A North Yorkshire brewery was today celebrating a breakthrough in exports to the U.S.

Daleside Brewery, of Harrogate, is assembling the first of what will be quarterly consignments of at least 60,000 bottles, which will be shipped to a Baltimore-based importer and then distributed to wholesale and retail outlets in 30 states.

The consignment, due for delivery this month, is made up of the beers Old Leg Over, Ripon Jewel Ale and Morocco Ale, plus Daleside's Blonde lagered ale.

The orders came after the brewery, in Camwal Road, opened its doors to the prospect of North American sales with the help of Business Link North Yorkshire.

Business Link's international trade adviser, Peter Tweddle, helped to develop the strategy for overseas sales backed by Trade Partners UK and its newly-introduced Passport to Export Success programme.

After taking part in a food and drinks showcase event for American buyers in Harrogate in March, Daleside attended a trade mission to the U.S. in June, funded by Yorkshire Forward's Regional Food Group. The result was a regular order for the four varieties.

Eric Lucas, the brewery's sales and marketing director, said: "Prior to the help and advice that we received from Business Link we were exporting on an ad-hoc basis, but we have now developed a clear strategy designed to see overseas sales account for 25 per cent of our turnover within the next two years."

Updated: 09:23 Tuesday, October 07, 2003