Brewery Tour
Founded in 1876 to provide beer to the local Bedford population, Charles Wells is now the largest independently owned, family run brewery in the country and is in fact the UK's fifth largest. Over five generations of Wells' have worked at the brewery, and there are currently three members of the Wells family involved on a day to day basis here now. It really is a traditional family business.
The excellence of the beers Charles Wells produces has three foundations. Firstly the long tradition and in-depth expertise we possess in brewing, secondly; the all important quality of the water we use in all our beers and thirdly; the quality of facilities that we possess.The Expertise
The long list of national and international awards won by Charles Wells Ales stretching back over decades says more about the tradition of excellence that is a company hallmark than any fine words we care to put down here.
The Water
Water is the most important ingredient in beer, and Wells John Bull Finest Bitter has an enviable natural advantage over other bitters. Wells' bitters are uniquely brewed using pure mineral water from an independently accredited source; our own well.
This well was sunk in 1902 by Charles Wells himself, to tap into an underground aquifer, purified through a layer of oolitic limestone. Today all Charles Wells beer is still made with water drawn from the well sunk by Charles all those years ago.
The Facilities
The company moved to the current brewery in 1976 to meet the rapidly growing demand for Charles Wells beer, a move which gave the company the opportunity to install the most up-to-date brewing equipment.
Wells Bombardier English Premium Bitter and Wells Eagle Bitter are the key Charles Wells Ales produced at the site but we also produce Red Stripe Lager, the Jamaican lager beer, the Japanese lager Kirin, one of the world's largest selling beer brands, as well as the Indian lager Cobra. All these fine lager beers are brewed under license.
Wells & Young's Merger
On 23rd May 2006 London brewer Young’s combined its brewing operations with Charles Wells of Bedford to create a major new national force in the brewing industry. The new company, Wells & Young's Brewing Company Limited, began operations on October 2nd, brewing all of Young's beers in Bedford alongside the Charles Wells brand portfolio.
