A Palestinian beer has defied immense odds, travelling some 2,500 miles from the Israeli-occupied West Bank to reach British store shelves this week.
Along the way, it has navigated stringent border checks and a raging regional conflict.
The journey is a story of an unlikely bond between brewers.
Madees Khoury, brewmaster at Taybeh Brewing Co. and daughter and niece of its founders, reflected on their enduring resilience.
“My grandfather used to say, ‘if you can make it succeed and happen in Palestine, you can succeed anywhere else in the world,’” she said.
“Because of these challenges and obstacles that we go through – it just makes you stronger.”
The Taybeh Brewing Co. has repeatedly defied the odds. Producing microbrew in a predominantly Muslim population that shuns alcohol is unique enough.
Add decades of conflict, water shortages, and Israeli settler incursions, and it’s a small miracle any beer still flows from the Christian village of Taybeh.
Business has suffered since Hamas militants killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and took more than 250 hostage on 7 October 2023, triggering a war that has led to the deaths of more than 64,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli military operations have grown in the West Bank to counter what it says is a growing militant threat, though rights groups accuse Israel of excessive force and killings of innocent civilians. Violence by settlers also has surged, including the recent torching of a church in Taybeh.
Enter Brewgooder, a Scottish company founded to make beer and do good, as its name implies.
Co-founder James Hughes saw an article about Taybeh’s struggles and offered to collaborate on a beer that could help it avoid checkpoints, boost business and raise money for charity.
“I don’t think we’ve ever come across a brewery that has faced the hardship that Taybeh has,” Mr Hughes said.
“Traditionally collaborations are a celebration of fun and the sort of different styles and quirks that exist within the brewing industry. This one is just a completely different narrative and situation altogether.”
Taybeh, which was founded 34 years ago by Ms Khoury’s father, Nadim, and her uncle, David, claims to be the oldest microbrewery in the Middle East.
Nadim Khoury likes to joke that the barriers they have to clear are what make its beer special.
“We have many problems in terms of culture, religion, occupation, siege, closures, the checkpoint, the port, the airport, electricity, shortage of water,” he said. “You name it, you can make a book out of the problems and the obstacles that we have.”
Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in the 1967 Mideast war and Palestinians want all three territories for a future state.
Israel’s current government is staunchly opposed to Palestinian statehood and supports eventual annexation of much of the West Bank.
Since the war began, the Israeli crackdown has hit the West Bank economy hard, forcing bars, restaurants and hotels to close.
Festivals have been cancelled. Unemployment has soared. The market for a product considered a luxury collapsed.
Israel also has ramped up security and imposed stricter controls at its borders, creating another high hurdle to exporting to the 17 countries, including the UK, where Taybeh does business. All exports out of the West Bank must pass through Israeli crossings.
Even before the war, the Palestinian company had to deal with logistics that took its beer three days to reach port. Now the trip is chaotic and more expensive, requires excessive paperwork and must pass through a new third security check.
“I can tell you stories of the delays, what we’ve been through, and the nervous breakdowns, just doing our best to get the beer to our customers,” Ms Khoury said.
For instance, if scanning machines aren’t working, inspectors do a manual check and sometimes use dogs. If the dog spends too long in a truck, it triggers suspicions and further delays. One day, a dog urinated on cases of beer.
“My driver would send me pictures and he’s, like, ‘Look what happened?’” Ms Khoury said.
“I don’t know what to do. How am I making a high quality product and then by the time it reaches my customer in Jerusalem it smells like pee?”
The partnership with Brewgooder should prevent that scenario. There are certainly no border checks within the UK.
Ms Khoury and Mr Hughes worked together to develop Sun & Stone, a crisp, Mediterranean-style lager brewed with Bavarian hops and British malt. They produced 180,000 cans that are about a pint (440 milliliters) each.
The Glasgow brewery and Co-op, which will sell the beer starting on Wednesday 10 September in its 1,600 UK stores, are taking no profit.
Proceeds from the sale will go to Taybeh to distribute among local charities and the Disasters Emergency Committee, which provides support to Gaza and Middle Eastern communities affected by conflict.
Mr Hughes said the brewery’s mission is rooted in humanity and compassion and he hopes the collaboration will inspire others to help Palestinians.
“At the end of the day, we’ve just brewed a beer,” Mr Hughes said.
“You know, this isn’t getting on a boat and going to Gaza or all these incredible other initiatives that many thousands of people globally are now doing.”
