Young & Co’s Brewery Ltd Round Tin

Young & Co's Brewery Ltd tin tray dating from the late 1950s.

Origins of the Ram Brewery

The origins of the Ram Brewery in Wandsworth date from the 1550s.
Ownership of the Ram Brewery passed to the Draper family in the 17th century, and the Tritton family in the 18th century.
The Ram Brewery, with 82 public houses, was purchased by Charles Allen Young and Anthony Fothergill Bainbridge in 1831, from which time it was associated with the Young family.
The Ram trade mark was introduced in 1872 and registered in 1905.
In 1882 a serious fire devastated the brewery, however within a few weeks it was rebuilt and began brewing again.

Young & Co's Brewery Ltd Registration

The business was registered in 1890 as Young & Co's Brewery Ltd.
In 1900, when bottled beers became popular, the Company invested in a new bottling plant.
In the 1940s Young's introduced 'Special Bitter' which became its flagship beer.
Young's beers were supplied to over 200 public houses in London and the South West of England, and to many European countries, Canada, the USA, and Japan.
In the 2000s many of the firm's local Wandsworth pubs were still supplied by its traditional shire horses.
In 2005 the majority of Young's family decided to close the Ram Brewery and focus their energies on their public houses.
John Young, the great-great grandson of the founder, was the Young's family last Chairman who died days before the Ram Brewery closed in 2006.

Well's & Young's Brewing Co. Ltd

When it closed, all brewing was transferred to Charles Wells Ltd's Eagle Brewery based in Bedford.
Under the newly formed joint venture named Wells & Young's Brewing Co. Ltd, Wells held 60% of the shareholding while Youngs held 40%.
Young's sold its stake in the business to Charles Wells in 2011.
The rights to the Young's brands were sold to Marstons PLC in 2017, now named the Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Co. Ltd.
The Wandsworth site is now owned by property Company Minerva plc which renovated the premises sympathetically.
The Ram Brewery was home to the MasterChef kitchen between 2011 and 2014, and now includes the Sambrook's microbrewery which opened in 2021.
By 2024 Young's pub company owned 288 public houses.
Although it no longer brews, Young's & Co's Brewery PLC is still trading successfully.

The manufacturer's mark states - Hancock, Corfield & Waller Ltd. Mitcham.London
The tray featured is one which was held as a file copy within Hancock, Corfield & Waller Ltd.