New beer was created to mark brewery milestone
THE YEAR was 1744 and an ambitious young cooper by the name of William Worthington moved into Burton and immediately set about acquiring his very first brewery.
Purchased for the princely sum of £320 this number one position didn’t come about without years of hard work.
Such was William’s ambition, confidence and entrepreneurial spirit over the following years that he even speculated in the risky export trade.
In the 18th century this meant sending shipments of beer as far afield as St Petersburg and waiting to see what — if anything — the ship returned with.
Fortunately Worthington’s beer was well received in foreign lands too, and William was well on his way to establishing the reputation that would see Burton become regarded as the home of brewing, and his own name in particular become synonymous with quality, integrity and brewing expertise.
Therefore, in 2002, Worthington’s award winning brewing team used all the skills and knowledge developed over more than 250 ye create a new premium cask ale, known as 1744.
With nearly twenty years at the Worthington’s brewing helm, Head Brewer Paul Wharton was given free rein to develop a great tasting premium cask beer, in keeping with Worthington’s brewing origins.
The result was a balanced, full flavoured premium cask ale, brewed to 4.4% alcohol by volume (ABV).
Such was the pedigree of Worthington’s beers, that only the finest natural brewing ingredients were used: in this case premium British malts, yeast and hops together with pure Burton water, drawn from deep wells through the region’s unique limestone formation.
Paul described 1744 as his greatest brewing achievement to date, saying: “For me, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity! Not many brewers get the chance to develop a cask ale for a major brewer andvi am extremely proud of the result.
“We’re confident that the public will enjoy 1744 as much as all the other beers in the Worthington’s range.”