subject: A History Of Brewing In Burton Upon Trent [print this page] Burton on Trent is a large town that is located on the banks of the River Trent in the heart of England. Burton-on-Trent or Burton is the home of the countrys brewing industry. Some 15% of all the beer drunk in the UK comes from here. But how did Burton become a world brewing capital? There are three main reasons that can be given as an answer to this question.
The first reason is that there was something in the water. The areas water supply, which percolates up through gypsum beds, is rich in calcium and magnesium. This allowed a greater proportion of hops, a natural preservative, to be included in the beer, thereby allowing the beer to be shipped further afield.The town originally grew around the monastery of St. Modwen, and the monks realized the water had special qualities for the famous local beer. This water was well suited for brewing bitter beer, so much that the ale brewers around the world burtonize their water by purifying it, then adding hardening agents. In fact, much
The second reason is the transportation. The Trent & Mersey Canal turned Burton into an inland port, making it possible to ship ale to Russia and India. Brewers were able to export their beers throughout the British Empire thanks to the development of rail links to Liverpool.
The third reason is that there were men who came there to make a fortune as beer barons. At one time, this town had 30 breweries that together accounted for a of the nations beer production. Today, the town still has three brewers The Bridge Brewery (a small local brewery), Marstons, and Coors from the USA who took over the Bass Brewery in 2002. Burton Bridge brewery is the only remaining independent brewery.
Previous to the bitter, darker beers like porter and stout were popular but soon pale ales took their place as people preferred a lighter beer taste. This new beer was extensively favored by the larger breweries, as it was easier to store and transport.
A by-product of the brewing industry, figuratively and literally, is the presence of the famous British icon Marmite factory in the town. This in turn generated the production of Bovril. Both are owned by the multinational Unilever.
The Leading Brewers
The town's connection with the brewing industry is celebrated by a sculpture of the Burton Cooper, which is now housed in the Cooper Square shopping centre.
Because of the success of his brewery, Michael Thomas Bass became a national figure, and in its obituary notice of 1884 The Times called him 'the prince of brewers' locally he was styled 'the Burton Patriarch'
The leading brewers preferred to display their wealth in erecting and endowing Anglican churches, both in the town and the outlying villages for example, John Gretton (d. 1867) paid for a church opened at Winshill in 1869 Michael Thomas Bass for St. Paul's in Burton in 1874 and the 1905 All Saints church.
The number of breweries in Burton on Trent is now significantly lower than it was some years ago, but the town still brews some of the world's finest beers and lagers.
