines with a radiant golden-amber hue, crowned by a soft, creamy head that signals its cask conditioning. The aroma is immediately inviting: crisp citrus and floral notes rise first, followed by delicate spice and a hint of earthiness. The palate opens clean and refreshing, with a gentle malt sweetness that gives way to botanical accents - lemongrass lending freshness, cardamom adding warmth, and coriander providing a subtle citrusy lift. 
"This is more than just a beer,” said Gulati. “It’s a meaningful cultural dialogue - where Indian spice and flavour philosophy meet the timeless precision of British brewing. For Effingut to represent Indian craft on this stage is both a tremendous honour and a responsibility we carry with pride.”
From Britain to India
From 1st October - 12th October 2025, the beer will also be available across Effingut’s outlets in Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, and Gurugram, giving Indian drinkers the chance to taste the very pint that carried their story across the world. Raise a glass in Britain or in India. From Oxfordshire to Pune, from Wetherspoon’s cask lines to Effingut’s taps - this is craft beer without boundaries.
(Excerpt from a release)