THE taste for Princetown's Jail Ale has grown so dramatically that a £1 million brewery is being built to cater for the demand.
The brewery will be the single largest private investment ever in Princetown, which is currently undergoing a major regeneration.
It all started ten years ago when the landlord of the Prince of Wales pub Phil Davies decided to brew his own beer from a small unit at the back of his premises.
Jail Ale, so named after Dartmoor Prison which dominates Princetown, was an instant hit with the locals and holidaymakers alike.
Three barrels a week were produced at first but that has since grown to 50.
Phil said: 'People really liked it and we started to win lots of awards.
'We supply several local hostelries and it was always on the cards to expand.
'We have basically outgrown the unit at the back of the pub and what we are about to build 100 yards away in Station Road is a substantial brewery.'
The high tech brewery, which will be fully automated, will provide several new jobs and hopes to have a visitors' centre in the future.
In the meantime it is full steam ahead for building work to start on April 1, with the beer starting to flow early next year.
'The nearest brewery is St Austell so there are not many of them around,' said Mr Davies. 'Our production capacity will go up tremendously and as well as expanding our range of beers we are planning to bottle Jail Ale and go into cans as well.'
The site in Station Road was bought from the Duchy of Cornwall, which owns a lot of land and property in Princetown.
One of the conditions of the sale was that Prince Charles had to approve the plans first.
'The building, which will have a clock tower, is quite unusual and has been designed by Alf Trewin of Holsworthy who designs buildings for the Prince of Wales,' said Mr Davies.
'It is an really exciting project and great for Princetown.
'This way many more people will be able to enjoy Jail Ale - everyone says it tastes good and as far as we are concerned by golly it does you good!'