What Whitbread did to Tennant

Those working at Tennant were generally pleased at merging with Whitbread, which was already a national brewer. At least the company hadn’t been asset-stripped. Or at least not so obviously.

Because, despite promising to let Tennant continue as before, they soon started to ring the changes. One of the obsessions of the Big Six was to have national brands. Presumably because it was easier to push just a few brands rather than having competing products. Ultimately, I think it was their downfall. Drinkers never acquired the same emotional attachment to national brands that they had to local or regional ones.

Of course, change didn’t all happen at once. It was a subtle process, with the Tennant name and its brands slowly being phased out.

“Gradually, over the next few years, changes were introduced. Most of Tennant's bottled beers disappeared. No. 1 Barley wine had already been swallowed up by Gold Label and then Don Jon, Lion Brown Ale and the prize-winning Lion Pale Ale were discontinued. Whitbread Pale Ale was tankered up from London and bottled in Sheffield. Glucose Stout was replaced by Mackeson which was now brewed and bottled in Sheffield. There was even a suggestion that Tennant's Gold Label should be replaced by Whitbread's barley wine, Final Selection. I believe it was due only to the persistence of our strong-willed Head Brewer, Harold Burkinshaw, that this wonderful product was saved.”
"The Brewer's Tale" by Frank Priestley, 2010, page 23.

It’s incredible that they should have contemplated phasing out a classic beer like Gold Label. Ultimately, it was Final Selection that got the chop. I wonder where Final Selection itself originated. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t at Whitbread’s original brewery in Chiswell Street. It doesn’t turn up in the brewing records there until 1968. Did it come from another of Whitbread’s breweries?

Whitbread Pale Ale was a big brand back then, which was heavily promoted in newspaper advertisements. While Mackeson was one of the biggest brands of all, brewed at Whitbread plants all over the country. It’s interesting that the Pale Ale was always produced in London.

There was a similar paring down of the draught range:

“Tennant's draught beers didn't fare much better. The beautiful Queen's Ale was discontinued, as was Rock Ale, which was replaced by Whitbread Best Mild. Best Bitter, after a colour adjustment, was renamed Trophy Bitter. Whitbread's policy was to advertise nationally a product that was, in effect, each regions Best Bitter. It was a good idea. A national product, brewed to satisfy local tastes. Although, when Yorkshiremen went on holiday down south, they sometimes got a bit of a surprise when they ordered their favourite brew.”
"The Brewer's Tale" by Frank Priestley, 2010, page 23.

Rebranding a brewery’s flagship Bitter as Trophy was standard Whitbread practice, even though they didn’t particularly advertise the fact. At one point in the 1970’s there were more than a dozen beers sold as Trophy. On the other hand Tankard, Whitbread’s premium keg Bitter, was the same everywhere.

I assume Queen’s Ale was replaced by Trophy. And that Best Mild was brewed in Sheffield. It’s difficult to imagine this now, but Best Mild was a big brand for Whitbread in the 1960’s. Though I’d need to look at the brewing records to confirm it was the same beer as brewed in London.

In case you’re wondering, this is what the Whitbread range looked like back then:

Whitbread beers in the early 1960's
Year	Beer	Style	Price per pint d	package	OG	FG	ABV	App. Atten-uation	colour
1965	Final Selection	Strong Ale	57	bottled	1079.2	1013.5	8.63	82.95%	68
1964	Forest Brown	Brown Ale	22	bottled	1035.6	1011.2	3.16	68.54%	90
1961	Mackeson	Stout	32	bottled	1046	1019	3.48	58.70%	250
1963	Pale Ale	Pale Ale		bottled	1036.5	1007.5	3.77	79.45%	21
1960	Bitter	Pale Ale	17	draught	1038.5	1011	3.56	71.43%	20
1961	Tankard Bitter	Pale Ale	24	draught	1038.6	1011	3.58	71.50%	18
1964	Best Ale	Mild		draught	1030.6	1007.5	3.06	75.49%	100
Sources:
Whitbread brewing records
Whitbread Gravity book held at the London Metropolitan Archives, document number LMA/4453/D/02/002.

Gold Label might have survived by the skin of its teeth. But what happened to it next?