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 bee ...

founded in

Aston Aston is an area of inner Birmingham, England. Located immediately to the north-east of Central Birmingham, Aston constitutes a ward within the metropolitan authority. It is approximately 1.5 miles from Birmingham City Centre. History Aston wa ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, England in 1858. It merged with Taylor 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 bre ...

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 bre ...

. 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. In United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011, it had a ...

brewery; some former employees later set up the

Aston Manor Brewery Aston Manor Cider (also Aston Manor and formerly Aston Manor Brewery) is a former brewery and current cider maker and bottling company in Aston, Birmingham, England. Having started out as a beer brewery, the company now produces exclusively cide ...

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 aquifer is a confined aquifer containing groundwater under positive pressure. An artesian aquifer has trapped water, surrounded by layers of impermeable rock or clay, which apply positive pressure to the water contained within th ...

s (the later

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

factory was adjacent). William Ansell joined his father in partnership in 1867. 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'') is a species of tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus'' common throughout Europe and Asia. The red squirrel is an arboreal, primarily herbivorous rodent. In Great Britain, Ireland, and in Italy numbers ...

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

In 1961, Ansells merged with

Taylor Walker & Co Taylor Walker was a large English brewery. History Taylor Walker & Co was founded in 1730 in Stepney as Salmon and Hare, and later became Hare and Hartford. In 1796 John Taylor acquired Hare's share, and the company took the name Taylor Walker i ...

and

Ind, Coope & Co 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 bre ...

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

. Ansells Mild and Best Bitter are currently produced for Allied's successor Carlsberg by

JW Lees J.W. Lees & Co (Brewers) Ltd is a brewery and pub company in Middleton, Greater Manchester, that has produced real ale since 1828. The brewery owns and operates 150 pubs, inns and hotels mainly in North West England and North Wales. It also o ...

. 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. Since 2011, the first te ...

football team strip between 1983 and 1985, and the

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...

kit in the early 1990s

History

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See also