ALEX Arkell stands in an immaculate white lab coat in front of the brewery tower built by his family six generations ago.

Alex, continuing the family’s name in the role after a gap of several generations, has taken over the challenge of re-establishing Arkell’s in a competitive marketplace.

Real ale is all the rage, with microbreweries defying the downturn and the brewer faces a host of challengers at the taps.

Alex was thrown into the mix at short notice after his predecessor and mentor Don Bracher retired last year.

But he says he feels at home in his new role, so much so he is planning to open up the brewery to the public.

“I grew up surrounded by pubs and brewing,” he said. “There would be pub openings with kids running around and I've been quite privileged, especially at the moment with brewing being on the up.

“I’ve joined at quite a good time to increase the awareness of our beers.”

The brewery, in Kingsdown, Upper Stratton, includes a mill room with fully functional, finely-polished machinery dating back to 1908.

Nextdoor the mash tun –every Arkell's pint has started life in this giant wooden vat at some point – dates back to the 1940s.

Alex, 26, said: “At Arkell’s we believe in the old saying ‘if it ain’t broke’ don’t fix it’. We have a fantastic system and we’ve never needed to change it.”

The traditional approach, which can be traced back to 1843 when the brewery was the off-shoot of the family farm, scores highly for retaining the quality of ingredients.

“My plan is to open the brewery up and show people what we do here,” Alex said “I would hope it would become a tourist spot in Swindon.”

Visitors will find the venerable pieces of equipment mixed with Alex’s new ideas, such as an American hop called cascade on his shelf of samples.

The philosophy graduate, who spent time learning his craft in Michigan, is about to bring out his third ale, a diamond jubilee special called the Queen’s Tipple.

He will brew it tomorrow and, like every other batch, taste it before it leaves the brewery.

Yet Alex, who spent a year running the Rusty Bicycle pub, in Oxford, admits he never envisaged becoming head brewer so soon.

“I didn’t know Don was going to retire,” he said. “I was expecting to be his apprentice for a few years to come but I spent eight months with him and learnt a huge amount.

“He is a genius at brewing who is hugely respected among the brewing community.

“To learn from him is a bit of privilege.

“He’s still around to help though, as is everyone who’s ever left Arkell’s.”

Alex also draws inspiration from his time in the US, which has a booming micro-brewery market.

“The brewers I studied with in Chicago were a mix of ages, a lot of them were my age, and the enthusiasm for brewing in North America is huge,” he said.

“Their micro-breweries are what we call our national breweries, they're huge.

“The brewers are all young and enthusiastic and have got so many ideas.

“It's that enthusiasm I have that I want to push through with this job.”

The explosion in micro-breweries in the UK has seen Arkell's competitors place an emphasis on their local roots.

Alex said: “It’s a very competitive market now and the micro-breweries are definitely a challenge for us because everyone likes to drink their local beer.

“People have started to think Arkell’s isn’t a local beer, but we are, we've always been here.

“We haven't gone national and we haven’t expanded for exactly that reason.

“We’ve always had that appreciation for our local area, for Swindon and the surrounding area and that’s our core market.

“We've always loved being centred to that. “ With more than 100 pubs on the books, Alex has his work cut out, but reassuringly, he still likes a pint.

“I grew up around pubs and I go to a pub to feel safe and at home,” he said.

“That's where you can find me on a Saturday night.”