Samuel Smith's Old Brewery

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.

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.

History

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

In 1847, John Smith, supported by his father, 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.

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

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. As a result, the company is no longer required to publish its financial accounts, and has not done so since.

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.

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.

Brewing water for ales and stouts is drawn from the original well, sunk when the site was established in 1758, and the fermentation yeast has been used continuously since approximately 1900, making it one of the oldest unchanged strains in the country.

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

Beers

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.

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

In the United States, Samuel Smith's bottled beers are imported by Merchant du Vin, and in Norway, by Strag AS.

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, raspberry, strawberry and apricot.

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 5% wheat beer has been added to the draught product range.

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".

Pubs

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. 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. Many of the pubs owned by the company, including many that it has acquired since the 1970s, are empty.

The brewery still delivers multiple-trip, reusable bottles in beer crates.

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

Gallery

File:Angel Inn, Leeds.jpg, The Angel Inn, Briggate, Leeds
File:Old Red Lion - Meadow Lane - geograph.org.uk - 609894.jpg, Old Red Lion, Leeds
File:Brown Hare - Harehills Lane - geograph.org.uk - 683768.jpg, Brown Hare, Harehills, Leeds
File:Fitzroy Tavern - Fitzrovia - W1.jpg, Fitzroy Tavern, London
File:Borough Bailiff, High Street, Knaresborough (19th March 2013) 002.JPG, Commercial Hotel, Knaresborough
File:The Sun Inn at Long Maston.jpg, Sun Inn, Long Marston
File:Railway Inn, Spofforth (19th March 2013) 003.JPG, Railway Inn, Spofforth
File:Tankard Inn, Rufforth (12th June 2013) 002.JPG, Tankard Inn, Rufforth
File:Crown Inn - High Street - geograph.org.uk - 553266.jpg, Crown Inn, Wetherby
File:Harewood Arms Hotel - Harewood - geograph.org.uk - 541268.jpg, Harewood Arms, Harewood
File:Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese - geograph.org.uk - 650446.jpg, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, London
File:Public bar, Railway Inn, Spofforth, North Yorkshire (9th March 2019) 002.jpg, Interior of the Railway Inn, Spofforth
File:A bar in the Old Star, a Sam Smiths pub in Clifford (geograph 2415038).jpg, Bar of the Old Star, Clifford, West Yorkshire
File:The Lounge in the White House (geograph 4100354).jpg, Lounge of the White House in Featherstone
File:The Tankard Inn, a Sam Smiths pub in Rufforth (geograph 2416532).jpg, Fire place and dartboard at the Tankard Inn, Rufforth
File:One of the bars at the Radcliffe Arms (geograph 2413348).jpg, Bar of the Radcliffe Arms, Follifoot
File:Princess Louise public house, High Holborn, London 03.JPG, Booth in the Princess Louise, High Holborn
File:The newly refurbished Angel and White Horse (geograph 3564248).jpg, Interior of the Angel and White Horse, Tadcaster
File:Ye Olde Swiss Cottage public house, Swiss Cottage - geograph.org.uk - 2234063.jpg, Ye Olde Swiss Cottage, Swiss Cottage, London

Policies

In 2004, the brewery banned music and televisions in its pubs, to avoid paying PRS fees.

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. The pubs also ban the use of mobile phones, tablets, e-books and laptops within indoor areas, with the stated aim of encouraging conversation.

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, motorcyclists are not a "protected group" under the Equality Act.

Dismissal of staff

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. 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.

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

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.

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.

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.

Controversies

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. In January 2016, the brewery opposed construction of a temporary bridge over the River Wharfe on its land in Tadcaster, which would have allowed residents to cross following the 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.

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

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". Two other people were also ordered to leave after defending the couple. After learning about a planned "kiss-in" by protestors, the pub closed hours before it took place.

The brewery and owner Humphrey Smith were prosecuted and fined £30,000 after pleading guilty for failing to provide information regarding staff pension funds. 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".

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.

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. It was announced in September 2024 that the pub would reopen that month.

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 managers to raise objections even if they thought they were being unfairly treated" and ordering it pay £20,000 damages to the ex-managers.

In May 2025, The Abbey in Darley Abbey was shutdown with no notice. The pub had been empty for five years before reopening in September 2024. A notice on the pub's front door read "Closed!! Due to someone posting pictures of the Abbey on social media. Sam Smith has taken the alcohol and closed these premises."

See also

* British regional breweries using wooden casks

References

External links

{{commonscat, Samuel Smiths Old Brewery

Official website

1758 establishments in England
Breweries in Yorkshire
Companies based in Tadcaster
Food and drink companies established in 1758
Tadcaster
British companies established in 1758