Region & History

Why is Burton upon Trent called England's beer town? The town sits on the River Trent in Staffordshire and lived off brewing for centuries, with its origins tracing back to the Benedictine abbey founded in 1002. The monks brewed with water from the town's wells, and over time the monastery's beer grew into a trade that carried an entire town.

The railway brought the big leap forward. Since 1839 a line has run through Burton, and casks reached ports and major cities faster than ever before. By 1801 the town already had nine brewing businesses, and in the 19th century these grew into enterprises that supplied beer far beyond the country's borders.

Three names defined this era. William Bass founded his brewery in 1777, and his son Michael Thomas Bass turned it into a major company with partners Ratcliff and Gretton. By around 1877, Bass was regarded as the largest brewery in the world, producing roughly one million barrels a year. Allsopp built a new brewery opposite the railway station in 1859. Worthington merged with Bass in 1927.

One symbol above all became famous. On 1 January 1876, Bass registered the Red Triangle as the first British trademark. An employee reportedly waited outside the office on New Year's Eve to be first in line, and the triangle can still be seen in 19th-century paintings.

Today the Bass brand belongs to AB InBev. Interbrew, the forerunner of the group, bought the brewing interests in 2000, and after EU intervention the Burton brewery passed to Coors in 2001. The original Bass brewery is therefore no longer independent. The museum on the site, most recently known as the National Brewery Centre, closed on 31 October 2022. There is no EU protected designation of origin for beer from Burton.