Informed rumour has it that Osset Brewery have bought Wakefield's Fernandes brewery.
Talking to an reliable source in an Ossett pub in Huddersfield, it appears that brewing will continue at Wakefield and that there will be little change at the brewery tap.
The sale of Fernandes has been off and on for quite a long time. I suppose that, if it has to go, then Ossett are about the safest pair of hands one could hope for.
They kept the Riverhead brewery open when they bought it. I would say that those beers are better now than they were before, thank to Ossett's expertise. They are also more widely available. Don't forget that Ossett have 9 (now) other outlets. Presumably, they will all stock Fernandes beers as well, too.
I've known about the takeover for a couple of weeks, BTW.
Yes, me too, but now it's official.
Riverhead is now spot on. I totally agree about the quality of the beers. My only regret is that Cupwith Bitter seems to have gone - probably because it was the one Riverhead beer approaching the 'classic' Ossett style of pale and hoppy and hence a bit of a duplicate.
Apparently David and Maureen (the departing owners) are moving to Filey where they intend to set up a brewery. I'm not sure whether this will be the Fernandes brewery plant or something else. It's certainly worth watching this space!
What's happening to the home brew shop and pub on the site in Wakefield?
AFAIK the pub and home brew shop are to stay. I hope the Wakefield branch of CAMRA are keeping a watchful eye on this one and that the pub, which is an absolute treasure, remains broadly as it is now.
There's more here:
I agree my assumption was wrong. Informed sources confirm David's move to set up a new brewery at Filey. Apparently the intention is to put a cafe into the Fernandes building, possibly in the space now occupied by the brewery.
Ossett have a record of enhancing, rather than destroying, the pubs they take over, so I don't think there will be any major changes to the bar, other than to the beer range, which I expect will reflect their normal policy of 4 or so of their own beers, and 3 or 4 guests.
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