storms ahead
Gales shines out as one of the most successful examples of an established brewery. Adrian Tierney-Jones talks to managing director Nigel Atkinson about increasing profits and finding inspiration in the past
Next year is the 200th anniversary of the battle of Trafalgar and, even though the spirit of the times is against fighting old wars, you can bet an Admiral's cocked hat that a few beers will be released celebrating Nelson's triumph. None will be more eagerly awaited in the wardrooms of what is left of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth, however, than Gales' Trafalgar 200, a 10.5% abv bottled ale, which has been quietly maturing for the past few months.
"We are going to bottle it in the next few weeks," explains the Hampshire brewery's managing director Nigel Atkinson. "It will be a collector's item for drinking with food, especially cheese."
Gales is Hampshire's largest brewery and owns 111 pubs, 43 of which are managed, with the rest tenanted. A dozen of them offer accommodation under the brand name of Accommodating Inns, while 11 of them can be found in Portsmouth (hence the naval connection). It also has 638 free trade accounts. Gales is one of the great survivors from the 20th century's cull of traditional breweries and continues to win awards for its beers, pubs and even its environmental practices.
Every year, Gales produces 50,000 barrels of beer, 80% of which is cask conditioned, while its Victorian tower brewery in Horndean is on the visiting list for any self-respecting beer buff. Educating its licensees is also high on the agenda. During a tour of the brewery, it is not unusual to bump into a group of visiting Gales licensees being shown around or sitting quietly in a room taking their BII exams.
Gales' trading area concentrates on Hampshire although it has been expanding outwards for some time. "We continuously buy new pubs and tend to get two a year," says Atkinson, who joined the brewery from Courage in 1990. Recent acquisitions have seen Gales make its presence known in Oxford, Windsor and Lewes.
"Our target area is central and southern England," says Atkinson. "It is a good area, aspirational and affluent. Our aim is to grow a profitable retail estate of distinctive inns both tenanted and managed." Its turnover was £38 million in 2003/4 and it had a £5 million operating profit. This has been the 15th year of consecutive growth in profit. No wonder Atkinson says "this is a successful business".
Mention Gales to any beer lover and they will think of HSB, the brewery's bestselling premium bitter, as well as the bottled Prize Old Ale, a 9% barley wine sold in corked bottles. Earlier this year, Gales responded to demand for a session beer and released Gales, a 3.9% abv bitter with plenty of grainy malt and fruity hop aromas and flavours. It is already performing exceedingly well and Atkinson expects it to become the bestseller in the near future.
Atkinson stresses how important it is for the brewery to listen to customers, pub managers and tenants. Naturally, control comes from the centre for all the major decisions, but there is a refreshing spirit of independence encouraged among its licensees. "The houses are centrally-controlled," says Atkinson, "but we like to encourage individuals with flair. Although we have central control, you can allow individually-minded licensees. We have no shortage of licensees and we look after them. Therefore there is a long waiting list. Having won a lot of awards, we get successful people applying."
Atkinson is eager to change negative perceptions about following a career in the licensed trade. "There is a lot of work to be done in the pub industry for recruitment," he says. "Being a barman or woman is still not perceived as a career. In other countries it is, but not here, so we are working hard to create an atmosphere to help barmen and women develop into licensees if they want to."
In order to attract the best, Gales runs courses for both tenants and managers to help develop their skills and get professional qualifications. As food is also important, it also has a regular chefs' day, where staff from all its managed houses are taken through food and beer matching.
Gales has worked hard with its beers, too. Even though it is not a member of the Beer Academy, Gales supports the work of this revolutionary organisation and Atkinson points out that the company runs a similar group. "We developed our own beer tasting school," he says, "and, as part of the Hampshire Fair, we recently did a session on beer. We had done it in our pubs before, but never as part of a paid event for the public.
"We are also members of Cask Marque. The key now, having got the beer right, is to talk it up to customers. To get people to drink more beer you have to get the environment right and, when they're there, the beer has to feature strongly. That's one reason we're combining it with food and marketing it properly. We spent a lot of time in training our staff to serve a glass of beer properly."
There are plenty of other issues at the moment for pub-owning breweries. In the last budget, Gales became liable for Progressive Beer Duty and is just starting to get the benefits, which are invested back into the brewery. There is the binge drinking and minimum pricing issue as well, although, because Gales does not have a high street presence, it escapes being tarnished by the same brush as other brewers when the Government criticises the trade.
There are also the implications of a smoking ban. Atkinson is not a smoker, but realises that Gales is going to have to do something that will please customers and, at the same time, fit in with future legislation. "In some of our community pubs, 80% of customers smoke," he says, "but I think we should make it more comfortable for the customers.
"The big area for the anti-smoking lobby is with staff and that I can't argue with. Staff are working in an area with smoke and that is a big issue and we have to look after our staff."
Good beers, comfortable pubs and a wonderfully atmospheric tower brewery with its roots in the Victorian age make Gales a rare survivor alongside the likes of Wadworth, Adnams and Hook Norton. Based on the same site for nearly 160 years, it has survived all manner of storms, even the alleged suicide of its head brewer in the 1930s.
"There are all sorts of stories about him," explains Atkinson, "that he put his brewing book and pocket watch on the side of a fermenting vessel and then jumped in. Fermenting vessel number five, apparently. That's why we always say our beers are full-bodied."
Gales tasting notes
Butser 3.4%
Malt-accented beer with a dryish finish and a hint of citrus. Complements cured meats.
Gales 3.9%
Session beer with grainy succulent malt on the palate leading to a fresh hoppy fruitiness. Serve with spicy foods.
Festival Mild 4.8%
Strong mild style with chocolate and malt on the palate and a malty finish tempered by a brief tingling of hoppy bitterness. Excellent with sausages and smoked fish.
HSB 4.8%
Plenty of malt and hop fruitiness. Good with hearty stews and game dishes.