Robinsons Brewery is a family-run,

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 1849 at the Unicorn Inn,

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

, England. The company owns around 250

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

s, mostly in

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,4 ...

History

William Robinson purchased the Unicorn Inn from Samuel Hole on 29 September 1838. His eldest son George brewed the first Robinsons Ale there in 1849. In 1859, Frederic Robinson took over from George and bought a warehouse to the rear of the inn to expand brewing capacity. As a result, Robinsons ale became available at pubs around the

area. To control the quality of ale sold, Frederic began to purchase public houses. From 1878 until his death in 1890, Frederic established twelve pubs which exclusively served his ale. This was the beginning of what was to become an estate of over 300 pubs across the North West of England and North Wales. The Unicorn Brewery still rests on the foundations of the public house on Lower Hillgate in

. The brewery continues to be run by the fifth and sixth generations of the Robinson family. The company took over Hartley's Brewery in

Ulverston Ulverston is a market town and civil parish in Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it lies a few miles south of the Lake District Lake District National Park, National Park and j ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancash ...

in 1982, closing it and transferring the brewing of Hartley's beers to Stockport in 1991. Robinsons have acquired a number of other breweries over the years, including John Heginbotham,

Stalybridge Stalybridge () is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, it had a population of 26,830. Historic counties of England, Historically divided between Cheshire and Lancashire, it is east o ...

(1915); T. Schofield & Son,

Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 48,604 at the 2021 census. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, Greater Manchester, ...

(1926); Kays Atlas Brewery,

Ardwick Ardwick is an area of Manchester, England, southeast of the city centre. The population at the 2011 census was 19,250. Historically in Lancashire, by the mid-nineteenth century Ardwick had grown from being a village into a pleasant and wealt ...

(1929) and Bell & Co, Stockport (1949). The brewery owns many historic pubs, including the New Hall Inn in

Bowness-on-Windermere Bowness-on-Windermere is a town and former civil parish, now in the parish of Windermere and Bowness, in the Westmorland and Furness district, in the ceremonial county of Cumbria, England. It lies next to Lake Windermere and the town of Wind ...

, Cumbria, the Holly Bush in

Bollington Bollington is a town and civil parish in Cheshire, England, to the east of Prestbury. In the Middle Ages, it was part of the Earl of Chester's manor of Macclesfield and the ancient parish of Prestbury. At the 2021 census, the parish had a pop ...

, Cheshire, and the Royal Oak Hotel in

Garstang Garstang is an ancient market town and civil parish within the Wyre borough of Lancashire, England. It is north of the city of Preston and the same distance south of Lancaster. In 2011, the parish had a total resident population of 4,26 ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

Distribution

The brewery supplies its own estate of just over 300 public houses, mostly in North West England, but including more than 30 in North Wales. It also sells to the free trade. In addition, the company provides casking, kegging and bottling services to other brewers from their site at

Bredbury Bredbury is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, east of Stockport and south-west of Hyde, Greater Manchester, Hyde. The Bredbury and Woodley, Greater Manchester, Woodley buil ...

, a short distance from the main Unicorn Brewery.

Brewery

The Unicorn Brewery is a traditional tower type and was one of the few such buildings still being used in its original capacity until production moved to

in 2024.

Beers

* ''Unicorn'' (4.2%

ABV Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest of the solution, ...

) : A bitter available on draught or bottled. * ''Hartleys Cumbria Way'' (4.1% ABV) : Brewed since 2001, this bitter takes its name from the

Cumbria Way The Cumbria Way is a linear long-distance footpath in Cumbria, England. The majority of the route is inside the boundaries of the Lake District National parks of England and Wales, National Park. Linking the two historic Cumbrian towns of Ulv ...

long-distance footpath linking the towns of

and

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its pro ...

. * ''Hartley's XB'' (4.0% ABV) : A cask-conditioned bitter. * Cwrw'r ddraig aur (4.1% ABV) : Golden Dragon Ale, a bitter brewed for Robinsons' Welsh pubs. * ''Old Tom'' (8.5% ABV) : A

strong ale Strong ale is a type of ale, usually above 5% abv and often higher, between 7 and 11% abv, which spans a number of beer styles, including old ale, barley wine, and Burton ale. Strong ales are brewed throughout Europe and beyond, including in ...

that has been brewed since 1899. Available bottled or on draught. Chocolate Tom and Ginger Tom are also available in bottle (6% ABV). * ''Dizzy Blonde'' (3.8% ABV) : A golden ale that has been available, following its stint as a seasonal ale, since 2012. Available bottled or on draught. * ''Double Hop'' (4.8% ABV) : An India pale ale (IPA). * Unicorn Black (4.1% ABV) : A bottled

stout Stout is a type of dark beer that is generally warm fermented, such as dry stout, oatmeal stout, milk stout and imperial stout. Stout is a type of ale. The first known use of the word "stout" for beer is in a document dated 1677 in the E ...

inspired by a 19th-century recipe. * ''Trooper'' (4.7% ABV) : A premium bitter brewed since May 2013 to a recipe created by

Bruce Dickinson Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who is best known as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Dickinson has performed in the band across two stints, from 1981 to 1993 and from 1999 to the present d ...

, the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...

. * ''Trooper Red 'N' Black Porter'' (5.8% ABV) : A

porter Porter may refer to: Companies * Porter Airlines, Canadian airline based in Toronto * Porter Chemical Company, a defunct U.S. toy manufacturer of chemistry sets * Porter Motor Company, defunct U.S. car manufacturer * H.K. Porter, Inc., a locom ...

introduced in September 2016, available on draught (cask and keg) and bottled (6.8% ABV). * ''Trooper Hallowed'' (6.0% ABV) : A limited-edition Belgian-style beer introduced in July 2017, available in bottle. * ''Wizard'' (3.7% ABV) : An amber bitter first brewed in 2015.

Seasonal ales

2014

* ''Hannibal's Nectar'' (3.9% ABV – Available through January and February) : A ruby bitter available on draught. * ''Hoptimum Prime'' (4.1% ABV – Available through March and April) : A golden ale available on draught. * ''Brazilian'' (4.2% ABV – Available through May and June) : A

blonde ale Pale ale is a golden to amber coloured beer style brewed with pale malt. The term first appeared in England around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at tha ...

available on draught. * ''Citra Pale Ale'' (3.8% ABV – Available through July and August) : A crisp

pale ale Pale ale is a golden to amber coloured beer style brewed with pale malt. The term first appeared in England around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at th ...

inspired by American craft beers, available on draught. * ''South Island'' (4.2% ABV – Available through September and October) : A

brewed with New Zealand Nelson Sauvin hops and available on draught. * ''Indulgence'' (4.4% ABV – Available through November and December) : A mahogany-coloured old ale available on draught.

2015

* ''Voodoo Dawn'' (3.9% ABV – Available through January and February) : A ruby bitter available on draught. * ''Mojo'' (3.7% ABV – Available through March and April) : An

amber ale Pale ale is a golden to amber coloured beer style brewed with pale malt. The term first appeared in England around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at th ...

, brewed with East Kent Goldings and First Gold hops, available on draught. * ''Dizzy's Twisted Sister'' (4.0% ABV – Available through July and August) : A

available on draught. * ''Hop & Under'' (4.2% ABV – Available through September and October) : A golden ale inspired by the

Rugby World Cup The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport. The tournament is administer ...

, available on draught. * ''Frosty Frolics'' (4.4% ABV – Available through November and December) : A mahogany-coloured ale for the festive season, available on draught.

Gallery

File:Garstang Cross and Royal Oak 239-20.jpg, The Royal Oak Hotel in

, Lancashire, with its brewery branding

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

* {{Official website, 1=www.robinsonsbrewery.com Breweries in England British companies established in 1849 Companies based in Stockport Food and drink companies established in 1849