Tetley Bitter

[Trojan]

raveydavey wrote: Trojan wrote: Hats Off wrote: I think once sales start to drop off because it no longer tastes the same as traditional Leeds brewed Tetley's then the name will quietly disappear forever. Selling out to the Danes was the biggest mistake the owners of Tetley's could have made. They say that there was no longer the demand for bitter or mild beers and it was unviable to keep the brewery open ! Yet Carlsberg had to move production to Wolverhampton because as Andy Hume, brewery director at Carlsberg's Leeds brewery, said: "We looked at all realistic options in Yorkshire to brew Tetley's cask. However, there was not the suitable capacity available." So why move in the first place ??? If the capacity needed to brew Tetley beers is so great then why not just carry on brewing at Hunslet Road ? I think the obvious reason is they know that they sit on prime redevelopment land and once the economy starts to pick up they will make a killing in selling off the land. It's all about greed I'm afraid and nothing (especially tradition or local pride) gets in the way of that.Regards. According to Radio 4's "Food Programme" awards show yesterday, the only segment of the beer market that is growing at the moment is the cask conditioned segment. I can't comment on the quality or lack of it of Tetleys ales, I stopped drinking them last year when the plans to close the Leeds Brewery were announced. Landlord is a far better drink than Tetleys anyway. In the days when I lived at West Ardsley, and drank regularly in The Hare and Hounds the Tetleys bitter and mild were both brilliant - this in the days when cask ale really was a niche market. It's a shame. Effectively another Yorkshire beer gone. The most famous of the lot. I wasn't old enough to drink Melbourne, but I remember Hemingways (Leeds) Duttons (Leeds) Whitakers (Halifax) Websters (Halifax) Ramsdens (Halifax) Hammonds (Tadcaster) BYB (Woodlesford) Beverleys (Wakefield) all gone in the last forty years.     True Trojan, but at least now we have the Leeds Brewery, Ridgeside Brewery (in Meanwood), Black Sheep and Theakstons (both Masham), Timmy Taylors (Keighley), Goose Eye (near Keighley), Copper Dragon (Skipton), York Brewery, Sam Smiths (Tadcaster), Osset Brewery, Daleside (Harrogate?) and that is just off the top of my head. There is an excellent brewery at Pool in Wharfedale too, but their name escapes me at the moment.Yorkshire is home to many thriving brewers, all of whom (in my opinion) produce ale that is far superior to the mass produced slop that Tetleys had become. Daleside is at Starbeck. Yes it's true what you say, but the ones I listed were pretty large concerns with pub estates. I like Leeds Best, and I like Ossett Excelsior too. My son bought a 9 gallon barrel of Daleside "Old Legover" for his barbecue in the summer and it was pretty good. Taylors Landlord is in a class of its own though.I used to enjoy a drop of Boddingtons in the past before they got bought out. Just as they were expanding into Yorkshire too. They had a tied house at the bottom of Beeston Hill - was it the Golden Lion? Their cask beer was never as good after the takover, if you can still get the cask version I think it's either Hydes or Holts that brew it.    

[simong]

The brewery in Pool is called Wharfedale. There's also Mallinson's in Huddersfield, Outlaw and Rooster in Knaresborough, Saltaire, and Anglo-Dutch in Dewsbury to name a few more.

[geoffb]

A bit further afield but still in Yorkshire is NYBrewery near Guisborough, the Cross Keys in Guisborough serve Flying Herbert and a fine pint it is too, a bit strong for a session ale at 4.9%ABV but non the less great for a couple or 4. One of its claims is that it is organic, what ever difference this makes other than 20p on a pint

[drapesy]

simong wrote: The brewery in Pool is called Wharfedale. There's also Mallinson's in Huddersfield, Outlaw and Rooster in Knaresborough, Saltaire, and Anglo-Dutch in Dewsbury to name a few more. You're right simong it is Wharfedale brewery not Wharfeside, my mistake. I think I was confuding it with 'Daleside'!!

[liits]

Hats Off wrote: I think once sales start to drop off because it no longer tastes the same as traditional Leeds brewed Tetley's then the name will quietly disappear forever. Selling out to the Danes was the biggest mistake the owners of Tetley's could have made. They say that there was no longer the demand for bitter or mild beers and it was unviable to keep the brewery open ! Yet Carlsberg had to move production to Wolverhampton because as Andy Hume, brewery director at Carlsberg's Leeds brewery, said: "We looked at all realistic options in Yorkshire to brew Tetley's cask. However, there was not the suitable capacity available." So why move in the first place ??? If the capacity needed to brew Tetley beers is so great then why not just carry on brewing at Hunslet Road ? I think the obvious reason is they know that they sit on prime redevelopment land and once the economy starts to pick up they will make a killing in selling off the land. It's all about greed I'm afraid and nothing (especially tradition or local pride) gets in the way of that.Regards. [please note, that this is only my opinion] Tetley’s hasn’t been much cop since the mid 80’s. I am lead to believe that Allied had done a deal to use some type Dutch hops for X number of years as opposed to the English grown Goldie hops that they had always previously used. This lead to the beginning of the decline of Tetley’s.It was certainly different in terms of looking after the stuff. No matter what you did, it tasted of nothing.My honestly held belief is that, now, it wouldn’t matter if it was brewed in Leeds, Wolverhampton or on the moon, it still wouldn’t be Tetley’s. While it’s true that that the water used in the process makes the world of difference, if the other ingredients – especially the one that makes the flavour [hops]- are cheap tat, the end product isn’t going to be any good.

[tyke bhoy]

Your opinion Liits, one you are entitled to and one I think most, including me would agree with

[Leodian]

I do not like the taste of beer so I very rarely ever have any. I do however recall many years back going to a tour round Tetley's Brewery in Leeds. At the end we were allowed free drinks of the beer (I don't know what type it was). Expecting not to like it I was surprised to find it was quite good. Clearly the fresh beer at the brewery was much better than any I had in pubs.

[Si]

tyke bhoy wrote: Your opinion Liits, one you are entitled to and one I think most, including me would agree with Me too.

[The Parksider]

liits wrote: [please note, that this is only my opinion] Tetley’s hasn’t been much cop since the mid 80’s. I am lead to believe that Allied had done a deal to use some type Dutch hops for X number of years as opposed to the English grown Goldie hops that they had always previously used. This lead to the beginning of the decline of Tetley’s.It was certainly different in terms of looking after the stuff. No matter what you did, it tasted of nothing.My honestly held belief is that, now, it wouldn’t matter if it was brewed in Leeds, Wolverhampton or on the moon, it still wouldn’t be Tetley’s. While it’s true that that the water used in the process makes the world of difference, if the other ingredients – especially the one that makes the flavour [hops]- are cheap tat, the end product isn’t going to be any good. Talking of cheap tat I note the "hand crafted lovingly mellowed etc etc Stella Artois contains Maize....How about that then!As for Tets, where I had 24 glorious years, I'm glad we haven't gone starry eyed with nostalgia. All the local breweries and beautiful beers genuinely crafted lovingly today are like paradise compared with the old daysIf you were a Tetleys man and died in a tetleys pub, and had been good all your life youd have ended up in Arcadia or the Town Street tavern or perm any one of a dozen great venues for a dozen great beers......

[Si]

The Parksider wrote: Talking of cheap tat I note the "hand crafted lovingly mellowed etc etc Stella Artois contains Maize....How about that then! They even boasted about that on huge 48-sheet posters."Contains only four ingredients" - and then listed one of them as maize - that traditional Belgian crop!