As regular readers will recall, at the end of 2020, Sambrook’s Brewery moved into part of what was formerly Young & Co’s Ram Brewery. The space now forms part of Wandsworth’s Ram Quarter development. Right from the start it was agreed that the site’s brewing heritage should be respected and the planning permission included a requirement for the preservation of some large items of Young’s brewing equipment which were still in place. As a result, Sambrook’s created a Heritage Centre. The now legendary John Hatch, a former brewer at Young’s and subsequently the developer’s site manager, maintained the tradition of brewing on the site. He has since joined Sambrook’s as Heritage Experience Manager (although he still brews as well).
Visits to the Heritage Centre are available on a regular basis. They cost £15 per head and can be booked through the website. The centre is quite small and so tours are limited to parties of 15. A discount is available to CAMRA branches.
The tours are led by John himself. I joined in a tour organised by CAMRA’s North London branch. Undeterred by a sudden heavy shower, we assembled in the brewery tap and most of us sampled the guest beer, Maltby Street Mild from Southwark Brewery. John soon corralled us into the shop area where he talked to us about tasting beer (80% of which, he told us, is through the nose), assisted by some samples. We then made our way up the stairs through the three floors of exhibits.
Although this is the Sambrook’s Heritage Centre, most of the exhibits recall Young & Co’s Brewery. There are many fascinating items and John is a most engaging guide to them. One of John’s pet projects is the restoration of the mechanism from the clock that was once installed in the tower of the stables. He hopes to attach a clock face in due course. Perhaps however the most poignant exhibit is the brewing book in which is recorded the passing of John Young. There is also a very characteristic portrait of the man himself. On the top floor are the old coppers, still gleaming but, sadly, no longer useable. The steam engines are also in preservation but it is not possible to include them in the tour at present. A pint of beer was included in the price, so we all returned to the taproom accordingly. Among the snippets of information that John passed on was the very reassuring news that there are no pathogens that can kill a human being which can live in beer!
One of my fellow tourists was former CAMRA national chairman John Cryne, who brought a present with him. This was a bottle of the celebration ale brewed to commemorate a visit to the brewery by Her Majesty the Queen in 1981, in recognition of Young & Co’s 150th anniversary. By coincidence, John and Christine found a framed photo of the event in the centre.
John Hatch was awarded CAMRA London Region’s John Young Memorial Award in 2020. Please see our October/ November 2020 edition for a profile of him by Christine Cryne and the October/November 2021 edition for a report on the presentation.
Tony Hedger (who must declare an interest as a Sambrook’s shareholder).
With thanks to Christine Cryne for the photographs.