Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Breweries
379
Black Sheep & Theakston Breweries
All in the Family
Masham, Yorkshire, England
Tramp around the dramatic rolling land-
scape of the Yorkshire Dales, laced with
tumbling streams and precipitous little
waterfalls, and you'll understand why
Dales water is so pure and clear. Thanks to
that water and a little help from fine Eng-
lish hops, North Yorkshire yields some
outstanding traditional ales. Not one but
two of the best are brewed right here, in
the picturesque Georgian market town of
Masham.
It's no coincidence, actually—there's
quite a tale behind the two firms, one wor-
thy of a Trollope novel. It all began in 1827
when Robert Theakston leased the Black
Bull Inn and brew house in Masham and
began to develop a superb line of tradi-
tionally brewed ales. In 1875 his son,
Thomas, built a full-scale brewery in an
area of Masham known as Paradise
Fields. This is the rough-cast stone brew-
ery you can tour today,
T&R Theakston
(Red Lane;
&
44/1765/680 000;
www.
theakstons.co.uk), an evocative old tower-
style plant of steep stairs and narrow
walkways, where gravity pulls the beer
from one stage of the process down to the
next. It's one of the few breweries that still
make its own oak casks; you may even see
a coopering demonstration during your
tour. Best known for its
classic dark ale
Old Peculier and full-bodied ruby-colored
XB ale, Theakston grew over the years,
acquiring several smaller local breweries,
until it itself was taken over in 1987 by the
Scottish & Newcastle conglomerate. This
rancorous takeover battle ended when
the Theakston family finally regained con-
trol in 2004.
Luckily, Theakston ales remained high-
quality brews throughout it all. But before
the truce, in 1992, brewery scion Paul Theak-
ston decided to start his own traditional
craft brewery right in Masham. Rather than
stoop to accept a job with the S&N con-
glomerate-owned Theakston, he decided
to go head-to-head with them. He bought
a neglected Victorian-era malting house
from a defunct brewery his grandfather
had taken over years ago, and he rigged it
with odds and ends of old-fashioned
equipment, rescued from several brewer-
ies that were going out of business. It's
now the award-winning
Black Sheep
Brewery
(Wellgarth, Masham;
&
44/1765/
680 100;
www.blacksheep.co.uk), a name
that refers not only to Masham's historic
sheep markets but to Paul's rebellion
against the family business. From the very
start, brewery tours and an attached
brewpub/bistro were part of the Black
Sheep business plan; hour-long tours of
the plant, with its hilltop setting above the
Ure River, should be booked in advance.
You'll walk past the brew house's immense
copper brewing kettles, the oak-sided
mash vats, and a set of deep square fer-
menting vessels. (Because Black Sheep's
beers, like Theakston's, are ales rather
than lagers, they are fermented with the
yeast on the top.) You can even climb to
the top of the rooftop conditioning tanks
for a stupendous view of the Dales. At the
tour's end, settle into the mellow brewery
pub and savor Black Sheep's best bitter,
and you may agree—Theakston's loss was
the beer world's gain.
www.visitmasham.com.
(
Leeds-Bradford International (52km/32
miles).
L
$$
Kings Head Hotel,
Market Place
(
&
44/1765/689295;
www.kingshead
masham.co.uk). $$
White Bear Hotel,
Wellgarth (
&
44/1765/689319
).
