The decision by
Danish brewing giant
Carlsberg to close the historic
Marston’s brewery in
Burton-on-Trent next summer, though long anticipated,
still feels driven by profit and corporate greed.
Carlsberg cited the familiar reason of a steep and sustained decline in cask
ale consumption across the UK. Data shows that by the mid-2020s, cask ale
volumes in Britain had more than halved in less than a decade, with consumption
continuing to fall year on year. The multinational claimed this collapse made
it increasingly difficult to justify running large traditional ale breweries
like Marston’s, presenting this harsh reality as the main reason behind the
closure.
For me, this is a deeply poignant and sad moment.
Marston's brewery in
Burton-on-Trent was the
first brewery I ever visited back in the
mid-1970s as a
student. That tour sparked my lasting interest in beer and brewing, so to see
this splendid old
Victorian era brewery vanish into rubble is particularly
galling, even if it reflects the times we live in.
Carlsberg’s involvement with
Marston’s came after a series of takeovers, and
Marston's should have known better than to align with such a ruthless and
predatory company. Before targeting
Marston’s, Carlsberg had already closed the
150-year-old
Banks brewery in
Wolverhampton, citing similar market pressures
and transferring production to
Burton. Observers should have seen this earlier
closure as a sign of further consolidation and
Carlsberg’s ruthless readiness
to dispose of historic ale sites.
The so-called strategic portfolio shift is somewhat of a joke, as
Carlsberg
aims to focus on growth categories and streamline operations, prioritising brands like
Hobgoblin, McEwan’s, and
Brooklyn as worthy of continued support.
(
McEwans anyone? And
Brooklyn – that’s American, keg pish, surely?) Other cask and regional ales are to be sold to specialists or local
owners—though there aren’t many left—making this corporate rhetoric from
Copenhagen seem rather hollow. It signals a move away from maintaining
large-scale traditional ale production facilities, and more
Danegeld in the
parent company’s coffers!
13 comments:
Whose fault is it that cask volumes have fallen by half in a decade ?
Demographics, Martin. A phenomenon probably best described as changing times, changing habits and just life changes in general. https://baileysbeerblog.blogspot.com/2026/09/a-reflection-on-drinking-habits-family.html
I enjoyed a pint of Cairngorm Brewery's Autumn Nuts for £2.19 in the local 'Spoons beer festival this week. Cool, well-kept and exceptional value.
And then I had a crap pint of Bass in a dirty glass for £5.40 in a nearby pub.
That's your problem with cask beer right there. Price and consistency.
The more worrying thing is so few pubs have a decent range of craft keg to replace the disappearing cask and CAMRA have left it too late - even if they wanted to - to embrace great keg beer brewing.
Their next GBBF, if it ever happens, will be in a 'phone box.
Unless I know a pub is really keen on keeping its beer in good condition I rarely risk £5+ on a pint of ale these days.
Sadly there' isn't now an influential consumer group who would remind Carlsberg that AB InBev knowing cask beer has a future prompted them to reintroduce Boddingtons and publicise Draught Bass last year.
Hope the Bass wasn't the Star, Prof 😉
Two excellent points. Presentation and proper glassware do matter. Couple of young lads in Princess of Prussia were very impressed with (keg) Spitfire branded pint glass. Bass needs a spotless Bass glass.
And lack of craft option a bugbear; why always Camden or Beavertown ?
That's spot on, Paul.
Whenever I chat to landlord or staff they always comment on unpredictability of trade, never knowing when peaks or troughs might be. Only the weekly pub quiz is a real guarantee of trade.
Wait just one minute there, Mr. Paul Bailey.
I have met and conversed with Garrett Oliver, the Master Brewer of Brooklyn Brwy. I have had his beers in both the U.S.A. and Japan (where it has a contract brewery).
G. Oliver does not brew 'pish'. I can deduce you only get its flagship brew there in the U.K. Frankly, if that is all you think it offers, maybe you are not worthy to get its other more substantial brews like Black Chocolate Stout..
As well, I have to reassess my opinion on Goose Island. Its main brewery (2 locations) is here in Chicago, IL., U.S.A. It cleaned up at this year's Great American Beer Festival. It was the Large Brewery of the year. Such then, ownership by a large multinational corporation does not always become a beacon of quality depreciation.
Its ownership by Anheuser-Busch InBev does not seem to have significantly damaged its ability to produce distinctive brews, and they are in ABiB's regular distribution network.
If you ever came to Chicago, (London-Chicago flights are offered on multiple carriers.) we would bring you to numerous metropolitan Chicago venues with superb beers, including from U.K. breweries that you would have not thought bothered with this market.
Hey up Buddy, did you ever find the name of that pub where you stopped for a wazz, on your coach trip back from Marstons Brewery in the 1950s. Me and ma mates often try and work it out. Could it be the Royal Oak at Mayfield, just outside Ashborne? Will we be seeing you up in Staffs again once you fully retire?
He's right about Chicago being a great beer town if you search around.
I took my lads there to watch West Ham in a pre-season break and we got slaughtered on excellent beer most nights.
Plus, and it's a big plus, they have great dive bars. Really honourable dive bars that are well-run and safe...ish.
We were the first into one place on a dive bar piss-up one Sunday last year and enjoyed £1 whiskey shots and £1 cans of Pabtz Blue Ribbon. Premier turps.
Then some German-styled gaff where the bored barman perked up when he recognised pissheads and fed us giant pretzels, steins of German stuff and schnapped us to within an inch of our lives.
The next few hours were a bit of a blur - we were in one black place when it got a bit strange - but the only thing I remember was the beer was very good.
For Americans...
The best session on cheap booze I think I ever had was at a bar tucked away near the goods lifts with few people passing at Bally's Casino in Las Vegas. All they sold were margaritas. Really good, proper margaritas. The Mexican lads were so glad to see us getting stuck in they started comping the happy hours and firing up their top shelf tequilas. Turned up the music and soon we're all playing Mariachi Air Guitar. Our revelry started to draw in a few people and when we crawled out a few hours later the place was rocking. My bar check was $20.
Then we ate huge burgers and went to bed as the sun was overhead.
I sweated neat tequila for 24 hours.
Hi Steve D. Apologies for denigrating Garrett Oliver's flagship beer, but feelings are running a little high here, over the decision to axe Marston’s. No disrespect intended to either Brooklyn Brewery or Garrett Oliver - I still have a copy of his book, "The Brewmaster's Table"!
The Brooklyn beer we get here in the UK, is almost certainly contract brewed, although I'm not sure where, or by whom.
Prof, basically what I said to Steve D, above.
I've had some excellent beers in the States, and have visited breweries and brewpubs in rural Virginia (Vanish Woods, stands out), Richmond and various locations in Ohio, where my sister lives.
I briefly passed through Chicago, having taken the overnight Amtrak service up from Washington, but with limited time to make my flight connection back to Cleveland, I only had limited time at O'Hare, so no time for a beer.
Macca, thanks for your suggestion of the Royal Oak at Mayfield, as the place we may have stopped at for a wazz. (That word alone reminds me of someone I knew from Staffordshire!)
The exterior photo of the pub, does look vaguely familiar, and I would like to think that it was the pub we called in at, for a "comfort stop". Also, looking at the map, Mayfield would be a logical place to stop at, on our journey back to Salford.
So, whilst I cannot be 100% certain after 51 years, I'm going to say that in all probability the Royal Oak was the pub we visited, so thank you for solving this long-standing, mystery.
Yes I see what you are doing there. Tut Tut. I don't think we have quite closed the book yet. I was chatting yesterday to Biological Brian, and when Mayfield came up he suggested The Queens Arms Hotel. This is the large white building over the road on the bend. It is now apartments. Would you wish to consider this former Bass hostelry? Would you like us to put on a barrel of Bass when you come to visit us in Staffs.
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