When Carlsberg issued a Press Release in November detailing the cessation of a number of beers including Banks Mild, Old Thumper and two Marston’s beers, Old Empire and 61 Deep, but there was one glaring omission: Marston’s Owd Rodger.
When did this legendary Burton brew become so inconsequential that it’s demise didn’t even warrant a mention? Are Carlsberg intending to it bury it in a nameless grave?
Marked simply as “delisted” on their website, the remaining bottles are currently being sold off cheap, so I messaged Carlsberg for further clarification of the beer’s future in the hope of receiving an in-depth explanation, apologising for their oversight and expanding on the reasons for halting production. I didn’t get one and any attempt at eliciting further comment was in vain. I reproduce the statement here in full.
“Unfortunately, this product is no longer in production.”
Eight words. Eight bloody words! Spoken like a true bunch of accountants or a word to that effect.
Owd Rodger was “a strong specialist dark beer … shrouded in mystery. Although typical of the ales exported to the Baltic in the 18th Century, legend has it that Owd Rodger is brewed to a 500 year old recipe named after its creator. Medieval monk or Elizabethan innkeeper, he certainly knew his beer” according to the mid-1980s bottle label.
The original Burton Ales were around in the 1600s, possibly even earlier, the beer that initially put Burton on the brewing map, predating both the rise of India Pale Ale and the founding of Marston’s brewery by a few centuries. Described as nut brown in colour, strong and sweet, Burton Ale could be bought for a premium price in London by the mid-1600s and would later be exported to the Baltic reaching as far as Russia, only stopping in 1806 when French Emperor Napoleon imposed an embargo on British exports.
Although the recipe may claim to be 500 years old, Marston, Thompson & Evershed’s Owd Rodger was launched as a Strong Ale in November 1908. The label was registered as trademark number 305,015 on 27 July 1908 and it was available in cask and bottle. Marston’s bottling setup, known locally as the “Nut Brown”. was sited near Crossman Street at their Albion Brewery and as was typical for the times, it was a very basic process; no cold storage, straight from the cask via a 24 head bottler with all the labels affixed by hand using female labour.
Early adverts described the beer as “the drink for cold weather … a fine old ale the colour of port,” and it “resembles the beers of bygone days. Its exquisite flavour and invigorating properties make it an ideal Winter Drink.” During the First World War the gravity was presumably reduced, as adverts from the early 1920s boasted “at pre-war strength.” In 1923 a dozen half-pint bottles would set you back 8/6 which was a lot of money in those days.
By the mid-1930s the beer was well established as their seasonal winter warmer, three bottle sizes were available: nips, small and large (presumably the last two being half pints and pints). A cask, designated with the mark No.6 sold for 226/- per barrel in 1933.
Production was paused in 1943 due to restrictions of beer gravities imposed by the government during the Second World War, rather than reduce the quality the company chose to discontinue Owd Rodger until conditions improved, it was certainly readily available by 1950.
It underwent a rebranding in 1966, becoming a Barley Wine and the recipe was also changed slightly increasing the Original Gravity to the 1077-1085 range. It came with the following warning in the 1980s “… deeply satisfying and very ‘more-ish’ – but take care!” It would also be called a Strong Country Ale in the 1990s.
Not without its accolades, in 1987 it won the best beer in its class at the Brewing Industry International Awards, which was equivalent to an Oscar, it was described as a “Burton brewed brainscrambler” and it was also lauded by the Derby Telegraph’s Beerhunter as his favourite beer of 2018 described as “powerful, at 7.4%, it’s bursting with fruity flavours, in a Christmas pudding sort of way. It’s smooth and satisfying.”
I have fond but very fuzzy memories of The Bridge at Branston stocking Pins in the 1990s which were stillaged in a small room next to the bar, there was something sacred about asking for a beer that the Landlord had to leave the room to fetch! It was there that I learnt that no matter how I tried, and believe me I did, I could never finish the third pint. Perhaps I should have stuck to Pedro instead, a half and half mix of Pedigree and Owd Rodger that was a firm favourite in Burton?
So then, to try Owd Rodger for the final time. I’m assuming a twelve month shelf-life (this has a best before 31/12/24) and an extended period of cellaring prior to bottling, so the last brew of Owd Rodger would have been late 2022 or early 2023. It had a fruity nose, was dark in colour with a slight red tinge and boasted a complex taste. Initially the fruit came through, followed by warmth from the alcohol, then the sweetness, slight bitterness and an aftertaste of sweetness. Although Owd Rodger is not an authentic Burton Ale, due to the use of whole leaf aroma hops (ales traditionally did not use hops in the 17th century) it was the closest remaining relation to the early Burton beers and anyone who could tell you different hasn’t been around for a very long time.
Looking back, Owd Rodger has been under threat for a few years, the last time I saw it on cask was pre-COVID and I can’t recall seeing it for sale outside of the local area, ever. This historic seasonal and regional beer never stood a chance against Carlsberg. It has been well and truly rodgered.