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Samuel Smith Old Brewery

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Samuel Smith Brewery
Company typeUnlimited company
IndustryBrewing
Founded1758
FounderSamuel Smith
Headquarters
Tadcaster, North Yorkshire
,
England
Key people
Humphrey Smith
ProductsBeer
OwnerFamily owned
Websitesamuelsmithsbrewery.co.uk

Samuel Smith Old Brewery, commonly known as Samuel Smith's or Sam Smith's, is an independent brewery and pub operator based in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England, established in 1758. It claims to be Yorkshire's oldest brewery.[1]

It is known for being traditionally run with conservative values, still using dray horses for some beer deliveries, and banning music, television and mobile devices in its bars.[2]

History

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Tadcaster had been a centre for brewing since the 14th century because of its gypsum rich wells.[1] The Old Brewery was established as the Backhouse & Hartley Brewery in 1758.[3][1]

In 1847, John Smith, supported by his father,[4] a butcher and cattle dealer from Meanwood, purchased it and built his new John Smith's Brewery close by. John Smith's brother William, who ran the business after John's death in 1879, left the Old Brewery to his nephew Samuel in 1886. However, Samuel inherited an empty building and well, with all equipment having been moved next door. Nevertheless, he refitted and opened his brewery.[3][5]

Samuel Smith traditional bottled beer styles influenced American craft brewers such as Goose Island and Brooklyn Brewery in the late 1970s and early 1980s.[6][1]

In 1982, the company took the "extraordinary" step of changing itself from a standard limited liability company to an unlimited company, making its owners personally liable for all debts. However, the company is no longer required to publish its financial accounts, and has not done so since.[7]

Since 2000, the "publicity-shy" company has dropped the Samuel Smith name across their pubs, with staff also told not to wear Samuel Smith branded t-shirts behind the bar.[8]

The Old Brewery

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Stables for the dray horses at the Old Brewery

The Old Brewery is the smallest of three current Tadcaster breweries and one of the few remaining British breweries to employ a traditional, 19th century, Yorkshire Square fermentation system constructed of Welsh slate.[1]

Brewing water for ales and stouts is drawn from the original 85 ft (26 m) well, sunk when the site was established in 1758,[2] and the fermentation yeast has been used continuously since approximately 1900, making it one of the oldest unchanged strains in the country.[citation needed]

The brewery's team of dapple-grey shire horses are among the last working dray horses in the world and deliver beer around Tadcaster.[9]

Beers

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Assorted keg beer taps (Dark Mild, Taddy Lager, Pure Brew Organic Lager)
Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Bitter pumps
A bottle of Imperial Stout, a vegan beer

Since discontinuing Museum Ale in the early 1990s, Samuel Smith's has brewed only one cask beer, Old Brewery Bitter (OBB). This is unusual in the British brewing industry, as most brewers will either produce a range of real ales or none at all.[citation needed]

The brewery produces a range of conditioned beers. All, with the exception of Old Brewery Bitter and Yorkshire Stingo, are vegan.[10]

In the United States, Samuel Smith's bottled beers are imported by Merchant du Vin.[citation needed] In Norway, by Strag AS.[11]

Samuel Smith's Organic Cider is available in bottles, while Cider Reserve is sold on draught in the UK. The brewery offers two draught milds, Dark Mild and Light Mild. The brewery used to produce a super strength Barley Wine called Strong Golden at 10.2%. A range of bottled fruit beers are available, flavoured with cherry, apricot or raspberry.[citation needed]

Best Bitter and Sovereign are the brewery's keg bitters. It introduced Double Four in late 2013, a 4% standard strength lager between Alpine (2.8%) and Taddy Lager (4.5%). A wheat beer has been added to the draught product range, although few pubs stock it.[citation needed]

Until 2006, Samuel Smith's used the brand name Ayingerbräu for its lagers and wheat beers, from the Ayinger Brewery. The pump for Ayingerbräu Lager featured a model of a Bavarian "man in a box".[2]

Pubs

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Samuel Smith's operates over 200 pubs, including 20 in central London, which are maintained traditionally. Most have multiple bar rooms, often with a spartan public bar and plusher lounge.[2] Many have frosted windows and stained glass decorations. The interiors often have either brown or beige painted walls, or elaborate wall paper. Some have notable interiors such as the Crown Inn in Wetherby which has furniture by Robert Thompson or the Princess Louise in High Holborn with booths around the bar.[12][13] Many of the pubs owned by the company, including many that it has acquired since the 1970s, are empty.[14]

The brewery still delivers multiple-trip, reusable bottles in beer crates.[citation needed]

The pubs only sell the brewery's own branded products.[15]

Policies

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In 2004,[failed verification] the brewery banned music and televisions in its pubs, to avoid paying PRS fees.[16]

The brewery has a "zero-tolerance" policy to profanity, requiring its employees not to serve customers who use offensive language. It was reported that this was part of a policy to present a traditional, "uncompromisingly Victorian" aesthetic in the brewery's pubs.[17] The pubs also ban the use of mobile phones, tablets, e-books and laptops within indoor areas, with the stated aim of encouraging conversation.[18]

In July 2017, the brewery banned motorcyclists from one of its pubs, claiming it would keep "undesirables" out. While discrimination against people on many grounds is illegal, bikers are not a "protected group" under the Equality Act.[19][20]

Dismissal of staff

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Most UK pubs owned by breweries in the UK are "tied"; publicans sell only the owner's beer, but are independent tenants free to make their own decisions. In September 1984 Samuel Smith made its pub managers salaried employees, without their former freedoms. The National Union of Licensed Victuallers, representing pub landlords, objected that its members had to choose between leaving their homes and jobs, or taking direct orders from the company, but the change was implemented.[14] One reason given for the many pubs owned by Samuel Smith remaining closed is the difficulty of finding managers willing to accept the arbitrary rules of Humphrey Smith.[14]

The GMB trade union has long criticised the brewery for its dismissal of pub managers.[15]

The Junction Inn, Royton

On New Year's Eve 2011, the brewery closed the Junction Inn in Royton after claiming staff were dispensing too much beer in the glasses, and subsequently issued a retrospective surcharge for lost stock over a 12-year period.[21][22]

In August 2020, after the Cow and Calf pub in Sheffield was unable to serve him his favourite dessert Humphrey Smith dismissed the managers and closed it, although the managers said that it was because they had not been provided with a freezer.[23]

Some dismissed managers have made claims of unfair dismissal with employment tribunals, but most represent themselves due to the cost of employing a lawyer; and under UK law employees have no recourse for unfair dismissal unless they have been employed for two years. The brewery employs lawyers, and wins about two-thirds of the cases.[14]

Controversies

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The brewery is a major landowner in Tadcaster and concerns were expressed in a 2009 edition of BBC Inside Out about its long-term empty properties, and excessive influence in the town.[24] In January 2016, the brewery opposed construction, on its land in Tadcaster, of a temporary bridge over the River Wharfe, which would have allowed residents to cross, following collapse of the 300-year-old bridge. The brewery claimed the £300,000 cost was a waste of public money. Local councillors urged the brewery to reconsider.[25]

In 2010, the brewery took legal action against Cropton Brewery over the latter's use of the Yorkshire white rose design[26] for its Yorkshire Warrior beer.[27] Mr Justice Arnold ordered Cropton to remove the emblem but criticised both breweries for not settling the matter sooner.[28]

The "kiss-in" protest event at the John Snow pub

In April 2011, a gay couple were ejected from the brewery's John Snow pub in Soho for kissing, with the landlady calling the couple "obscene".[29] Two other people were also ordered to leave after defending the couple.[30] After learning about a planned "kiss-in" by protestors, the pub closed hours before it took place.[31]

The brewery and owner Humphrey Smith were prosecuted and fined £30,000 after pleading guilty for failing to provide information regarding staff pension funds.[32][33] The judge ruled Smith had been "deliberately inflammatory" in his response to a request in 2015 from The Pensions Regulator, calling its request for evidence of the brewery's fiscal responsibility to its staff pension fund "tiresome".[34]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the brewery was criticised by councillors in Wakefield for ordering pub staff not to implement a test and trace system in its pubs.[35][36]

In 2021, residents and their representatives in Darley Abbey petitioned the brewery to protect its 15th century, Grade II listed Abbey pub, that was falling into disrepair. It had been left empty for over two years.[37][38][39]

In 2022, the ex-managers of a Samuel Smith pub in Nunthorpe won a constructive dismissal case against the brewery after they had been charged thousands of pounds for alleged stock shortages, with the judge ruling the company culture is "not one that encourage[s] managers to raise objections even if they thought they were being unfairly treated" and ordering it pay £20,000 damages to the ex-managers.[40]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Protz, Roger (2012). Oliver, Garrett (ed.). The Oxford Companion to Beer. Oxford University Press. p. 714. ISBN 9780195367133.
  2. ^ a b c d Sharp, Johnny (3 October 2013). "In praise of Samuel Smith pubs". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Tadcaster Brewery History". Tadcaster.uk.com. Archived from the original on 2 January 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  4. ^ "Brought to book, the brewers who made a name for themselves". Yorkshire Post. 3 October 2007. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  5. ^ Bradford, Eveleigh. "They Lived in Leeds: Samuel Smith (1862–1927)". The Thoresby Society. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  6. ^ Noel, Josh (1 June 2018). Barrel-Aged Stout and Selling Out: Goose Island, Anheuser-Busch, and How Craft Beer Became Big Business. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 978-1-61373-724-8.
  7. ^ https://www.theguardian.com/news/2024/dec/19/humphreys-world-how-the-samuel-smith-beer-baron-built-britains-strangest-pub-chain
  8. ^ "Brewery drops brand logo". The Press. 4 October 2000. Archived from the original on 17 December 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  9. ^ "Samuel Smith's Brewery, Tadcaster". Archived from the original on 5 October 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  10. ^ "VEGAN BEER & CIDER". Lists of certified vegan beers including Imperial Stout: Samuel Smith Brewery. Archived from the original on 14 January 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013. Samuel Smith's was the first brewery to register with The Vegan Society—we did so in January 1998.
  11. ^ "Strag AS". Strag.no. Archived from the original on 18 December 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  12. ^ Steel, Bob (25 January 2018). "Six venues, four centuries of history – is this London's perfect historic pub crawl?". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
  13. ^ Parsons, Guy (25 May 2023). "Princess Louise". Timeout. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
  14. ^ a b c d Blacklock, Mark (19 December 2024). "Humphrey's world: how the Samuel Smith beer baron built Britain's strangest pub chain". The Guardian.
  15. ^ a b Bryan, Kenza (2 July 2017). "Samuel Smith pub chain bans swearing at all its establishments 'because boss hates bad language'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  16. ^ "Brewer Samuel Smith fined £30,000". 31 July 2018. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  17. ^ "Samuel Smiths brewery 'bans' swearing from chain". BBC News online. 12 July 2017. Archived from the original on 26 October 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  18. ^ "Samuel Smith's pubs ban phones". The Independent. 29 March 2019. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  19. ^ "Samuel Smiths brewery 'bans' bikers from Rotherham pub". BBC News online. 12 July 2017. Archived from the original on 13 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  20. ^ Armstrong, Jeremy (13 July 2017). "Pub bans bikers after brewery chain allegedly branded them 'undesirables'". The Mirror. Archived from the original on 5 March 2018.
  21. ^ "Pint-sized row comes to a head". Oldham Chronicle. Archived from the original on 25 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  22. ^ Parveen, Nazia; Lavelle, Daniel (1 July 2017). "Swearing ban: Samuel Smith pub boss calls time on bad language". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  23. ^ "Brewery boss shuts down Sheffield pub after 'not serving his favourite dessert'". The Star. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  24. ^ "A brief view of the power of Samuel Smiths Old Brewey – Tadcaster". YouTube. 12 October 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  25. ^ "Landowner 'blocks' temporary Tadcaster bridge plan". BBC News online. 11 January 2016. Archived from the original on 13 January 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  26. ^ "Samuel Smith launch legal action over Cropton Brewery's white rose beer branding". York Press. 5 October 2010. Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  27. ^ "Support brews for Army benevolent fund". The Northern Echo. 22 April 2008. Archived from the original on 24 April 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
  28. ^ "Result in beer war of the roses". York Press. 23 July 2011. Archived from the original on 29 December 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  29. ^ "Gay couple 'removed from Soho pub for kissing'". BBC News. 14 April 2011. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  30. ^ Razaq, Jack Aston, Rashid (12 April 2012). "Gay rights protest at Soho pub that ejected two men for kissing". The Standard. Retrieved 14 October 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  31. ^ "Hundreds attend kiss-in outside John Snow pub after venue closes its doors". The Guardian. 15 April 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  32. ^ Hosking, Patrick. "Secretive brewery boss is charged by pensions watchdog". The Times. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  33. ^ "Samuel Smith: Brewer fined for not providing pension details". BBC News. 30 July 2018. Archived from the original on 1 November 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  34. ^ Narain, Jaya (30 July 2018). "Samuel Smith brewery fined for failing to hand over pension details". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 May 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  35. ^ "Sam Smith's brewery criticised for not using test and trace system at pubs". Yorkshire Post. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  36. ^ Humphries, Will. "Samuel Smith's brewery has no truck with track and trace". The Times. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  37. ^ "Battle begins to bring back Derby's cheapest pub". DerbyshireLive. 3 June 2021. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  38. ^ "Brewery silent as saga of the Abbey pub takes another twist". DerbyshireLive. 1 December 2019. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  39. ^ "Derby pub landlady wins battle to get hundreds of pounds in back pay". DerbyshireLive. 4 October 2019. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  40. ^ Price, Kelley (19 November 2022). "Pub couple's £20k win after 'dictatorial' brewery deducts £4k for lost beer". Teesside Live. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
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