George Gale & Co. Ltd was a Hampshire brewery with a distinctive range of, mainly, bitter beers. Founded in 1847 it was bought by the London brewers, Fuller's of Chiswick in 2005. The brewery was closed in 2006 with production transferred to Chiswick.

History

Established in 1847 Gales Brewery (George Gale & Co. Ltd) was an old brewery situated in

Horndean Horndean is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England, north of Portsmouth. The nearest railway station is southeast of the village at Rowlands Castle. The village had a population of 12,942 at the 2011 Census, and shares the semi-rura ...

, on the edge of

Waterlooville Waterlooville is a market town in the Borough of Havant in Hampshire, England, approximately north northeast of Portsmouth. It is the largest town in the borough. The town has a population of about 64,350 and is surrounded by Purbrook, Blendwort ...

, near

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, England. It made the nutty HSB (Horndean Special Bitter) and the newer Gales Bitter. It took its water from its own well situated under the brewery which is fed from the

South Downs The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. ...

, and the

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constitut ...

and 'liquor' (local water used for brewing), coupled with the local brewing style, produced

beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

s with a sparse head, quite dark in colour. In late 2005

Fuller, Smith & Turner Fuller, Smith & Turner is a public limited company based in London, England. Its origins lie in John Fuller's Griffin Brewery, which dates from 1816. In 1845, John Fuller's son, John Bird Fuller, was joined by Henry Smith and John Turner to form ...

bought Gales for £92 million. It raised fears as to the future of Gales Horndean brewery and some of its beers, and the

Campaign for Real Ale The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, England, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. With just under 155,000 members, it is th ...

(CAMRA) launched a campaign to encourage Fuller's to continue production of the full Gales line at Horndean. However, in January 2006, Fuller's began cutting jobs at the Horndean brewery, and it was announced on 27 February 2006 that the brewery would close at the end of March 2006, although distribution and warehousing would continue in the area. At that point, production of the Gales brands moved to Fuller's Griffin Brewery in

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...

, London, with the exception of Gales Bitter which was discontinued. As of 2017, most of the brewery site has been replaced with apartments and retail shops. The main tower remains standing and was converted alongside the construction of new buildings into apartments.

Beverages

Standard Varieties

* Gales Light Ale *Other discontinued draught & keg ( pressured) beers *XXX Light Mild, *XXXD Dark Mild, *777 Keg Mild, *Gales Keg Bitter *Other discontinued bottled beers *Nut Brown

Limited Edition Brews

*Last Drop = The last ale brewed at the Gales Brewery before its closure in 2006. *Gales Trafalgar 200 = Was first brewed in 2005 to celebrate the bicentenary of Nelson's famous victory. *Gales Clubhouse Bitter = *Gales Crowning Glory = Was brewed to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002. *Gales Millennium Brew = Was brewed to celebrate the new millennium in 2000. *Gales Conquest Ale *Gales D-Day Ale *Gales Silver Jubilee Ale = Was brewed to celebrate the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977 *Gales Royal Wedding Ale = Was brewed to celebrate the 1981 Royal Wedding. *Gales Portsmouth 800 Ale = Was brewed to celebrate the 800th anniversary of Portsmouth in 1994. *Gales Golden Jubilee Ale = Was brewed to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002. *Gales Victory Ale *Gales Vanguard Ale

References

Links

{{Authority control Defunct breweries of the United Kingdom British companies established in 1847 1847 establishments in England Food and drink companies established in 1847 Defunct companies of England