When the Theakston family bought the Theakston's brand back from S&N, I thought that, because of volume constraints at Masham most ale would continue to be brewed by S&N in Tadcaster.
A news piece in this month's 'What's Brewing' reports that with the move of John Smith's Cask to contract brewing at Burtonwood S&N no longer brewed any real ales. So what's happened to Theakston's? Has production entirely reverted to Masham or what?
Good question! - there's a PR piece on Theakston's website from a few years ago saying that they were determined *as far as possible* to brew as much of their beer in Masham, & to that end were expanding fermentation capacity, but the announcement also coincided with the news of the move of their 'Best' from Tyne to Taddy, so I'm guessing that they still need to outsource some production.
Kind of relatedly - there's a load of upset from God'sOwnCounty drinkers & landlords, online & in papers, about the quality of the new Cheshire JohnSmiths - like it was a dream of a pint right up until they moved production! Some landlords have sent a load of beer back & now refuse to stock it. cheers MikeMcG
It was undrinkable muck before then - how can it get any worse?
I've had some very acceptable (but not exceptional) pints of John Smiths Cask in a couple of West Yorkshire pubs.
The Elephant and Castle opposite Wakefield Westgate station immediately springs to mind.
If the Cheshire brew is inferior, I can well imagine a lot of disgruntled regulars in that pub alone!
It seems as though the sales of Theakstons beers may have fallen to a level that Masham can cope with.
Theakston's Best seemed to be on at every other bar a few years ago.
Now I can only think of one pub in Manchester (Salisbury, by Oxford Road Station) that stocks Theakstons.
Must admit I don't go looking for the stuff.
that Masham can cope with.
Station) that stocks Theakstons.
Unless it's recently been discontinued, the Miners Arms in Adlington, Cheshire has Theakston's Best. One reason why I tend to avoid the place. :-)
So Theakston's is now BAAAD!!! Too bad, cause I used to like Old Peculier. Guess I'll have to avoid that now and head for the blonder ales -- brewed thru a horse??
So wot's next? Is Black Sheep to be frowned on as well?? There goes Riggwelter.
Next it'll be Tim Taylor's. And there goes RamTam.
Pretty soon there won't be a dark, heavy Yorkshire ale left.
Why is that? More women drinking these days?
nick
No problem with OP. And yes Webster's Bitter still exists - apparently now brewed in Warrington. The pump clip said "the genuine thing - brewed in Yorkshire". (Remember the commercial?)
Not fussed about Black Sheep either.
Noooooo!
Hopefully not! I was born in Leeds!
BrianW wrote: > Hopefully not! I was born in Leeds!
Wull then, start back drinkin' the ales you used to drink!
Leave those frowzy blondes alone. As I said: "brewed through a horse!"
who said to avoid OP? Someone gave their (poor) opinion of Theakston's Best, I think.
no, but I do remember drinking the (awful IMO) beer & later talking to a brewer who told me how they brewed it, then added all of the yeast pressings from all of the other beers into it - yum!
I've really enjoyed some of their beers, esp Riggwelter.
A caramel-coloured version of Landlord, I think?
I've enjoyed cask OP (the bottled version I had last week was nothing like it), but there's a myriad of Yorkie stronger darker brews out there.
mmm - Websters & JohnSmiths - you tuck in lads!
they may share a shade with equine micturate, but I'm not alone in loving the flavour of some of these more modern golden ales - they often actually taste of hops (bitterness & especially fruity/aromatic hops) - something sorely missing IMO from many older-style boring brown bitters. MikeMcG
Where in Warrington would that be? Coach House?
;-)
Two miles north west of IKEA. ;-)
I can't get my head around the idea of Burtonwood being in Warrington, though it's true that the green belt between the two has shrunk a lot over the years. Plus, with the brewery being the wrong side of the village, you're scratching the backside of St Helens with it, really.
While on the subject of BW, are there any reliable outlets for the mild in the NW or Wales?
apparently there are proud & ardent connoisseurs of muck - you change it to a slightly different muck at your peril. MikeMcG
Here's hoping! Am I the only one who remembers Landlord as it was
20/30 years ago.At the time of a surge in sales a few years ago, they used a technique called 'liquoring down' (this info comes from an employee). This involves brewing to a higher gravity and then adding water to lower the gravity by the desired amount.
As any fule kno, you can't make beer this way.
They may not be liquoring down these days, but sadly the TT range is not a patch on what it used to be.
Come back Allan Hey.
I've heard tell of the mythic age of Landlord (Sean 'The Rooster of the North' Franklin has spoken of it) but to me, (along with that other ubiquitous chip, Deuchars) it can still be a very very decent pint - won CBoB a few years ago too, so can't be all bad, eh?
Loads of breweries liquor back, either for increased brewlength, or (less heinously) simply to fine-tune the gravity.
I would guess that many regionals do very little else for the majority of their beer (aka 'parti-gyled' - where a high-gravity wort is liquored back & possibly coloured, to brew a best, ordinary, mild, light ale, etc) MikeMcG
Given Mr Hey's mention & Michael Jackson's recent untimely death, it seemed fitting to pass on a good piece I just read on MJs site - with a good few quotes & characterful bits from Allan Hey.
Is this considered acceptable? I was always under the inpression that brewing to a higher abv and then watering the resulting brew was something that no self-respecting brewer would do.
acceptable or not, it's legal & regularly done, not to my knowledge by many micros, but certainly by regionals - for confirmation have a look at The Real Ale Almanac & see which breweries have exactly the same grist for several beers of varying strength.
(just to be clear, many breweries will make a tiny adjustment to the wort, to get the required gravity that they are aiming for - this IMO would have little impact on quality/flavour, but I have heard of one brewer who does not do this, but changes the official abv if the OG is a bit out)
Can it make decent beer? - In my experience, it *can* make outstandingly good beers, with attention to detail, good ingredients, etc, etc. F'rinstance, when brewed in Henley, Brakspear's Mild, Light, Old, Bitter, Special, & Strong were all from the same basic grist & hop recipe, then liquored back (& coloured with roast barley extract, if necessary).
I think their heyday (Henley-brewed) 'ordinary' bitter will always be a desert island pint for me. So bitter, dry, some yeast character, some complex hop character, light, refreshing & a real moreishness that meant you had to go back for another pint after downing the first in about 2 minutes. (I've really enjoyed the Wychwood brewed version too, though) cheers MikeMcG
I suppose it's all a matter of degree (no pun intended). But how can a liquor brewed to around 5% be watered down to 4.2% and still retain the subtleties and complexities of a beer brewed originally to 4.2%? I can understand brewers tweaking a beer by a fraction of a percent by adding water, but any more than this will quite simply produce a different beer.
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