Young’S Brewery. Young’s is an iconic, much-loved London beer brand.
Charles Allen Young and his business partner took over the Ram Brewery in the London district of Wandsworth in 1831. The Ram was reputedly Britain’s oldest brewing site in continuous operation, with a history dating back to the 1550s.
The brewery stayed within the Young family for its entire existence. In the 1970s chairman John Young, Charles’ great-great-grandson, stuck resolutely to his traditional beliefs and insisted that the brewery should continue to brew cask-conditioned ales even as many of his peers were moving to pasteurized and filtered keg products. He was widely derided for his decision at the time, but was proven right by the real ale revolution he helped create.
Over the decades, Wandsworth grew around the Young’s Brewery until the brewery was essentially right in the middle of the town. Although the brewery was successful, the land on which it sat became very valuable, and eventually shareholders could no longer resist the allure of offers. In 2006 Young’s closed the Ram Brewery and moved its brewing operations to a joint venture with Charles Wells of Bedford. Young’s continued to run an estate of around 200 pubs as a separate company. In September 2006, as the Ram Brewery’s final brew before closure was running, its flamboyant chairman died at age 85.
Diehard Young’s devotees had decided the beers were not as good as they used to be before brewing had even commenced at their new home. But Young’s remains a source of classic and widely respected traditional beers.
Young’s Bitter, affectionately known as “Ordinary,” is a light, hoppy session pint at 3.8% ABV. Young’s Special London Ale is particularly notable as traditional, full-bodied IPA with a cult following.