Although maybe not quite as secret as Muswell Hillbilly (see our June/July 2022 edition), Southey is a brewery that is equally hidden but definitely worth seeking out. The London Tasting Panel went south to Peckham to find out more.
The history of the site is a mix of sadness and success. Many readers will remember the Late Knights brewery. They originally brewed on this site for eleven years with kit purchased from Clarkshaws. They then started to purchase a number of pubs until things went wrong. But, as sometimes happens, green shoots materialise and that is where Sam comes in. Sam explained, “My dad was a real ale drinker and beer was prevalent in the house. In fact, in later years, I found it strange that people didn’t drink beer every day! I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. My step dad said if you yearn to do something just do it.”
For Sam, beer ticked the box of combining science and creativity. “I applied for a job with Late Knights and got it. Two weeks later they handed me the brewery keys! I suspect the beer wasn’t great to start with but quality didn’t seem quite so important then as now.” Sam worked with them until they closed but then something fortuitous happened. Graham Lawrence, who owned the premises, approached Sam and asked him if he’d like to go into brewing with him and the rest is history.
The brewery is situated in an old slaughterhouse that subsequently became a candle factory. The initial area on entering is the tap room, with the brewery alongside in a separate space and with the upstairs providing storage. It is a five barrel brew length with six fermenters. They use whole leaf hops, with pellets used just for dry hopping. Like in many small breweries, the yeast is all dried.
It’s a small, friendly team headed up by Sam and supported by Charlotte, who does the brewery’s administration and finance work, and who joined Southey because of her love of beer. Liz is in charge of the tap room and Adam assists Sam in the brewery. Adam explained, “I worked for Merlin, who own a number of attractions such as Madame Tussauds. I was made redundant due to the pandemic, saw the advert for an assistant here and applied. I have been here about a year.”
Southey produce both cask and keg. Sam laments that they would like to do more cask but said they are struggling to sell it. They sold only keg during the pandemic, “because of its better keeping qualities,” said Sam, although their regular cask beers, Pale and Best, are usually on handpump in the tap room. In addition, they supply three former Late Knights pubs, which are also owned by Graham. These are the London Dispensary, the Brighton Beer Dispensary and the Dulwich Beer Dispensary. Sam added, “Our tap room does well; we are seen as part of the community and like to get involved in local festivals.”
This community engagement paid dividends when the pandemic hit. “We were really grateful for local support. We did home deliveries and, when we were able to, we opened the alleyway so we could keep to social distancing. We were fortunate that when we advertised, we found one of our locals who knew the brewery and had his own van.” Their ability to get through the pandemic was also aided by the fact that they have their own small canning line. Sam said, “It’s second hand, ex Brew York.”
Their ethos of engagement also extends to working with other breweries and outlets. Southey are part of the Local Brewery Loop, a three mile walk which, in addition to Southey, takes in BR3WERY, Ignition and Three Hounds Beer Co, a beer café and bottle shop. Complete the Loop and you get a badge!
So, after surviving the pandemic relatively unscathed, what next? More growth? Sam said, “We have no ambitions to be a Beavertown but some extra business is always welcome.”
To find out more, and to visit the tap room, see here. Details of the Loop can be found here and for tasting notes, go to the brewery section of the regional website.
Christine Cryne