Adnams Brewery

Adnams PLC is a British regional brewery in Southwold, Suffolk, England.

History

Adnams Brewery was founded in 1872 when George and Ernest Adnams bought the Sole Bay Brewery in Southwold. The company was incorporated in 1890, has remained independent since then, producing a range of beers for distribution mainly in East Anglia. At the beginning of 2004, Adnams purchased land in neighbouring town of Reydon to expand its business with a new distribution centre, which was nominated for the 2007 RICS East of England Award for Sustainability [cite web|url=http://www.rics.org/AboutRICS/Awards/RICSAwards/AwardsEntries07.html|title=Entries for the RICS East of England Awards|date=2007-04-19|accessdate=2007-05-12] .

The earliest recorded brewing on the site of Adnams was in 1396 by Johanna de Corby. The present brewery was taken over by George and Ernest Adnams in 1872 and turned into a public company in 1890. The Adnams family was joined by the Loftus family in 1902, and Adnams still has members of each family on the board, with Jonathan Adnams as chairman and Simon Loftus as a non-executive director.

In 1993 Adnams Extra won the presitigious Champion Beer of Britain (also known as CBOB) - an award presented by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), at their annual Great British Beer Festival.

Adnams remains committed to brewing cask ale and operating non-themed pubs. Cask ale is available in all its 70 pubs and it supplies more than 1000 other outlets direct. New fermenting vessels were installed in 2001-3 to cope with demand and the brewhouse was completely re-equipped in 2006-7, making it one of the most energy efficient in Europe.

Brief details

s.

Casks of Adnams ale used to be delivered to the pubs of Southwold by horse and dray until September 2006 when the distribution center was moved to a new location two miles outside the town.

Adnams' most recent advertising campaign has the slogan: "Beer from the Coast". Adnams is also a major regional wine merchant and pub company.

The company founded a charity, "The Adnams Charity" [cite web|url=http://www.charitycommission.gov.uk/registeredcharities/showcharity.asp?remchar=&chyno=1000203|title=UK Charity Commission - The Adnams Charity|date=2007-05-17|accessdate-2007-05-12] , in 1990 to celebrate its centenary as a public company. A percentage of the company's annual profits is used to support worthwhile causes within a 25 mile radius of Southwold.

Beers

Infobox Brewery
name = Adnams PLC


caption =
location = Sole Bay Brewery East Green Southwold Suffolk IP18 6JW
coordinates = coord|52.328|1.680|display=inline,title
owners = Adnams has more than 1000 shareholders
opened = 1890
production =
active_beers =
seasonal_beers =
other_beers = Adnams produce three regular cask ales, six seasonal ales, and three pasteurised bottled beers ( [http://www.beerfromthecoast.co.uk/beers_from_the_coast.html list] ):

Regular Beers

;The Bitter: 3.7% session bitter, a regular beer.;Broadside: 4.7% premium bitter, a regular beer.;Explorer: 4.3% best bitter. Introduced in 2004 as a summer seasonal; became a regular beer from February 2006.

easonal

;Oyster Stout: 4.3% winter stout, available February and March. Made from East Anglian Pale Ale Malt, Crystal Malt, Chocolate Malt, roasted Barley and English Golding hops.;May Day: 5.0% golden ale, available April and May. With East Anglian Pale Ale malt, and hopped with 'First Gold'.;Regatta: 4.3% golden ale for summer, available April through August.;Old Ale: "a cold weather beer" (alcohol content not yet known), currently October 2008 to December 2008 (introduced October 2006);Yuletide: 4.5%, a Christmas beer, available from mid-November. Brewed with Maris Otter, Chocolate and Amber Malts and Boadicea & Chinook Hops.;Tally Ho: 7.0% barley wine, very limited, available December 2008.

Currently unavailable

;Barley Mow: 5.0% amber ale, rich and full-bodied.;East Green: 4.3%, a carbon neutral beer. [ [http://about.adnams.co.uk/post/News/2008/04/East-Green.aspx East Green – the first carbon neutral beer from the coast] ] with a lighter bottle made with 15% reycled glass. From 22nd April 2008.

Bottles

;The Bitter: formerly "Suffolk Strong Ale" – 4.5% bottled version of the retired cask "Extra".;Explorer: 5.5% bottled ale which, like the cask "Explorer," is a blend of English and American styles.;Broadside: 6.3% bottled strong ale.

References

External links

* [http://www.adnams.co.uk/ Adnams company website]
* [http://www.beerfromthecoast.co.uk/ Adnams brewery website]
* [http://www.hoarelea.com/projects/Project.cfm?Sector_id=13&content_id=121 Hoare Lea description of the environmentally friendly distribution center]
* [http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/news_detail.aspx?articleid=25935 Simon Loftus OBE] Morning Advertiser