Samuel Webster's
Encyclopedia
Webster's was a brewery
founded in 1838 by Samuel Webster which operated at the Fountain Head Brewery in Halifax
in the West Riding of Yorkshire
, England until 1996. Its two most famous brands, Webster's Green Label, a light mild
, and Yorkshire Bitter continue to be sold, although the cask conditioned versions were discontinued in 2010. Silvan Brands have owned the company since 2003 when they bought it from Scottish & Newcastle
. The company's tied estate
concentrated on its Halifax heartland, and then spread throughout West Yorkshire
. The brand spread to other areas of the United Kingdom
following the company's takeover by the national brewer Watney Mann in 1972, and by the 1980s Webster's beers were available across the country. Perhaps their most famous advertising slogan was 'Drives out the northern thirst'. Webster's was also known for its sponsorship of numerous sporting events throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, particularly cricket
and horse racing.
The brewery was closed with the loss of hundreds of jobs due to overcapacity in the brewing industry, but also lower sales as a result of diminished marketing support for the Webster's brand after it was acquired by Courage Brewery as part of its takeover of the Grand Metropolitan
beer brands. After the brewery's closure, Webster's branded beers were initially brewed at the John Smith's Brewery
in Tadcaster
, and were subsequently moved to the Thomas Hardy Brewery at Burtonwood
in 2004. The former brewery site has since been converted into a housing estate, the Grade II listed Old Maltings building has been converted into an adult learning centre and the former visitor's centre, located in a seventeeth century building, into a pub called Long Can Hall. Some public houses in the Halifax area still retain Webster's branding, although very few still sell Webster's beers.
, a small village located about 2 mi from Halifax town centre. He was the eldest of seven brothers born into a Congregationalist family; his father was a farmer who owned 10 acre
s of land. Webster acquired the small Fountain Head Brewery in Ovenden Wood in 1838 when he was just 25, and opened an office in Union Cross Yard, Halifax. The site had been chosen for its Pennine spring which would provide the water used to brew Webster's products until the brewery's closure. The water was rich in magnesium sulphate, which added bitterness to the beer
, and provided it with a dry finish. Initially only supplying the free trade (public houses not tied to one particular brewer), by 1845 Webster had bought his first public house. By 1848 the firm had earned itself a reputation as the premier brewer in the north of England, although it ought to be noted that brewers in the north tended to very small at this time. In 1860 he was joined in partnership
by his three sons, Isaac, George Henry and Samuel Green, and the firm began trading as Samuel Webster & Sons. After Webster's death in 1872 his sons continued the family business. In 1873, increasing demand led the company to extend and redevelop the brewery. The firm also imported and sold wines and cigars, in addition to its brewing business.
By 1880 the company had purchased its 100th tied house
. In March 1890 Samuel Webster & Sons became a registered company, with £175,000 (£17.5 million in 2010) of capital, and Isaac Webster, Samuel's eldest son, its first chairman. That same year the brewery was connected to the railway network, facilitating transportation of their products. In 1892 net profit was £20,000 (£2 million). In 1896 the company took over H & T T Ormerod of Brighouse
, West Yorkshire which could trace its origins back to 1760, and the Northgate Hotel in Halifax. Isaac Webster died in 1899, leaving an estate of £87,454 (£9 million). In 1900 the Maltings building was built as part of a £10,000 (£1 million) development project. It was designed by William Chambers
, and remains a landmark of the Ovenden valley. By this time the company's office had moved to 57 Northgate, Halifax. At the turn of the century Calderdale
could boast 25 breweries.
and Woodhead Brothers of Elland
, near Halifax, a mineral water manufacturer. By 1958 the Northgate offices were proving insufficient for the brewery's increasing needs, and new offices were built on the Ovenden Wood site. The spring which was the sole source of water for the brewery was repeatedly dammed in order to ensure a continuous supply during the summer months. In 1960 the maltings was responsible for malt production of 6000 quarters (8000 kilograms) per annum, however it was closed shortly afterwards as it could no longer supply the brewery's increasing demand for malt. In 1961 Webster's bought Daniel Fielding & Sons of Halifax, which added 19 public houses to their tied estate. The same year the company sought out partnership with the national brewer Watney Mann in order to gain technical knowledge. In return, Webster's brewed and sold the brewery conditioned Watney's Red Barrel ale
throughout their tied estate. In 1962 a reciprocal trading agreement was reached with Ind Coope's North East division which saw Webster's houses stock lager
for the first time. That same year the group won the contract to bottle Tuborg for West Yorkshire. In 1966 a friendly takeover of the Bradford
brewers J. Hey & Company Limited added 73 public houses to their estate. Webster's was valued at £3.3 million, and J. Hey valued at £1 million. The combined group had assets of over £4.5 million (£65 million in 2010 prices). Throughout the 1960s and early 70s, the company had never been more successful, owing its continued success to consolidation in the industry, a good product and successful marketing. The social club trade was incredibly important to the company, accounting for half of 1968's £5 million turnover. In 1969 with the takeover and closure of Richard Whitaker & Sons by Whitbread
Webster's became the last company still brewing in the Calderdale area. The company's flamboyant chairman from 1950 and the grandson of Isaac Webster, John "Tommy" Roderick Giulio Marchetti died in 1969.
By 1967 Watney Mann owned 18.4 per cent of the company, and Webster's had a market capitalization of £6 million (£85 million in 2010 prices) and owned 320 public houses and 12 off licenses. Watney Mann had gradually increased their share to 27.1 per cent by 1972 when it initiated a takeover of the rest of the company. Samuel Webster & Sons owned around 280 tied houses, and was offered £18 million for the 73 per cent of the company that Watney did not already own. The Watney Mann offer valued the entire company at almost £250 million in 2010 prices. The takeover was a friendly one, and dependent upon the agreement of the Webster family, who owned 20 per cent of the company. Geoffrey Hirst
was also present on the board of directors. Watney Mann was motivated by an increase to their pub estate (the number of pubs they owned). Following the takeover, Webster's continued as a regional subsidiary of the Watney Mann brewing empire, responsible for Yorkshire, Humberside
, north Derbyshire
and north Nottinghamshire
. The takeover was a great boon for Webster's as Watney Mann invested heavily in the brewery, commissioning a new brewhouse in 1973, and the Webster's brands enjoyed increased distribution nationally. That same year, Watney Mann itself was taken over by Grand Metropolitan
. Sales for 1976-77 were £24.2 million against £21.9 million the previous year; pre-tax profit was £3.15 million versus £3.39 million. In 1979 a new £6 million lager plant was started, initially brewing Holsten. That year, Webster's employed 1500 people in the production, distribution and retailing of beers, wines and spirits throughout Yorkshire.
In 1980 the company reported a pre tax profit of £3.65 million (£12.2 million in 2010 prices) against sales of £46.8 million (£160 million). During the early 1980s, Webster's had beer production volumes of around 400,000 barrels per annum, and the brewery employed around 600 people. The early 1980s saw the "gradual transformation" of Webster's into a national brand. At the same time, the brewery was described as "wonderfully traditional" and had open fermentation vessels, mash tuns and copper brewing vessels. Production of Budweiser
began in 1984. In that year Webster's tied estate consisted of 7 per cent of Yorkshire's pubs, compared with John Smith's 15 per cent and Tetley's
14 per cent. As a result the company remained dependent on the free trade for the majority of its sales. In 1985 Grand Met merged the Wilson Brewery of Manchester
(which Watney Mann had bought in 1960) with Webster's to form Samuel Webster and Wilsons Ltd. In 1986 the Wilsons Brewery was closed down with the loss of 237 jobs and production of Wilsons Original Bitter and Wilsons Mild was moved to Halifax. By 1987 brewery capacity was extended from 1 million barrels a year to 1.3 million barrels, and by 1988 Webster's was supplying around 1000 pubs in the north of England, and as far afield as Deganwy
in North Wales. Also in 1988 the historic Long Can Hall was purchased to serve as the brewery's visitor's centre. In 1989 the Old Maltings was converted into brewery offices. As part of it disposal of non-core assets, Grand Met sold Webster's to Courage
in 1990. By that year Webster's had an annual revenue of around £100 million and claimed 7 per cent of the national bitter market. The vast proportion of the Fountain Head Brewery's 1.3 million barrel capacity was dedicated to brewing Webster's and Wilsons ales. However Courage also owned the more popular John Smith's ale brand, and Webster's was deprioritized. John Smith's was the fourth best selling bitter in the country in 1990 and Webster's the sixth, so the decision was an obvious one. The brands suffered further after the Scottish & Newcastle
takeover of Courage, as S&N already owned a large number of ale brands, and a third Yorkshire bitter brand in Theakstons
. Despite early success when it had been the only major ale brand in a national brewer's portfolio, in 1996 Scotland on Sunday
described the beer as "staid" and argued that it "never caught on outside its Yorkshire heartland." With the withdrawal of Webster's marketing support, John Smith's was outselling it three to one by 1996.
s. As well as Webster's and Wilson's beers, the brewery had been producing the lager brands Foster's
and Molson
. The brewery had been running at "well below" 50 per cent of its 1.3 million barrel capacity which was deemed "unsustainable". Although productivity per employee had been the highest of any of Scottish & Newcastle's brewing plants it was argued that the brewery would have required substantial investment if it was to remain competitive. The Campaign for Real Ale
argued that the closure of the brewery could have been avoided if the Webster's and Wilsons brands had been better managed. The site is now taken up by residential housing, whilst the Grade II listed Long Can Hall has been converted into a restaurant and the Grade II listed Old Maltings building has been converted into an adult learning centre. Following the closure, Webster's beers were initially brewed at Scottish Courage's John Smith's Brewery in Tadcaster
, but were subsequently moved to the Thomas Hardy Brewery at Burtonwood
in 2004. Scottish & Newcastle
continued to provide funding for a former employees' annual Christmas lunch until 2003, when the Webster's brands were sold to Silvan Brands as part of the firm's strategy of disposing of non-core brands. The chairman Brian Stewart remarked following the disposal that "Webster's was a brand that did not have a strong brand franchise. What has happened is that brands [which] consumers demand are still here - like Courage, Newcastle Exhibition and McEwan's." Heineken UK have since sold the Courage and McEwan's brands to Wells & Youngs.
s. Pennine Bitter was introduced in April 1963 as Webster's first bitter brand as the style gained in popularity. It was a high quality product and slightly stronger than most of its rivals. It had a floral character as a result of the hops used, which were likely a variety of Kent
Goldings and despite its name was created in the style of a Kentish bitter. Green Label light mild had such a strong following in the Halifax area that it was not until the 1970s that Pennine Bitter was made generally available there. "Pennine light mild" was a popular style unique to the Heavy Woollen District
; other popular brands included Timothy Taylor Golden Best and Tetley Falstaff (which was previously brewed by Ramsden's of Halifax prior to their takeover by Tetley). By the 1970s, Pennine Bitter and Green Label were firmly established as the predominant Webster's brands. In 1984 Green Label sold 90,000 barrels in Yorkshire alone.
Webster's Yorkshire Bitter (3.8 per cent ABV) was launched in the summer of 1982 in both cask and keg form, replacing Webster's Pennine Bitter as their predominant bitter brand, as it was rapidly declining in popularity due to it being perceived as an "old man beer", its bitterness and its availability in the by then unfashionable keg dispense. By 1984 Grand Metropolitan had transformed Yorkshire Bitter into a "massive" national brand, available in the company's 5,000 tied houses and 15,000 free houses. It was marketed as their response to the growing popularity of "Yorkshire bitter" in the south of England, particularly John Smith's, but also Tetley and Stones. Webster's Yorkshire Bitter was the most popular off trade bitter by 1985 with 18 per cent of the market. It had become the highest selling bitter in the south of England and the fifth best selling bitter nationally by 1989, helped not least in part by its competitive price. The beer was not without its critics, with the 1990 Good Beer Guide
describing it as "golden [in] colour, weak flavour[ed], reminiscent of a poor quality home brew – worty, bland, cloying, with a dirty finish on the tongue." In 1993 Yorkshire Bitter was reduced from 3.8 per cent alcohol by volume
to 3.5 per cent ABV
in order to save money on duty. In 1994 the beer journalist Michael Jackson
described Webster's beers as "light" and "faintly oily". That same year Webster's Yorkshire Bitter won Gold at the Brewing Industry International Awards in the 2.5-3.8 per cent ABV keg ale category.
When Scottish & Newcastle acquired the John Smith's and Webster's bitter brands as part of their takeover of Courage in 1995, the less popular Webster's brands were deprioritized, and virtually all marketing support ceased. Since then, the Webster's brands have occupied the "value" end of the market. In 1995-96, Yorkshire Bitter was still among the twenty five highest-selling beers in the UK, accounting for 0.8 per cent of all beer sales. In 1998 the Yorkshire Bitter packaging was changed to the current one, with the graphic of the brewery replaced by the signature of Samuel Webster and the legend: "over 150 years of brewing tradition". Between 2001 and 2007 sales declined from 80,000 to 40,000 barrels per year, and Roger Protz
has described the brand as "almost redundant.". The production of cask conditioned Webster's beer was ended in 2010. Green Label (3.2 per cent ABV) remains available in kegs
and Yorkshire Bitter (3.5 per cent ABV) is available in kegs and 500 ml cans. On the popular beer rating
site RateBeer Yorkshire Bitter is consistently ranked below similar bitters such as John Smith's and Tetley, but at a comparable level to Stones and Worthington. The Webster's recipes have informed the beers of the Copper Dragon Brewery
.
theme composer Ron Grainer
created the "Wee Sam Theme" that was used in the advertisements. Advertising was extended from Associated British Corporation
to include Granada Television
from 1967. In the 1963 film This Sporting Life
the slogan "Try Webster's Velvet Stout" is visible on the side of the rugby
ground stand, which was filmed at Wakefield
's Belle Vue
rugby stadium. Webster's Pennine Bitter had a number of memorable advertising campaigns. Perhaps its best known slogan was "Drives out the northern thirst" first used in 1970 and supported throughout the 1970s by a local television campaign featuring Yorkshire cricketer Fred Trueman
. In the advertisements, Trueman would breathe fire after drinking his pint of Pennine Bitter and say "We like things right in Yorkshire — like our beer. Webster's Pennine Bitter. Drives out the northern thirst." The Halifax Courier commented, "quite how the northern thirst was different to the southern equivalent was never explained by the TV ads and billboards." From 1979 the slogan ran: "Drink the Pennine way." The actor Peter Davison
followed as spokesman for Pennine Bitter until 1981. Davison was forced to depart when he acquired the titular role of Doctor Who when the Independent Broadcasting Authority
deemed it inappropriate for him to advertise beer whilst appearing in a programme that appealed to children.
Webster's Yorkshire Bitter was launched in 1982 with a Yorkshire-only television campaign that urged viewers to "Watch out for Webbo!". It continued to run until 1984. The comedian Charlie Williams
appeared in television advertisements for Yorkshire Bitter in 1984-85, which were the first adverts to showcase the new (and current) Webster's Yorkshire Bitter logo. One of the Williams advertisements featured a cameo from Yorkshire cricketers Fred Trueman and Ray Illingworth
. The Webster's Yorkshire Bitter "Talking horses" campaign ran from 1986 until 1992 with the slogan "It's right tasty is Webster's". Real dray horses were used during the 1980s, but sophisticated animatronic puppets were used during the 1990s. Between 1986–1988 £6.5 million was spent on advertising the brand; this was upped to £2 million each year for 1989 and 1990, and upped to £3 million in 1991. In 1992 the spend was reduced to £400,000, although this was still enough to make Webster's Yorkshire Bitter the tenth most advertised beer brand on television. The advertisements were an attempt to win back young drinkers who were increasingly drinking lager. They were ineffective however, as research found that drinkers found the campaign "at best, safe and boring and, at worst, offensive". The current slogan is "Perfect beers", a reversion to a slogan originally used from the 1920s until the 1960s.
orchestra to appear in Halifax to sell out audiences in 1966 and 1967. The Guardian
commented that their description of the venture as "Ale and Arty" was insufficient to deter it from running for a second year. In the summer of 1984 Webster's Yorkshire Bitter invested £100,000 into English cricket, with the aim of finding six fast bowlers by winter. From 1986 to 1992 Webster's sponsored the Bradford Bulls
rugby league
team, Dinnington Colliery Band
from 1987 to 1990, the UK Open darts
championship in 1989 and 1990, and the World Matchplay darts tournament in 1995 and 1996. Webster's also invested in sponsorships at several racecourses from the early 1970s until the early 1990s. In addition to this, they also supported other smaller sporting competitions, events and societies throughout Yorkshire. In 1988 (through Wilson's) the brewery sponsored the revival of the traditional pub game of log end darts
in the North West of England, and in 1991 it sponsored a revival of knur and spell in West Yorkshire.
Brewery
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....
founded in 1838 by Samuel Webster which operated at the Fountain Head Brewery in Halifax
Halifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
in the West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...
, England until 1996. Its two most famous brands, Webster's Green Label, a light mild
Mild ale
Mild ale is a low-gravity beer, or beer with a predominantly malty palate, that originated in Britain in the 17th century or earlier. Modern mild ales are mainly dark coloured with an abv of 3% to 3.6%, though there are lighter hued examples, as well as stronger examples reaching 6% abv and...
, and Yorkshire Bitter continue to be sold, although the cask conditioned versions were discontinued in 2010. Silvan Brands have owned the company since 2003 when they bought it from Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a "long alcoholic drinks" company with positions in 15 countries, including UK, France and Russia. It was headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. In the last 20 years, S&N expanded significantly from its home base to become an international business with beer...
. The company's tied estate
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" :...
concentrated on its Halifax heartland, and then spread throughout West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
. The brand spread to other areas 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...
following the company's takeover by the national brewer Watney Mann in 1972, and by the 1980s Webster's beers were available across the country. Perhaps their most famous advertising slogan was 'Drives out the northern thirst'. Webster's was also known for its sponsorship of numerous sporting events throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, particularly cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and horse racing.
The brewery was closed with the loss of hundreds of jobs due to overcapacity in the brewing industry, but also lower sales as a result of diminished marketing support for the Webster's brand after it was acquired by Courage Brewery as part of its takeover of the Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan plc is a former United Kingdom-based company operating hotels, holiday centres, entertainment centres, public houses and casinos...
beer brands. After the brewery's closure, Webster's branded beers were initially brewed at the John Smith's Brewery
John Smith's Brewery
John Smith's is a brewery founded in 1758 by Backhouse & Hartley at Tadcaster in North Yorkshire, England. John Smith bought the brewery in 1847. John Smith's is the sixth highest selling beer brand in the United Kingdom, and the highest selling ale brand. The brewery is currently owned by...
in Tadcaster
Tadcaster
Tadcaster is a market town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England. Lying on the Great North Road approximately east of Leeds and west of York. It is the last town on the River Wharfe before it joins the River Ouse about downstream...
, and were subsequently moved to the Thomas Hardy Brewery at Burtonwood
Burtonwood
Burtonwood and Westbrook is a civil parish in the outermost suburbs of Warrington in Cheshire, England. Historically within Lancashire, the name Burtonwood is known worldwide as the location of the former RAF Station Burtonwood military camp. Burtonwood village itself is a few miles away from the...
in 2004. The former brewery site has since been converted into a housing estate, the Grade II listed Old Maltings building has been converted into an adult learning centre and the former visitor's centre, located in a seventeeth century building, into a pub called Long Can Hall. Some public houses in the Halifax area still retain Webster's branding, although very few still sell Webster's beers.
Origins: 1838-1900
Samuel Webster (1813–1872) was born in OvendenOvenden
Ovenden is a village in the county of West Yorkshire, England, located next to Boothtown and Illingworth and about 1 mile from Halifax town centre.Ovenden had a railway station, originally on the Halifax and Ovenden Junction Railway line...
, a small village located about 2 mi from Halifax town centre. He was the eldest of seven brothers born into a Congregationalist family; his father was a farmer who owned 10 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s of land. Webster acquired the small Fountain Head Brewery in Ovenden Wood in 1838 when he was just 25, and opened an office in Union Cross Yard, Halifax. The site had been chosen for its Pennine spring which would provide the water used to brew Webster's products until the brewery's closure. The water was rich in magnesium sulphate, which added bitterness to the beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
, and provided it with a dry finish. Initially only supplying the free trade (public houses not tied to one particular brewer), by 1845 Webster had bought his first public house. By 1848 the firm had earned itself a reputation as the premier brewer in the north of England, although it ought to be noted that brewers in the north tended to very small at this time. In 1860 he was joined in partnership
Partnership
A partnership is an arrangement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests.Since humans are social beings, partnerships between individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments, and varied combinations thereof, have always been and remain commonplace...
by his three sons, Isaac, George Henry and Samuel Green, and the firm began trading as Samuel Webster & Sons. After Webster's death in 1872 his sons continued the family business. In 1873, increasing demand led the company to extend and redevelop the brewery. The firm also imported and sold wines and cigars, in addition to its brewing business.
By 1880 the company had purchased its 100th tied house
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 March 1890 Samuel Webster & Sons became a registered company, with £175,000 (£17.5 million in 2010) of capital, and Isaac Webster, Samuel's eldest son, its first chairman. That same year the brewery was connected to the railway network, facilitating transportation of their products. In 1892 net profit was £20,000 (£2 million). In 1896 the company took over H & T T Ormerod of Brighouse
Brighouse
Brighouse is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the River Calder, east of Halifax in the Pennines. It is served by Junction 25 of the M62 motorway and Brighouse railway station on the Caldervale Line and Huddersfield Line. In the...
, West Yorkshire which could trace its origins back to 1760, and the Northgate Hotel in Halifax. Isaac Webster died in 1899, leaving an estate of £87,454 (£9 million). In 1900 the Maltings building was built as part of a £10,000 (£1 million) development project. It was designed by William Chambers
William Chambers (architect)
Sir William Chambers was a Scottish architect, born in Gothenburg, Sweden, where his father was a merchant. Between 1740 and 1749 he was employed by the Swedish East India Company making several voyages to China where he studied Chinese architecture and decoration.Returning to Europe, he studied...
, and remains a landmark of the Ovenden valley. By this time the company's office had moved to 57 Northgate, Halifax. At the turn of the century Calderdale
Calderdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, through which the upper part of the River Calder flows, and from which it takes its name...
could boast 25 breweries.
20th-century consolidation
The temperance movement of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, and emergency laws aimed at restricting drinking during the First World War created difficult trading conditions for brewers. In 1919 net profit was reported at £22,325 (£900,000 at 2010 prices). Samuel Wentworth Webster, a director of the company and grandson of the founder, died in 1928 with a personalty of £45,000 (£2.2 million in 2010). In 1929, the company's entire stock of properties, land and brewery buildings was valued at £468,833 (£23.2 million in 2010). The company took over Joseph Stocks of Halifax in December 1932, which could trace its origins back to 1790. By the 1950s only four Calderdale breweries survived: Webster's, Ramsden's, Whitaker's and Fielding's. In 1957 Webster's took over John Ainley & Sons of HuddersfieldHuddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
and Woodhead Brothers of Elland
Elland
Elland is a market town in Calderdale, in the county of West Yorkshire, England, south of Halifax, by the River Calder and the Calder and Hebble Navigation. The area of Elland was called Elant in the Domesday Book...
, near Halifax, a mineral water manufacturer. By 1958 the Northgate offices were proving insufficient for the brewery's increasing needs, and new offices were built on the Ovenden Wood site. The spring which was the sole source of water for the brewery was repeatedly dammed in order to ensure a continuous supply during the summer months. In 1960 the maltings was responsible for malt production of 6000 quarters (8000 kilograms) per annum, however it was closed shortly afterwards as it could no longer supply the brewery's increasing demand for malt. In 1961 Webster's bought Daniel Fielding & Sons of Halifax, which added 19 public houses to their tied estate. The same year the company sought out partnership with the national brewer Watney Mann in order to gain technical knowledge. In return, Webster's brewed and sold the brewery conditioned Watney's Red Barrel ale
Ale
Ale is a type of beer brewed from malted barley using a warm fermentation with a strain of brewers' yeast. The yeast will ferment the beer quickly, giving it a sweet, full bodied and fruity taste...
throughout their tied estate. In 1962 a reciprocal trading agreement was reached with Ind Coope's North East division which saw Webster's houses stock lager
Lager
Lager is a type of beer made from malted barley that is brewed and stored at low temperatures. There are many types of lager; pale lager is the most widely-consumed and commercially available style of beer in the world; Pilsner, Bock, Dortmunder Export and Märzen are all styles of lager...
for the first time. That same year the group won the contract to bottle Tuborg for West Yorkshire. In 1966 a friendly takeover of the Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
brewers J. Hey & Company Limited added 73 public houses to their estate. Webster's was valued at £3.3 million, and J. Hey valued at £1 million. The combined group had assets of over £4.5 million (£65 million in 2010 prices). Throughout the 1960s and early 70s, the company had never been more successful, owing its continued success to consolidation in the industry, a good product and successful marketing. The social club trade was incredibly important to the company, accounting for half of 1968's £5 million turnover. In 1969 with the takeover and closure of Richard Whitaker & Sons by Whitbread
Whitbread
Whitbread PLC is a global hotel, coffee shop and restaurant company headquartered in Dunstable, United Kingdom. Its largest division is Premier Inn, which is the largest hotel brand in the UK with around 580 hotels and over 40,000 rooms. Its Costa Coffee chain has around 1,600 stores across 25...
Webster's became the last company still brewing in the Calderdale area. The company's flamboyant chairman from 1950 and the grandson of Isaac Webster, John "Tommy" Roderick Giulio Marchetti died in 1969.
By 1967 Watney Mann owned 18.4 per cent of the company, and Webster's had a market capitalization of £6 million (£85 million in 2010 prices) and owned 320 public houses and 12 off licenses. Watney Mann had gradually increased their share to 27.1 per cent by 1972 when it initiated a takeover of the rest of the company. Samuel Webster & Sons owned around 280 tied houses, and was offered £18 million for the 73 per cent of the company that Watney did not already own. The Watney Mann offer valued the entire company at almost £250 million in 2010 prices. The takeover was a friendly one, and dependent upon the agreement of the Webster family, who owned 20 per cent of the company. Geoffrey Hirst
Geoffrey Hirst
Geoffrey Audus Nicholson Hirst TD was a British industrialist and politician who was a maverick Conservative Member of Parliament.-Early career:...
was also present on the board of directors. Watney Mann was motivated by an increase to their pub estate (the number of pubs they owned). Following the takeover, Webster's continued as a regional subsidiary of the Watney Mann brewing empire, responsible for Yorkshire, Humberside
Humberside
Humberside was a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in Northern England from 1 April 1974 until 1 April 1996. It was composed of land from either side of the Humber Estuary, created from portions of the East and West ridings of Yorkshire and parts of Lindsey, Lincolnshire...
, north Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
and north Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
. The takeover was a great boon for Webster's as Watney Mann invested heavily in the brewery, commissioning a new brewhouse in 1973, and the Webster's brands enjoyed increased distribution nationally. That same year, Watney Mann itself was taken over by Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan plc is a former United Kingdom-based company operating hotels, holiday centres, entertainment centres, public houses and casinos...
. Sales for 1976-77 were £24.2 million against £21.9 million the previous year; pre-tax profit was £3.15 million versus £3.39 million. In 1979 a new £6 million lager plant was started, initially brewing Holsten. That year, Webster's employed 1500 people in the production, distribution and retailing of beers, wines and spirits throughout Yorkshire.
In 1980 the company reported a pre tax profit of £3.65 million (£12.2 million in 2010 prices) against sales of £46.8 million (£160 million). During the early 1980s, Webster's had beer production volumes of around 400,000 barrels per annum, and the brewery employed around 600 people. The early 1980s saw the "gradual transformation" of Webster's into a national brand. At the same time, the brewery was described as "wonderfully traditional" and had open fermentation vessels, mash tuns and copper brewing vessels. Production of Budweiser
Budweiser
Budweiser is a German adjective describing something or someone from the city of České Budějovice in Southern Bohemia, Czech Republic.Beer brewing in České Budějovice dates back to the 13th century...
began in 1984. In that year Webster's tied estate consisted of 7 per cent of Yorkshire's pubs, compared with John Smith's 15 per cent and Tetley's
Tetley's Brewery
Tetley's Brewery was a large brewery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The main product was Tetley's Bitter, although Skol and other beers were also made there.-History:...
14 per cent. As a result the company remained dependent on the free trade for the majority of its sales. In 1985 Grand Met merged the Wilson Brewery of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
(which Watney Mann had bought in 1960) with Webster's to form Samuel Webster and Wilsons Ltd. In 1986 the Wilsons Brewery was closed down with the loss of 237 jobs and production of Wilsons Original Bitter and Wilsons Mild was moved to Halifax. By 1987 brewery capacity was extended from 1 million barrels a year to 1.3 million barrels, and by 1988 Webster's was supplying around 1000 pubs in the north of England, and as far afield as Deganwy
Deganwy
Deganwy is a village in Conwy County Borough in Wales with a population of 3,700. It is in a more English-speaking region of North Wales, with only 1 in 4 residents speaking Welsh as a first language...
in North Wales. Also in 1988 the historic Long Can Hall was purchased to serve as the brewery's visitor's centre. In 1989 the Old Maltings was converted into brewery offices. As part of it disposal of non-core assets, Grand Met sold Webster's to Courage
Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a "long alcoholic drinks" company with positions in 15 countries, including UK, France and Russia. It was headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. In the last 20 years, S&N expanded significantly from its home base to become an international business with beer...
in 1990. By that year Webster's had an annual revenue of around £100 million and claimed 7 per cent of the national bitter market. The vast proportion of the Fountain Head Brewery's 1.3 million barrel capacity was dedicated to brewing Webster's and Wilsons ales. However Courage also owned the more popular John Smith's ale brand, and Webster's was deprioritized. John Smith's was the fourth best selling bitter in the country in 1990 and Webster's the sixth, so the decision was an obvious one. The brands suffered further after the Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a "long alcoholic drinks" company with positions in 15 countries, including UK, France and Russia. It was headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. In the last 20 years, S&N expanded significantly from its home base to become an international business with beer...
takeover of Courage, as S&N already owned a large number of ale brands, and a third Yorkshire bitter brand in Theakstons
Theakston Brewery
T&R Theakston is a British regional brewery located in the town of Masham, North Yorkshire, England. They are the sixteenth largest brewer in the UK by market share, and the second largest brewer under family ownership after Shepherd Neame.-History:...
. Despite early success when it had been the only major ale brand in a national brewer's portfolio, in 1996 Scotland on Sunday
Scotland on Sunday
Scotland on Sunday is a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published in Edinburgh by The Scotsman Publications Ltd and consequently assuming the role of Sunday sister to its daily stablemate The Scotsman...
described the beer as "staid" and argued that it "never caught on outside its Yorkshire heartland." With the withdrawal of Webster's marketing support, John Smith's was outselling it three to one by 1996.
Closure
In 1991 it was speculated that the brewery would be closed down due to overcapacity in the brewing industry. The brewery's bottling line was closed in 1991, with the loss of 54 jobs, but the brewery itself survived for another five years. At the time of its closure in November 1996, the brewery had employed 184 people on a site that had extended to ten hectareHectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
s. As well as Webster's and Wilson's beers, the brewery had been producing the lager brands Foster's
Foster's Lager
Foster's Lager is an internationally distributed Australian brand of 5.0% abv pale lager, It is a product of Foster's Group brewed under licence in several countries, including the U.S. and Russia...
and Molson
Molson
Molson-Coors Canada Inc. is the Canadian division of the world's fifth-largest brewing company, the Molson Coors Brewing Company. It is the second oldest company in Canada after the Hudson's Bay Company. Molson's first brewery was located on the St...
. The brewery had been running at "well below" 50 per cent of its 1.3 million barrel capacity which was deemed "unsustainable". Although productivity per employee had been the highest of any of Scottish & Newcastle's brewing plants it was argued that the brewery would have required substantial investment if it was to remain competitive. The Campaign for Real Ale
Campaign for Real Ale
The Campaign for Real Ale is an independent voluntary consumer organisation based in St Albans, England, whose main aims are promoting real ale, real cider and the traditional British pub...
argued that the closure of the brewery could have been avoided if the Webster's and Wilsons brands had been better managed. The site is now taken up by residential housing, whilst the Grade II listed Long Can Hall has been converted into a restaurant and the Grade II listed Old Maltings building has been converted into an adult learning centre. Following the closure, Webster's beers were initially brewed at Scottish Courage's John Smith's Brewery in Tadcaster
Tadcaster
Tadcaster is a market town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England. Lying on the Great North Road approximately east of Leeds and west of York. It is the last town on the River Wharfe before it joins the River Ouse about downstream...
, but were subsequently moved to the Thomas Hardy Brewery at Burtonwood
Burtonwood
Burtonwood and Westbrook is a civil parish in the outermost suburbs of Warrington in Cheshire, England. Historically within Lancashire, the name Burtonwood is known worldwide as the location of the former RAF Station Burtonwood military camp. Burtonwood village itself is a few miles away from the...
in 2004. Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a "long alcoholic drinks" company with positions in 15 countries, including UK, France and Russia. It was headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. In the last 20 years, S&N expanded significantly from its home base to become an international business with beer...
continued to provide funding for a former employees' annual Christmas lunch until 2003, when the Webster's brands were sold to Silvan Brands as part of the firm's strategy of disposing of non-core brands. The chairman Brian Stewart remarked following the disposal that "Webster's was a brand that did not have a strong brand franchise. What has happened is that brands [which] consumers demand are still here - like Courage, Newcastle Exhibition and McEwan's." Heineken UK have since sold the Courage and McEwan's brands to Wells & Youngs.
Main
Launched in 1928, by the 1950s the bottled light mild Green Label (4.2 per cent ABV) was Webster's most popular beer. At this time, bottled beers accounted for around half of all beer sales at the brewery, which reflected the national trend. Due to its popularity, Green Label was introduced as a keg beer in 1974, replacing Webster's Best. It was made with Styrian Goldings hopHop (plant)
Humulus, Hop, is a small genus of flowering plants native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The female flowers of H. lupulus are known as hops, and are used as a culinary flavoring and stabilizer, especially in the brewing of beer...
s. Pennine Bitter was introduced in April 1963 as Webster's first bitter brand as the style gained in popularity. It was a high quality product and slightly stronger than most of its rivals. It had a floral character as a result of the hops used, which were likely a variety of Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
Goldings and despite its name was created in the style of a Kentish bitter. Green Label light mild had such a strong following in the Halifax area that it was not until the 1970s that Pennine Bitter was made generally available there. "Pennine light mild" was a popular style unique to the Heavy Woollen District
Heavy Woollen District
The Heavy Woollen District is named because of the heavyweight cloth manufactured in an area of West Yorkshire, England. Dewsbury, Batley, Heckmondwike and Ossett are the core of the area. Liversedge, Gomersal, Gildersome, Birkenshaw, Mirfield, Cleckheaton, Morley, Tingley, East Ardsley, Birstall...
; other popular brands included Timothy Taylor Golden Best and Tetley Falstaff (which was previously brewed by Ramsden's of Halifax prior to their takeover by Tetley). By the 1970s, Pennine Bitter and Green Label were firmly established as the predominant Webster's brands. In 1984 Green Label sold 90,000 barrels in Yorkshire alone.
Webster's Yorkshire Bitter (3.8 per cent ABV) was launched in the summer of 1982 in both cask and keg form, replacing Webster's Pennine Bitter as their predominant bitter brand, as it was rapidly declining in popularity due to it being perceived as an "old man beer", its bitterness and its availability in the by then unfashionable keg dispense. By 1984 Grand Metropolitan had transformed Yorkshire Bitter into a "massive" national brand, available in the company's 5,000 tied houses and 15,000 free houses. It was marketed as their response to the growing popularity of "Yorkshire bitter" in the south of England, particularly John Smith's, but also Tetley and Stones. Webster's Yorkshire Bitter was the most popular off trade bitter by 1985 with 18 per cent of the market. It had become the highest selling bitter in the south of England and the fifth best selling bitter nationally by 1989, helped not least in part by its competitive price. The beer was not without its critics, with the 1990 Good Beer Guide
Good Beer Guide
The Good Beer Guide is a book published annually by the Campaign for Real Ale listing what they consider to be the best cask ale outlets in the United Kingdom.-Details:...
describing it as "golden [in] colour, weak flavour[ed], reminiscent of a poor quality home brew – worty, bland, cloying, with a dirty finish on the tongue." In 1993 Yorkshire Bitter was reduced from 3.8 per cent alcohol by volume
Alcohol by volume
Alcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol is contained in an alcoholic beverage .The ABV standard is used worldwide....
to 3.5 per cent 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...
in order to save money on duty. In 1994 the beer journalist Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson (writer)
Michael Jackson was an English writer and journalist. He was the author of several influential books about beer and whisky.-Life:...
described Webster's beers as "light" and "faintly oily". That same year Webster's Yorkshire Bitter won Gold at the Brewing Industry International Awards in the 2.5-3.8 per cent ABV keg ale category.
When Scottish & Newcastle acquired the John Smith's and Webster's bitter brands as part of their takeover of Courage in 1995, the less popular Webster's brands were deprioritized, and virtually all marketing support ceased. Since then, the Webster's brands have occupied the "value" end of the market. In 1995-96, Yorkshire Bitter was still among the twenty five highest-selling beers in the UK, accounting for 0.8 per cent of all beer sales. In 1998 the Yorkshire Bitter packaging was changed to the current one, with the graphic of the brewery replaced by the signature of Samuel Webster and the legend: "over 150 years of brewing tradition". Between 2001 and 2007 sales declined from 80,000 to 40,000 barrels per year, and Roger Protz
Roger Protz
Roger Protz is a British writer, journalist and campaigner. He was an early member of the Campaign for Real Ale in 1971, and has written several books on beer and pubs...
has described the brand as "almost redundant.". The production of cask conditioned Webster's beer was ended in 2010. Green Label (3.2 per cent ABV) remains available in kegs
KEGS
KEGS may refer to:* King Edward's School, or King Edward's Grammar School** King Edward VI Aston, also known as KEGS Aston** King Edward VI Camp Hill, also known as KEGS Camp Hill** King Edward VI Grammar School , also known as KEGS Chelmsford...
and Yorkshire Bitter (3.5 per cent ABV) is available in kegs and 500 ml cans. On the popular beer rating
Beer rating
Beer rating is assessing and evaluating beer using a point system. The process is similar to that used in beer judging competitions, such as those organised by the Beer Judge Certification Program in America, though the participants are consumers so it may be termed a score-rated recommendation...
site RateBeer Yorkshire Bitter is consistently ranked below similar bitters such as John Smith's and Tetley, but at a comparable level to Stones and Worthington. The Webster's recipes have informed the beers of the Copper Dragon Brewery
Copper Dragon Brewery
Copper Dragon Brewery is a brewery located in Skipton, North Yorkshire. They started brewing in 2002 and produce five different cask beers, all of which are also available bottled...
.
Minor
In 1955 Webster's introduced the bottled Sam Brown Ale (2.8 per cent ABV), although its strength was upped to 3.4 per cent ABV by the 1980s. The following year Webster's launched bottled Velvet Stout (2.9 per cent ABV) as a competitor to Mackeson Stout. By the 1980s its strength had been increased to 4.2 per cent ABV, making it more of a competitor to Guinness. Data indicates that the Webster's range in the 1950s was watery. The bottled beer brands were discontinued following the closure of the Webster's bottling plant in 1991. In 1983 a Webster's Dark Mild, brewed to OG 1031.0, was launched in both cask and keg form, and was available until the early 1990s. During the 1970s Webster's Reserve was available, a strong draught keg beer. It was replaced in the mid 1980s by cask conditioned Samuel Websters Choice (4.6 per cent ABV), which was itself discontinued around 1992. Only pubs which were deemed to keep the best cellar conditions were allowed to sell it. In 1988 a commemorative beer was brewed to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the brewery. In 1989 a short-lived low alcohol version of Webster's Yorkshire Bitter was launched, called Webster's XL.Advertising
Webster's utilized local television advertising for Green Label from 1961-66, with animated films featuring the character of "Wee Sam". In 1964 the Doctor WhoDoctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
theme composer Ron Grainer
Ron Grainer
Ronald Erle “Ron” Grainer was an Australian-born composer who worked for most of his professional career in the United Kingdom. He is mostly remembered for his film and television music.- Biography :...
created the "Wee Sam Theme" that was used in the advertisements. Advertising was extended from Associated British Corporation
Associated British Corporation
Associated British Corporation was one of a number of commercial television companies established in the United Kingdom during the 1950s by cinema chain companies in an attempt to safeguard their business by becoming involved with television which was taking away their cinema audiences.In this...
to include Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
from 1967. In the 1963 film This Sporting Life
This Sporting Life
This Sporting Life is a 1963 British film based on a novel of the same name by David Storey which won the 1960 Macmillan Fiction Award. It tells the story of a rugby league footballer, Frank Machin, in Wakefield, a mining area of Yorkshire, whose romantic life is not as successful as his sporting...
the slogan "Try Webster's Velvet Stout" is visible on the side of the rugby
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
ground stand, which was filmed at Wakefield
Wakefield
Wakefield is the main settlement and administrative centre of the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district of West Yorkshire, England. Located by the River Calder on the eastern edge of the Pennines, the urban area is and had a population of 76,886 in 2001....
's Belle Vue
Belle Vue (Wakefield)
Belle Vue is a rugby league stadium in Wakefield, England. It is the home stadium of Wakefield Trinity Wildcats. It is located beside the A638 Doncaster Road, approximately one mile south of Wakefield City Centre.- Description :Currently, the East stand has a covered stand with seating, with some...
rugby stadium. Webster's Pennine Bitter had a number of memorable advertising campaigns. Perhaps its best known slogan was "Drives out the northern thirst" first used in 1970 and supported throughout the 1970s by a local television campaign featuring Yorkshire cricketer Fred Trueman
Fred Trueman
Frederick Sewards Trueman OBE was an English cricketer, generally acknowledged as one of the greatest fast bowlers in history. A bowler of genuinely fast pace who was widely known as Fiery Fred, Trueman played first-class cricket for Yorkshire County Cricket Club from 1949 until he retired in 1968...
. In the advertisements, Trueman would breathe fire after drinking his pint of Pennine Bitter and say "We like things right in Yorkshire — like our beer. Webster's Pennine Bitter. Drives out the northern thirst." The Halifax Courier commented, "quite how the northern thirst was different to the southern equivalent was never explained by the TV ads and billboards." From 1979 the slogan ran: "Drink the Pennine way." The actor Peter Davison
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is a British actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small and the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1982 to 1984.-Early life:Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham,...
followed as spokesman for Pennine Bitter until 1981. Davison was forced to depart when he acquired the titular role of Doctor Who when the Independent Broadcasting Authority
Independent Broadcasting Authority
The Independent Broadcasting Authority was the regulatory body in the United Kingdom for commercial television - and commercial/independent radio broadcasts...
deemed it inappropriate for him to advertise beer whilst appearing in a programme that appealed to children.
Webster's Yorkshire Bitter was launched in 1982 with a Yorkshire-only television campaign that urged viewers to "Watch out for Webbo!". It continued to run until 1984. The comedian Charlie Williams
Charlie Williams (comedian)
Charles Adolphus Williams MBE was a mixed-race English professional footballer , and later became Britain's first well-known black stand-up comedian.He became famous from his appearances on Granada Television's The Comedians and ATV's The Golden Shot, delivering...
appeared in television advertisements for Yorkshire Bitter in 1984-85, which were the first adverts to showcase the new (and current) Webster's Yorkshire Bitter logo. One of the Williams advertisements featured a cameo from Yorkshire cricketers Fred Trueman and Ray Illingworth
Ray Illingworth
Raymond Illingworth, CBE is a former English cricketer, cricket commentator and cricket administrator. He was one of only nine players to have taken 2,000 wickets and made 20,000 runs in First class cricket, and the last one to do so...
. The Webster's Yorkshire Bitter "Talking horses" campaign ran from 1986 until 1992 with the slogan "It's right tasty is Webster's". Real dray horses were used during the 1980s, but sophisticated animatronic puppets were used during the 1990s. Between 1986–1988 £6.5 million was spent on advertising the brand; this was upped to £2 million each year for 1989 and 1990, and upped to £3 million in 1991. In 1992 the spend was reduced to £400,000, although this was still enough to make Webster's Yorkshire Bitter the tenth most advertised beer brand on television. The advertisements were an attempt to win back young drinkers who were increasingly drinking lager. They were ineffective however, as research found that drinkers found the campaign "at best, safe and boring and, at worst, offensive". The current slogan is "Perfect beers", a reversion to a slogan originally used from the 1920s until the 1960s.
Sponsorship
Under the influence of Tommy Marchetti the company sponsored The HalléThe Hallé
The Hallé is a symphony orchestra based in Manchester, England. It is the UK's oldest extant symphony orchestra , supports a choir, youth choir and a youth orchestra, and releases its recordings on its own record label, though it has occasionally released recordings on Angel Records and EMI...
orchestra to appear in Halifax to sell out audiences in 1966 and 1967. The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
commented that their description of the venture as "Ale and Arty" was insufficient to deter it from running for a second year. In the summer of 1984 Webster's Yorkshire Bitter invested £100,000 into English cricket, with the aim of finding six fast bowlers by winter. From 1986 to 1992 Webster's sponsored the Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
team, Dinnington Colliery Band
Dinnington Colliery Band
The Dinnington Colliery Band is a traditional British brass band from Yorkshire, England, founded in 1904 and also known as the Dinnington Main and Middleton prize brass band for some of its history...
from 1987 to 1990, the UK Open darts
Darts
Darts is a form of throwing game where darts are thrown at a circular target fixed to a wall. Though various boards and games have been used in the past, the term "darts" usually now refers to a standardised game involving a specific board design and set of rules...
championship in 1989 and 1990, and the World Matchplay darts tournament in 1995 and 1996. Webster's also invested in sponsorships at several racecourses from the early 1970s until the early 1990s. In addition to this, they also supported other smaller sporting competitions, events and societies throughout Yorkshire. In 1988 (through Wilson's) the brewery sponsored the revival of the traditional pub game of log end darts
Darts
Darts is a form of throwing game where darts are thrown at a circular target fixed to a wall. Though various boards and games have been used in the past, the term "darts" usually now refers to a standardised game involving a specific board design and set of rules...
in the North West of England, and in 1991 it sponsored a revival of knur and spell in West Yorkshire.
Further reading
- Not Disheartened by Difficulty, a History of the Fountain Head Brewery (Reference Department of Halifax Central Library).
- Reader, W.J., Grand Metropolitan: A History 1962–1987, Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780198229766