Edinburgh man launches Craft Beer Adventures tours all over the world including Amsterdam and Hong Kong

First tour begins in Edinburgh next month

An Edinburgh man has launched a series of craft beer tours all over the world, with the first one kicking off next month in Edinburgh.

John Joyce, 50, started Craft Beer Adventures on January 1, after ending his 25 year career in criminal justice last year. He is now combining three of his passions - beer, travel and connecting people - by launching these tours across the globe, including in Amsterdam, Iceland, Ireland, Hong Kong and here in Edinburgh.

Talking about his love for craft beers, John said: "I was a lager drinker until about 10 years ago when I got introduced to craft beer. From that moment my choice of beer was changed and I never went back to lager.

"Craft beers are so diverse in their tastes. With a lot more aromatic and intense tastes than lager. And over the past decade I have sampled lots of different craft beers in lots of different countries.

"There is a very diverse range of tastes in craft beers, that really appealed to me. I was really impressed by the boundary pushing and innovation across the entire craft beer scene.

"I have also got a love for travel. So I thought when I left my career in criminal justice that now I have the time and opportunity to do something different, I wanted to blend these passions to offer beer lovers or beer beginners the opportunity to travel to different cities across the world and learn more about the local craft beer industry in each place.

"One of the things I wanted to steer clear of was going from bar to bar to bar on these tours. So we provide an opportunity to see and learn more about a city than just going into different bars.

"I have tried to add specific cultural and heritage-related content to the tours. So you experience things unique to each place. For example, visiting the Blue Lagoon in Iceland. So there is a variety of things to do. Not just spending the weekend going to pubs.

"We offer dining in nice restaurants, stays in great hotels and seeing the best that each city has to offer with regards to the local heritage and craft beer scene."

Craft Beer Adventures founder John Joyce (in white and grey top) passes on his craft beer knowledge on a tour.

Craft Beer Adventures currently offers seven tours across the world including Edinburgh, Glasgow and Scotland as a whole, with some running Thursday to Sunday, as well as bespoke tours that customers can request. John revealed that his company hopes to soon add Berlin to the list.

John, who currently lives in South Queensferry, explained the itinerary for the Edinburgh craft beer adventure, which sees up to 10 people enjoy a weekend of activities including visiting local breweries, a distillery visit, beer tasting, attending a beer school to learn about individual local craft beers, a walking tour of the city centre, learning about the history of brewing in the city, enjoying some great local food, and staying at Brewdog's Doghouse Edinburgh hotel. Over the weekend the group will visit Brewdog, Innis & Gunn, The Halfway House, The Red Squirrel, Cold Town Beer, Moonwake Brewery, Malt & Hops and the Hanging Bat.

"This provides the opportunity for people to come from around the world to Edinburgh, or people living here, to go and see what there is on offer here in craft beer terms," added John.

"Including Lost in Leith, from Campervan Brewery, a great craft bar that you might not see every day! We pack a lot into the weekend. There are a number of breweries at work in Edinburgh and it's great to showcase what they do, as well as highlight the local history here."

All of the activities and food and drink are included in the price for each weekend adventure, with at least 20 drinks included.

Happy customers on a Craft Beer Adventures tour.

Speaking about his favourite tours, John said: "I would strongly recommend the Iceland tour. Visiting the Blue Lagoon and lots of great craft beer breweries. And looking in particular at the craft beer scene in the capital of Reykjavik.

"We provide a blend of walking tours, breweries and the natural beauty of Iceland, with over 30 drinks included, as well as all the transport and accommodation upon arrival.

"I would also recommend the Hong Kong tour. They have a really interesting craft beer scene in that part of Asia."

The craft beer industry has taken off in recent years, with under 100 registered small independent brewers in the UK in 1995, up to 2,000 by 2017