Simon Buckley's latest Carmarthen Journal column

Simon Buckley, chief executive of Evan-Evans brewery, has a new monthly column in the Carmarthen Journal (see the Out and About section this week).
Iechyd Da!
Help us to Help them, Heroes lager, the people’s Lager is on its way.
This month I am unashamedly writing about a product that I am directly involved with, Heroes Lager.
In September this year a new lager is going to be launched called Heroes Lager.
You might well think what is HE doing writing about a lager? Read on and you will want to be part of this.
This is not a lager owned by some Mega International Brewer, but a group of Welshmen who are committed to raising £2million per annum for our military charities and to help those wounded and their families in the current conflicts in the Middle East.
All the profits excluding some marketing support and basic administrative cost go to military charities to support our wounded servicemen and women, and their families.
I am proud to lead the team that has worked for the last three years to bring this product to market.
It’s not been easy.
The story is a simple one.
In January, 2007, my son James came to me and suggested that we as a brewer should look at launching a beer that would create significant profits for the benefits of our wounded servicemen, and their families.
He like many of you had read the heart-wrenching story of our wounded returning to the UK with little or no support from the Government.
I come from a long and proud tradition of military service, and saw this as my opportunity to finally do something that was meaningful.
From this germ of an idea grew the Heroes Lager project, which some three years later is going to see the launch of a new premium lager brewed to my recipe, by an international lager brewer. It will be bottled by one of the UK’s largest regional brewers.
It tastes great and looks marvellous.
We hope to sell over three million cases through the major supermarkets in the UK, and to get the great UK pubs to support the brand.
In late August bottling begins, with over six million bottles being filled for the launch in the last week of September.
The difference between this brand and all the other lagers on the shelf of you local supermarket is simple, all the brewers profits go to the nominated charities such as SSAFA 125, Afghan Heroes, Troop Aid, and a new Welsh Charity that we have founded to help individual regiments and soldiers, the Heroes Fund.
It will cost you no more than your usual lager brand, but each case will raise up to a £1 for the charities.
So the message is simple, please help us to help them, it will cost you no more, and as you sup your first bottle of Heroes you can take heart from the fact that this new and potentially international product was born and bred in Carmarthenshire. A proud moment for us all.