Marston's
Encyclopedia
Marston's is the colloquial name for the brewer and pub operator Marston's plc (formerly known as Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries plc until 2007 when it rebranded as Marston's). The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange
and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index
. As of 2010, it had a 1.1% share of the United Kingdom
beer market, although historically this share has been declining. It owns over 2000 public houses in the UK, and is the world's largest brewer of cask ale
.
in 1947. It acquired Camerons Brewery
in Hartlepool
in 1992 and sold it to Castle Eden in 2002, whilst retaining some of Cameron's tied pubs
.
In 1999 the Company purchased Marston, Thompson & Evershed of Burton upon Trent
(including Marston's Brewery which had been founded in 1834). Also in 1999 the Company purchased the Mansfield Brewery Company of Mansfield
.
In 2005 Marston's Brewery took over production under licence from Interbrew
of Draught Bass
, succeeding Coors
. Later, in 2005, the Jennings Brewery
of Cockermouth
was also purchased and in 2007 Hampshire
based Ringwood Brewery
, which was established in 1978, and brews Best Bitter, Fortyniner, and Old Thumper, was acquired.
In 2007 the Company changed its name from Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries plc to Marston's plc.
: the Park Brewery in Wolverhampton
brews Banks's, Hanson's and Mansfield beers; the Marston's Brewery in Burton upon Trent
brews Marston's and Bass; the Jennings Brewery in Cockermouth
; the Wychwood Brewery
in Witney (which includes the Brakspear Brewhouse); and the Ringwood Brewery in Hampshire. The company also owns a sizeable chain of pubs, and several hotels.
monk
s in the 13th century.
Marston's is also the only remaining brewer to use Burton Union Sets; a system whereby fermentation barrels and troughs are linked together by a complex system of copper and brass pipework. The basic principle is one of preventing excessive beer and yeast loss through foaming, but the consequence is that the beer is both in contact with more wood and in contact with more beer (fermenting in a bigger volume). This results in a vastly more consistent flavour; and very little chance of a whole batch being ruined. All other large-scale brewers have abandoned this method in favour of stainless steel vats, which while they assure (through volume) a consistent flavour, do not permit the use of traditional yeast varieties. They also make selective use of the unusual double dropping process which introduces complex flavors due to a period of accelerated yeast growth.
Marston's also brews Draught Bass for A-B InBev and Tetley
Mild and Dark Mild for Carlsberg
; it is Marston's flagship brand, selling 150,000 hectolitres in 2010. It is the only beer to use the oak Burton Union System so that it is fermented in wood; the ingredients are mineral enriched Burton Water, Maris Otter
barley, and Fuggles and Goldings hops. The cask-conditioned and canned versions are 4.5% abv
; since April 2009, the pasteurised bottle versions have been 5% abv.
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index
FTSE 250 Index
The FTSE 250 Index is a capitalisation-weighted index consisting of the 101st to the 350th largest companies on the London Stock Exchange. Promotions to and demotions from the index take place quarterly in March, June, September and December...
. As of 2010, it had a 1.1% share of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
beer market, although historically this share has been declining. It owns over 2000 public houses in the UK, and is the world's largest brewer of cask ale
Cask ale
Cask ale or cask-conditioned beer is the term for unfiltered and unpasteurised beer which is conditioned and served from a cask without additional nitrogen or carbon dioxide pressure...
.
Company history
In 1834 John Marston established J. Marston & Son at the Horninglow Brewery at Burton upon Trent. Marston & Son Ltd amalgamated with John Thompson & Son Ltd and moved to Albion Brewery, where the company still operates. Banks & Co has been brewing at the Park Brewery since 1875. The Company was formed in 1890 as Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries by the amalgamation of Banks & Co. with George Thompson & Sons and Charles Colonel Smith's Brewery. It was first listed on the London Stock ExchangeLondon Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
in 1947. It acquired Camerons Brewery
Camerons Brewery
Camerons Brewery ' is a brewing company founded in 1865 by John William Cameron in Hartlepool, County Durham.-History:...
in Hartlepool
Hartlepool
Hartlepool is a town and port in North East England.It was founded in the 7th century AD, around the Northumbrian monastery of Hartlepool Abbey. The village grew during the Middle Ages and developed a harbour which served as the official port of the County Palatine of Durham. A railway link from...
in 1992 and sold it to Castle Eden in 2002, whilst retaining some of Cameron's tied pubs
Tied house
In the UK a tied house is a public house that is required to buy at least some of its beer from a particular brewery. This is in contrast to a free house, which is able to choose the beers it stocks freely.- Definition of "tied" :...
.
In 1999 the Company purchased Marston, Thompson & Evershed of Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a town straddling the River Trent in the east of Staffordshire, England. Its associated adjective is "Burtonian"....
(including Marston's Brewery which had been founded in 1834). Also in 1999 the Company purchased the Mansfield Brewery Company of Mansfield
Mansfield
Mansfield is a town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the main town in the Mansfield local government district. Mansfield is a part of the Mansfield Urban Area....
.
In 2005 Marston's Brewery took over production under licence from Interbrew
Interbrew
Interbrew was a large Belgium-based brewing company which owned many internationally known beers, as well as some smaller local beers. In 2004 Interbrew merged with Brazilian brewer AmBev to form InBev, which is the now largest brewer in the world by volume, with a 13% global market share now...
of Draught Bass
Bass (beer)
The Bass Brewery was founded as a brewery in 1777 by William Bass in Burton upon Trent, England. The main brand was Bass Pale Ale, which was once the highest selling beer in the UK...
, succeeding Coors
Coors Brewing Company
The Coors Brewing Company is a regional division of the world's fifth-largest brewing company, the Canadian Molson Coors Brewing Company and is the third-largest brewer in the United States...
. Later, in 2005, the Jennings Brewery
Jennings Brewery
Jennings Brewery was established as a family concern in 1828 in the village of Lorton, between Keswick and Cockermouth in the Lake District, England. The brewery was started by John Jennings Snr, son of William Jennings . Jennings brewed exclusively in Lorton until 1874 when its present home, the...
of Cockermouth
Cockermouth
-History:The Romans created a fort at Derventio, now the adjoining village of Papcastle, to protect the river crossing, which had become located on a major route for troops heading towards Hadrian's Wall....
was also purchased and in 2007 Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
based Ringwood Brewery
Ringwood Brewery
Ringwood Brewery is a small brewery situated on the edge of the New Forest in Hampshire, England near the Dorset border. It produces mainly cask ales and some bottled beers.The emblem for the brewery is a boar....
, which was established in 1978, and brews Best Bitter, Fortyniner, and Old Thumper, was acquired.
In 2007 the Company changed its name from Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries plc to Marston's plc.
Operations
The company now owns and operates five breweriesBrewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
: the Park Brewery in Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
brews Banks's, Hanson's and Mansfield beers; the Marston's Brewery in Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a town straddling the River Trent in the east of Staffordshire, England. Its associated adjective is "Burtonian"....
brews Marston's and Bass; the Jennings Brewery in Cockermouth
Cockermouth
-History:The Romans created a fort at Derventio, now the adjoining village of Papcastle, to protect the river crossing, which had become located on a major route for troops heading towards Hadrian's Wall....
; the Wychwood Brewery
Wychwood Brewery
Wychwood Brewery is an English brewery founded by Paddy Glenny in 1983, and located in the town of Witney, Oxfordshire in the United Kingdom. It is owned by Refresh UK, a subsidiary of Marstons plc...
in Witney (which includes the Brakspear Brewhouse); and the Ringwood Brewery in Hampshire. The company also owns a sizeable chain of pubs, and several hotels.
Brewing methods
Marston's Brewery makes use of water from the famous Burton Well, reputedly discovered by BenedictineBenedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s in the 13th century.
Marston's is also the only remaining brewer to use Burton Union Sets; a system whereby fermentation barrels and troughs are linked together by a complex system of copper and brass pipework. The basic principle is one of preventing excessive beer and yeast loss through foaming, but the consequence is that the beer is both in contact with more wood and in contact with more beer (fermenting in a bigger volume). This results in a vastly more consistent flavour; and very little chance of a whole batch being ruined. All other large-scale brewers have abandoned this method in favour of stainless steel vats, which while they assure (through volume) a consistent flavour, do not permit the use of traditional yeast varieties. They also make selective use of the unusual double dropping process which introduces complex flavors due to a period of accelerated yeast growth.
Brands
The current range is as follows:
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|
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Marston's also brews Draught Bass for A-B InBev and Tetley
Tetley's Bitter
Tetley's was a brewery founded in 1822 by Joshua Tetley in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England which operated for 189 years until it was closed in June 2011. The brewery was owned by the Carlsberg Group and produced a range of beers, including Tetley's Bitter, and was the world's largest producer of...
Mild and Dark Mild for Carlsberg
Marston's Pedigree
Marston's Pedigree is a bitterBitter (beer)
Bitter is an English term for pale ale. Bitters vary in colour from gold to dark amber and in strength from 3% to 7% alcohol by volume.-Brief history:...
; it is Marston's flagship brand, selling 150,000 hectolitres in 2010. It is the only beer to use the oak Burton Union System so that it is fermented in wood; the ingredients are mineral enriched Burton Water, Maris Otter
Maris Otter
Maris Otter is a 2-row "winter" variety of barley commonly used in the production of malt for the brewing industry. The variety was bred by Dr G D H Bell and his team of plant breeders at Cambridge...
barley, and Fuggles and Goldings hops. The cask-conditioned and canned versions are 4.5% abv
ABV
ABV is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* Alcohol by volume, a measure of the alcohol content of alcoholic drinks* Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Nigeria, from its IATA airport code...
; since April 2009, the pasteurised bottle versions have been 5% abv.
Sponsorship
- Wrexham FC - Under the terms, the Mold Road Stand at the Racecourse GroundRacecourse GroundThe Glyndŵr University Racecourse Stadium AKA The Racecourse Ground is a stadium located in Wrexham, North Wales. It is the home of Wrexham F.C. and, since 2010, the Crusaders Rugby League team who play in the engage Super League...
will be renamed the Marston's Stand, while the brewery will also become the supplier of beers to the club for sale inside the ground and also at the club's function and hospitality rooms. And recently it was revealed that Marstons would be the new sponsors of Cambridge UnitedCambridge United F.C.Cambridge United Football Club is a professional football club from Cambridge, England. They are currently playing the 2011-2012 season in the Conference National, the fifth tier of the English league system, where they have competed since 2005 following their relegation from the Football League...
. Marstons have signed of sponsorship for Abbey StadiumAbbey StadiumThe Abbey Stadium, known as R Costings Abbey Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Cambridge, England. It has been the home ground of Cambridge United F.C. since 1932, and currently has a maximum capacity of 9,617 spectators...
south stand.
- England & Wales Cricket Board - Marstons became the official beer of the England Cricket team after a deal in February 2007. The three year deal stipulates that Marstons will be the official supplier of beer at all home Test Matches and will have exclusive beer advertising rights.