Breweries Still Using Wooden Casks and/or Coopers.

Northgate Brewery
Devizes
Wiltshire
SN10 1JW
Telephone: 01380 723361/7
Fax: 01380 724342
E-mail: PR@wadworth.co.uk
Website: http://www.wadworth.co.uk/

Cooper: Alastair Simms
Information:

T & R Theakston Ltd
The Brewery
Masham
Ripon
North Yorkshire
HG4 4YD
Telephone: 01765 680000
FAX: 01765 689414
Website: http://www.theakstons.co.uk/

Cooper: Jonathan Manby  
Information:

The Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries, PLC,
PO Box 26,
Park Brewery,
Wolverhampton,
WV1 4NY.
Telephone: 01902 711811
Website: http://www.wdbbrands.co.uk/

Cooper:  
Information:

Marston's Pedigree is the only beer brewed in wood, using the unique Burton Unions. This brewing process is key to ensuring that the distinctive flavour of Pedigree is retained.

Traditionally many breweries used Burton Unions, but gradually felt the cost could no longer be justified - even though this would impact on taste. But, for Pedigree to scrap the Burton Unions is simpy out of the question.

So what are Burton Union sets ? They are double rows of large wooden casks - made from European oak, that are mounted on a frame above which runs a long trough. There are usually 24 union casks in a Burton Union Set - each cask can hold around 150 gallons, thats four and a quarter barrels or 1200 pints.

The Burton Unions are used to ferment Pedigree and to generate Pedigree's very special yeast for subsequent brews. The special yeast does not separate easily from the beer, which means it's difficult to crop for the next brew if you use a conventional brewing method. In a Union the yeast is trapped on the troughs and easy to recover.

The process is expensive and complicated, but it is reliable and the only sure way of guaranteeing that Marston's achieves a crop of the special yeast for the following brews. It's up to the Marston's Cooper to maintain the Union Sets. Marston's employs one of the few remaining Coopers in the country and it is thanks to his skill and craftmanship that brewing heritage survives.

Best regards,
Lesley Sweeney
Brewery Co-ordinator
WDB Brands - Burton

Innis and Gunn Brewery
PO Box 17246
Edinburgh
EH11 1YR
Telephone: 0131 337 4420
Email: dougal.sharp@innisandgunn.com
Website: http://www.innisandgunn.com

Cooper:  
Information:

Isle of Skye Brewing Company
The Pier
Uig
Isle of Skye
Scotland
IV49 9XP
Telephone: UK (01470) 542477
Fax: UK (01470) 542488
Email: info@skyebrewery.co.uk
Website: www.skyebrewery.co.uk

Cooper:  
Information:

We do supply a small number of outlets with beer in the wood. We have 8 x 36 pint wooden casks (made by Theakstons) which we put out to the Clachnaharry Inn, Inverness, the Glenmoriston Arms Hotel, Invermoriston and (occasionally) to the Benleva Hotel, Drumnadrochit. As far as I know we are the only Scottish brewery to supply beer from the wood. Dispense is always by gravity.

We only produce one bottle-conditioned beer - a naturally cloudy wheat beer called "Misty Isle". We are pleased that it won the silver medal in the inaugural Champion Bottle-conditioned Beer of Scotland competition last month held at the Ayrshire Beer Festival.

Best Regards

Angus MacRuary
Managing Director

Traquair House Brewery Ltd
Traquair House
Innerleithen
Peebleshire
Scotland
Tel: 44 (0)1896 830323
Email: enquiries@traquair.co.uk
Website: www.traquair.co.uk

Cooper:  
Information:

Thank you for your enquiry. Traquair is certainly the pioneer of micro breweries and also pre dates CAMRA, having been set up in 1965 in the 18th century brewery at Traquair.

Although we are not supplying ale in wooden casks all our ales are fermented in unlined oak tuns which is fairly unique in itself!

Best Regards

Catherine Maxwell Stuart

Samuel Smith Old Brewery (Tadcaster).
High Street
Tadcaster
North Yorkshire
LS24 9SB.
Telephone: 01937 832225
FAX: 01937 834673
Website: www.tadcaster.uk.com/breweriesSamuelSmith.htm

Cooper:  
Information: