 | |
| Industry | Brewing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1869 |
| Headquarters | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Products | Beer |
| Owner | Heineken International |
| Website | www |
Caledonian Brewery was a Scottish brewery founded in 1869 in the Shandon area of Edinburgh, Scotland.
| | |
| Industry | Brewing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1869 |
| Headquarters | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Products | Beer |
| Owner | Heineken International |
| Website | www |
Caledonian Brewery was a Scottish brewery founded in 1869 in the Shandon area of Edinburgh, Scotland.
When it was founded in 1869, the brewery was named the Lorimer and Clark Caledonian Brewery, after its founders George Lorimer and Robert Clark.
George Lorimer was just 18 years old when his father (George Lorimer Snr.) died in a fire at Edinburgh's Theatre Royal in 1865. Young George was a keen golfer and member of the Bruntsfield Links Golfing Society - which met at the Golf Tavern and played on the adjacent Bruntsfield Links. It was through spending time at the Golf Tavern that George became friends with many of Edinburgh's leading brewers; including Thomas Aitchison, George Bernard and Robert Clark.
In 1868, George Lorimer came of age and inherited his father's estate. George was determined to use the money to start his own brewery. He enlisted the help of Robert Clark, then Head Brewer at the Alexander Melvin Brewery in Edinburgh and together they opened Lorimer and Clark's Caledonian Brewery on the Slateford Road site. In 1892, to designs by the architect Robert Hamilton Paterson, buildings on the site were re-constructed and new brewery and maltings buildings erected. [1]
Although the brewery sold its beers and a number of stouts all over Scotland, its most popular beer was Lorimer's Best Scotch, which was sold predominantly in the north-east of England.
On George Lorimer's death in 1939, The Caledonian Brewery passed into the hands of Sunderland-based Vaux Breweries, who developed Lorimer’s Best Scotch brand into one of the most popular beers in the North East of England. In 1986 they decided to cease brewing in Edinburgh and transfer the operation to their base in Sunderland.
Eventually neglect and lack of investment took their toll and placed the brewery under threat of closure. In 1987, the brewery was saved through a management buy-out led by head brewer, Russell Sharp.
In 2004, the brewery site and production facilities were bought by Scottish & Newcastle (S&N), following their closure of the McEwan's Brewery in Fountainbridge, Edinburgh. Production of McEwan's ales has been transferred to the Caledonian Brewery. [2]
At the same time, a new Caledonian Brewing Company (CBC) was formed by several former shareholders and directors of the pre-2004 business. CBC owned the Caledonian brands and operated the brewery site on behalf of the owners. Whilst S&N took a 30% share in this business, CBC operated on an independent basis. [3]
In January 2006, the Caledonian Brewing Company purchased the Harviestoun Brewery based in Alva, makers of Bitter and Twisted. [4]
In 2008, S&N bought the remaining shares in CBC to take full control of the company. The brands remained unaffected and brewing continued at the site. Harviestoun was not part of the takeover and was retained by Caledonian's shareholders to run as a separate concern. With the takeover of S&N, Heineken controlled the Caledonian Brewery Company. [5]
In 2008, Heineken acquired the UK assets of Scottish and Newcastle which included the Caledonian Brewery. [6] In May 2022, Heineken announced the proposed closure of the Caledonian Brewery with an agreement in principle for Belhaven Brewery to brew its Scottish brands. [7]
In October, JLL was appointed to market the site. It advised the complex had potential for redevelopment into flats, a hotel, or student accommodation. [8]
Caledonian's most well known beers are Deuchars IPA and 80/- (Now rebadged as Edinburgh Castle). They also brew Flying Scotsman, four seasonal beers and several monthly guest ales.
Foster's Lager is an internationally distributed brand of Australian lager. It is owned by the Japanese brewing group Asahi Group Holdings, and is brewed under licence in a number of countries, including its biggest market, the UK, where the European rights to the brand are owned by Heineken International.
Newcastle Brown Ale is a brown ale, originally brewed in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It was launched in 1927 by Colonel Jim Porter after three years of development. The 1960 merger of Newcastle Breweries with Scottish Brewers afforded the beer national distribution, and UK sales peaked in the early 1970s. The beer underwent a resurgence in the late 1980s and early 1990s with student unions selling it. Brewing moved in 2005 from Newcastle to Dunston, Tyne and Wear, and in 2010 to Tadcaster. In 2017, the Heineken Brewery in Zoeterwoude, Netherlands, also began production. Since 2019, it has also been brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company in Petaluma, California, and Chicago, Illinois, for the American market.
John Smith's Brewery in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England, produces beers including John Smith's, the highest selling bitter in the United Kingdom since the mid-1990s.
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a brewing company headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, which expanded from its home base to become an international business with beer volumes growing almost tenfold.
Tennent Caledonian is a brewing company based in Glasgow, Scotland.
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Webster's Brewery was a brewery founded in 1838 by Samuel Webster which operated at the Fountain Head Brewery in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Webster's Green Label, a light mild, and Yorkshire Bitter gained national distribution after the company was taken over by Watney Mann in 1972. Throughout the 1970s it was known for the advertising slogan: "Drives out the northern thirst".
Alva is a small town in Clackmannanshire, set in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is one of a number of towns situated immediately to the south of the Ochil Hills, collectively referred to as the Hillfoots Villages or simply The Hillfoots. It is located between Tillicoultry and Menstrie. Alva had a resident population of 5,181 at the 2001 census but this has since been revised to 4,600 in 2016. It boasts many features such as a park with an event hall and a newly opened outdoor gym, and is the home of Alva Academy.
Vaux Brewery was a major brewer and hotel owner based in Sunderland, England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange. It was taken over by Whitbread in 2000.
Harviestoun Brewery is a craft brewery based in Alva in Clackmannanshire, Scotland.
Maclay's Brewery was a Scottish brewery based in Alloa, Clackmannanshire until 2001. It remains a beer brand in Scotland and Canada, produced under contract at other breweries in each country.
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Younger's Brewery was a brewery in Edinburgh. Established in 1749, it became one of the city’s main commercial enterprises, supplying domestic and foreign markets.
Wells & Young's Brewery was formed in 2006 from a merger of the brewing operations of Charles Wells Ltd and Young's Brewery. Charles Wells initially had a 60% stake and Young's 40%. In 2011, Charles Wells took full control when it bought Young's 40% stake. Wells & Young's is now responsible for brewing, distributing and marketing Charles Wells' and Young & Co's brands at the Eagle Brewery in Bedford.
Castle Eden Brewery was a brewery that operated in the village of Castle Eden in County Durham. It was best known for Castle Eden Ale, which continues to be produced at Seaham.
Beer in Scotland is mostly produced by breweries in the central Lowlands, which also contain the main centres of population. Edinburgh and Alloa in particular became noted for the export of beer around the world in the 19th century.
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Media related to Caledonian Brewery, Edinburgh at Wikimedia Commons
