Pair bring brewery back to Wandsworth (From Surrey Comet)

Pair bring brewery back to Wandsworth

5:30pm Wednesday 17th December 2008 in News By Katie Wilson

The closure of Young’s Ram Brewery in 2006 marked the end of an era for brewing in Wandsworth. Now two men are bringing the tradition back to the borough by setting up their own brewery in Battersea. KATIE WILSON reports.

Duncan Sambrook and David Welsh are an unlikely partnership, but one that works. One has an avid interest in beer, the other ran his own brewery for over 25 years.

And after meeting a year ago, they have set up their own business in the form of Sambrooks Brewery, based in Yelverton Road in Battersea.

The pair brewed their first beer, a 3.8% cask ale called Wandle, on November 26, and hope to start brewing several new varieties in the new year.

Former accountant, Duncan, got the idea to start his own brewery after visiting London’s Real Ale Festival with friends last August.

“We were drinking all these really nice beers, and I thought why can’t I do this? It’s every boy’s dream to have his own pub, but I took it one step further and got my own brewery, “ he said.

Initially, the 30-year-old from Hammersmith had planned to start home-brewing, then branch out on a larger scale. But he soon found this was impossible.

He said: “It is completely different brewing on a commercial basis, and recipes you tried at home won’t taste the same on a large scale. It simply does not work.”

Duncan joined forces with brewing legend, David Welsh, former owner of the Ringwood Brewery in Hampshire, in August, and the rest is history.

David, 60, is supposed to be retired after selling Ringwood last year, but couldn’t stick to it. He said: “I tried retirement for a while, but it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, so when Duncan came to me with the idea, I agreed to be a partner.”

They decided to set up in Wandsworth, following the closure of Young’s Ram Brewery in Wandsworth High Street, two years ago, to keep up the local tradition in the area.

“It was a great shame to see Young’s go, as it was one the last remaining large breweries in London. Having been born in the capital, I always fostered the idea of setting up a brewery here, and Wandsworth, with its brewing history, seemed a perfect place to do it. We’re not as big as Young’s, but it’s a start,” he added.

Duncan came up with the idea of calling the beer Wandle, in homage to the river that runs through the borough, and it is currently being sold on tap in the West Bridge pub in battersea, the Bricklayers Arms in Putney and the Falcon in Clapham Junction.

They hope to start selling it in bottles from next year, and add some new beers to their range, all of which will be named after a tributary that runs into the Thames.

But its not been all plain-sailing at Sambrook’s. The first batch of Wandle they brewed went down the drain, much to the delight of the rats, when the equipment told them the beer had no sugar in.

After closer inspection they found it was actually fine, but they had already thrown over 5,000 pints away. “It was quite an expensive first crack, but we have definitely learned from our mistakes,“ said Duncan.

Wandle is now available to buy in party kegs priced at £32 for 17 pints and £60 for 34 pints, and the brewery is also having special tasting nights this week for those who want to try a sample.

Duncan said: “We want to bring the local community into what we are doing. The borough has a massive brewing heritage, and we want to continue that.”

For more information or for the opportunity to taste Wandle contact Duncan Sambrook on 020 7228 0598 or email duncan.sambrook@sambrooksbrewery.co.uk

• What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.