James Hole & Co.

First brewery I looked up in Barnard's "Noted Breweries of Britain and Ireland" (1889-1891) was James Hole. It's the one I worked in. I thought I'd share some of it with you.

This, given that the town now has neither has a working brewery, nor a maltsters, is quite poignant:

"Other towns in the county may be more picturesque, and more famous for their manufactures, but none can vie with Newark in its malthouses and kilns, or beat the quality of the malt manufactured or the beer brewed in that historic Trentside town."
Volume II, page 347.

The Clinton Arms, where Barnard stayed, is no longer a pub. Nostalgia is nothing new, as you can see from this description of it.

"Arriving at Newark, we drove to the Clinton Arms, the most important hotel in the place, situated in the market square, and one of those old inns which are gradually being effaced and superseded by new ones. The Clinton Arms dates centuries back; and its sign is a brief epitome of its history. One admires its principal entrance (beneath a colonnade), which is also a gateway to the inn stables, reminding us of the days when jolly farmers were hard drinkers, and sang their pastoral songs.

To those travellers like ourselves, who are sick of the palatial embellishments called grand hotels, where one is never known except by a number, we commend this cosy old-fashioned hostelry. We appreciated its comfortable old rooms, old furniture, old ways. Its cooking is all that one could desire, and its old-fashioned four-posters and feather beds are only just a little too luxurious. The Clinton Arms carries our thoughts back to the days when the old parlours of the inns were the meeting-places for the farmers and and tradesmen to discuss the affairs of the district and the politics of the nation. Those gatherings, as well as the coaching days, with their merry incidents, red-nosed drivers, and splendid teams, have long since gone."
Page 348

The Clinton closed a few years back. In my youth is was a rather run-down Home Ales tied house. The public bar was inhabited by many of the town's characters. I recall one, who always sat at one end of the bar, had his tongue permanently hanging out due to some injury. Every few minutes he'd dab it with a handkerchief to hold back the flow of drool. As ight that really helped you relish your pint. Today the types who would have gone to the Clinton now make the town's Weatherspoon's their home.

Now on to Hole's beers. AK was their flagship. It's also one of my obsessions. Here's what Barnard has to say about it:

"The "AK" luncheon ale has earned for Messrs. Hole a very wide reputation; they describe it a s a light sparkling dinner ale , it is exceedingly palatable with tonic properties, and is evidently, as we are assured, brewed from the very finest malt and hops procurable. We believe it is due, in a great extent, to the increasing demand for this and family ale, to supply their requirements, that he old premises were found inadequate. We have met with but few breweries where so large a portion of its output is sold for family consumption. At the Paris Exhibition, last year, the firm gained the Gold Medal, and special mention was made of their "AK" luncheon ale. As to their mild ales, we can only add that they have a rich smooth flavour, tasting as they should do, in such a centre, full of malt."
Pages 356-357

Sadly, he doesn't mention what the flip the name means, nor what it tastes like.

Here's a little about Hole's strong ale. It sounds like a proper old-fashioned beer, stored for a year before sale:

"We cannot, however, passs by Messrs. Hole's BB strong ale, which is stored twelve months before being sent out; of this ale one of our companions facetiously remarked that it would make his hair curl. Next in order of our visit came the celllars beneath the brewery, and afterwards those in St. Mark's Lane, which hold together 2,00 barrels. The latter is used principally for storing strong and India pale ales; the former is a full-bodied, nourishing beverage, pure and wholesome, and, like all the rest, brewed from malt and hops only."
Page 357

Being about my home town, I find all of this fascinating. I'm sure at least one of my readers will, too. Won't you, John?