The Society for the Preservation of Beers from the Wood (SPBW), founded in 1963, is the oldest consumer-based group interested in stimulating the brewing of, increasing the awareness of, and encouraging the drinking of traditional cask ale. [1] [2] The Society also supports and encourages the use of wooden casks for beer dispense. [3]
The SPBW was founded on 6 December 1963 at the Rising Sun in Epsom, England [1] [3] out of a concern for a perceived decline in both quality and palatability of beer. This was attributed to the increasing use of gas pressure dispense and the introduction of keg beers. [3]
Coopering once had a central and extensive role in British breweries. [4] In 1963 oak casks were still regarded as synonymous with traditional draught beer, but as metal casks rapidly replaced wooden ones the SPBW relaxed its principles accordingly. Although the Society does not specifically campaign for the use of wooden casks for beer dispense, it supports and encourages breweries and pubs that use them and coopers that produce them. [3]
In the 21st century there has been a revival of interest in "beer from the wood", perhaps inspired by the trend for barrel-aged beer, and this has been welcomed by the SPBW. [5] The Society's inaugural national beer festival, "Woodfest 2017" took place in Castleford, Yorkshire in July, 2017. Breweries from across the British Isles signed up to showcase their wood-conditioned beers. Hook Norton's "Haymaker" was declared to be Champion beer of the festival. [6] [7]
The SPBW's aims are similar to those of CAMRA, but the emphasis is on activity within its autonomous branches, which is mainly of a social nature. (CAMRA's approach has been called "more vigorous".) [8] The SPBW's National Executive Committee maintains contact with breweries and other relevant bodies on issues of concern. It produces a quarterly magazine, Pint in Hand, and organizes an annual National Weekend. [3]
The SPBW annually chooses a London Pub of the Year (LPOTY). The competition was launched in 1980 as a reaction to a "best London pub" competition in a London evening paper, in which beer did not seem to be a significant criterion. [9] A blog is kept of the LPOTY scoring adventure during the run-up to the award although this lapsed for the 2018 competition. [10]
Other branches, in particular the Northern Ireland branch, also present local Pub of the Year awards. [11]
The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, England, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. With just under 150,000 members, it is the largest single-issue consumer group in the UK, and is a founding member of the European Beer Consumers Union (EBCU).
Real ale is the name coined by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) for beer that is "brewed from traditional ingredients, matured by secondary fermentation in the container from which it is dispensed, and served without the use of extraneous carbon dioxide".
A beer tap is a valve, specifically a tap, for controlling the release of beer. While other kinds of tap may be called faucet, valve or spigot, the use of tap for beer is almost universal. The word was originally coined for the wooden valve in traditional barrels. Beer served from a tap is largely known as draught beer, though beer served from a cask is more commonly called cask ale, while beer from a keg may specifically be called keg beer. Beer taps can be also used to serve similar drinks like cider or long drinks.
The Titanic Brewery is an independent producer of bottle conditioned and cask ales in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England.
The Wenlock Arms is a public house in Hoxton, in London's East End, which began trading in 1787. The pub is located halfway between Old Street and Angel, just off the City Road and the City Road Basin and Wenlock Basin on the Regent's Canal. The pub has won awards for the quality and range of its cask ales.
Beer has been brewed in England for thousands of years. As a beer brewing country, it is known for top fermented cask beer which finishes maturing in the cellar of the pub rather than at the brewery and is served with only natural carbonation.
Hook Norton Brewery is a regional brewery in Hook Norton, Oxfordshire, England, several miles outside the Cotswold Hills. Founded in 1849, the brewing plant is a traditional Victorian 'tower' brewery in which all the stages of the brewing process flow logically from floor to floor; mashing at the top, boiling in the middle, fermentation and racking at the bottom. Until 2006, the brewing process was powered by steam. Beer is still delivered in the village by horse-drawn dray.
A spile is a wooden or metal peg used to control the flow of air into, and carbon dioxide out of, a cask of ale or wine. Spiles can also be used to broach liquids from a tree.
Timothy Taylor's is a family-owned regional brewery, founded in 1858 by Timothy Taylor, in Keighley, West Yorkshire, England. Timothy Taylor's moved to larger premises in 1863 at Knowle Spring in Keighley, where they remain.
The Good Beer Guide is a book published annually by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), listing what it considers to be the best 4,500 real ale outlets in the United Kingdom.
The Great British Beer Festival is an annual beer festival organised by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA). It presents a selection of cask ales, and the Champion Beer of Britain awards, and is held in August of each year. GBBF's sister festival, the Great British Beer Festival Winter, is held in February each year.
McMullen's, known locally as Mac's, is a regional brewery founded in 1827 in Hertford, England, the United Kingdom. The brewery expanded during the second half of the 19th century by purchasing other breweries and their associated pubs. In 1902 it was the second largest brewery in Hertfordshire. The brewery has occupied several different sites in Hertford and moved to its current location in 1891. There have been several breweries on this site and the current one opened in 2006. As of 2021, members of the 6th generation of the McMullen family are still involved with the business.
Jennings Brewery was established as a family concern in 1828 in the village of Lorton, between Buttermere and Cockermouth in the Lake District, England. The brewery was started by John Jennings Snr, son of William Jennings. Jennings brewed exclusively in Lorton until 1874 when its present home, the Castle Brewery in Cockermouth, was purchased. The Lorton brewery closed some five years later.
Beer in the United Kingdom has a long history, and has quite distinct traditions. Historically the main styles were top-fermented Bitters, Porters, Stouts and Milds, but after World War II lagers took over half the market by volume. The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) was founded in 1971 and has encouraged the preservation and revival of traditional styles of ale. In particular CAMRA has promoted cask conditioned beer, which completes its maturation in casks in the cellar of the pub rather than at the brewery. As of 2014 the UK drank 634 million imperial pints of cask ale, representing 60% of ale in pubs and restaurants and 17% of all beer in pubs. In total 42.42 million hectolitres of beer were produced in 2013 of which 48% was sold in the off-trade.
The Marble Brewery is a microbrewery in Manchester, England which makes cask ale from organic and vegetarian ingredients.
The Otley Brewing Company Limited, colloquially Otley Brewery, is a brewery located in Pontypridd, Wales. Established in 2005, it has won several awards, including the Champion Beer of Wales in 2006. The head brewer is Charlie Otley. In October 2016, the brewery was put up for sale by its owners. In February 2018 the brewery ceased trading.
The Leeds Brewery is an independent brewery established in June 2007 in Leeds, UK by former local radio presenter Michael Brothwell. The company uses a 20 barrel brewing plant located in a trading estate on the outskirts of the city; it is capable of delivering 150,000 pints of beer a week, and produces five regular brands, including their flagship Leeds Pale Ale at 3.8%, a 4.3% best bitter Leeds Best and the award winning mild ale Midnight Bell. The company also produces a series of monthly specials. The company had seven pubs in Leeds, with a microbrewery upstairs at The Brewery Tap and two pubs in York but these were sold to Camerons Brewery in 2016. In January 2023, Leeds Brewery ceased trading and the Leeds Brewery brand was sold to Kirkstall Brewery.
The Cross Keys is a public house at 57 Black Lion Lane, Hammersmith, London.
In the UK, the Society for Preservation of Beer from the Wood (SPBW) and the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) have been fighting against the monopolizing and rationalizing tendencies of big breweries and cider companies since 1963 and 1972, respectively.
The concept of an organisation devoted to the salvation of British beer was not a new one, indeed, the Society for the Preservation of Beers from the Wood (SPBW) had been formed several years earlier, but CAMRA's approach was a far more vigorous one, and seemed suited to the mood of the time.