The Indian craft brewer from Pune becomes the first Indian brewery to feature a collaborative Indian beer at the Wetherspoon Festival held at more than 900 pubs in the British Isles
For the first time, an Indian brewery will feature at J D Wetherspoon’s autumn Real Ale Festival. Effingut, the Pune-origin craft brewer, has been invited to pour a collaboration brew at the event, which is running from 1 to 12 October 2025 across more than 900 Wetherspoon pubs in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The chain will offer around 30 real ales during the festival — including five international collaborations.
The Indian entry is the product of a partnership with Hook Norton Brewery, the venerable Oxfordshire brewer with roots stretching back to 1849. Effingut’s founder and master brewer, Manu Gulati, worked alongside Hook Norton’s team to create a golden ale infused with Indian botanicals. The beer is brewed and cask-conditioned in Britain and described as golden-amber in colour, with citrus and floral aromas. The flavour is clean and lightly sweet, complemented by lemongrass, cardamom and coriander.
“This is more than just a beer; it’s a cultural dialogue where Indian spice and flavour philosophy meet British brewing,” Gulati said. The brewery’s involvement in the Wetherspoon festival underscores the growing international appetite for South Asian craft styles, as well as giving the Pune-born brand exposure among UK and Irish drinkers. Effingut will also pour the collaboration beer in its home city pubs in Pune, Mumbai, Delhi and Gurugram during the same festival period.
Effingut was founded in 2014 and has cultivated a reputation for experimental small-batch releases, while still honouring traditional brewing methods. Under Gulati’s leadership, it became the only Indian brewery to win three bronze medals at the 2020 Asia Beer Championship, placing it among Asia’s top brewers that year. The Wetherspoon appearance represents the brand’s highest-profile overseas exposure to date.
Hook Norton, by contrast, is steeped in British brewing tradition. The family-owned brewery operates from a Victorian “tower” brewhouse in rural Oxfordshire. Until 2006, much of its process was powered by a 19th-century steam engine, which is still preserved and occasionally operated. The brewery also maintains horse-drawn drays for local cask deliveries. Its portfolio includes a range of ales — from milds to best bitters — and it runs a network of tied pubs in the surrounding region.
Wetherspoon, founded in 1979 by Tim Martin, is one of the UK’s best-known pub chains, operating in the UK, Ireland and the Isle of Man. It stages real ale festivals each spring and autumn, featuring guest brews from domestic and international producers. The autumn 2025 festival is well regarded as one of the country’s premier beer events, often used as a proving ground for cross-border collaborations. The exposure gives Effingut the chance to court new export markets, while placing Indian craft beer squarely in front of UK pubgoers.
