Ansells Brewery was a

regional brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...

founded in

Aston Aston is an area of inner Birmingham, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Located immediately to the north-west of Birmingham city centre, Central Birmingham, Aston constitutes a wards of the United Kingdom, war ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, England in 1858. It merged with Tetley Walker and

Ind Coope Allied Breweries was the result of a 1961 merger between Ind Coope (of Burton), Ansells (of Birmingham), and Tetley Walker (of Leeds). In 1978, Allied Breweries merged with the food and catering group J. Lyons and Co to form Allied Lyons. The brew ...

in 1961 to form

Allied Breweries Allied Breweries was the result of a 1961 merger between Ind Coope (of Burton), Ansells (of Birmingham), and Tetley Walker (of Leeds). In 1978, Allied Breweries merged with the food and catering group J. Lyons and Co to form Allied Lyons. The b ...

. The brewery remained in operation until 1981, after which production transferred to Allied's

Burton upon Trent Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 censu ...

brewery; some former employees later set up the Aston Manor Brewery.

History

The brewery was founded by Joseph Ansell, a hop merchant and maltster, in 1858 at Aston Cross on the site of several

artesian well An artesian well is a well that brings groundwater to the surface without pumping because it is under pressure within a body of rock or sediment known as an aquifer. When trapped water in an aquifer is surrounded by layers of Permeability (ea ...

s (the later

HP Sauce HP Sauce is a British brown sauce, the main ingredients of which are tomatoes, malt vinegar and molasses. It was named after London's Houses of Parliament. After making its first appearance on British dinner tables in the late 19th century, HP S ...

factory was adjacent). William Ansell joined his father in partnership in 1867 as did his brother Edward in 1876. From 1877 the company was known as Joseph Ansell and Sons, and became a limited liability company, Joseph Ansell & Sons Ltd, in 1889. In June 1901 it became a registered company called Ansells Brewery Ltd. The company was valued at over £750,000 and included 388 licensed houses. Ansells grew by acquiring several other smaller local brewers including Rushtons with 100 licensed houses in 1923, Lucas of Leamington with 124 licensed houses (1928) and Holt's Brewery with 250 licensed houses (1934). Holt's logo, a

red squirrel The red squirrel (''Sciurus vulgaris''), also called Eurasian red squirrel, is a species of tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus''. It is an arboreal and primarily herbivorous rodent and common throughout Eurasia. Taxonomy There have been ...

seen in side profile, was subsequently adopted by Ansells to identify its own beers. Ansells Silver Jubilee Strong Ale

In 1961, Ansells merged with Tetley Walker and Ind, Coope & Co to form

. At the time, Ansells had an estate of 1,088 primarily managed houses in Birmingham and the West Midlands. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, the brewery was prone to strike action by its workers. By the late 1970s the Aston Brewery was struggling to remain profitable. In 1981, as a cost-saving measure, management attempted to introduce a four-day working week. This resulted in strike action. Allied Breweries subsequently closed the brewery, and 700 jobs were lost, with 300 workers redeployed elsewhere in the company. The brewery was demolished and the site is now occupied by a car showroom. Production was subsequently moved to Allied's

brewery. Some former staff set up the Aston Manor Brewery. Ansells Mild and Best Bitter are currently produced for Allied's successor Carlsberg by JW Lees. Cask conditioned Ansell's Mild was discontinued in 2012.

Advertising

Ansells sponsored the

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...

football team strip between 1983 and 1985, and the Stoke City kit in the early 1990s

History

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See also