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Buyer sought for beer that Britain forgot

Bass ale has been painted by Manet, fought over by Napoleon and Buffalo Bill and served on the Titanic. But Bass ale, once Britain’s bestselling beer, has fallen so far out of favour with drinkers that it has been put up for sale for only £10 million to £15 million.

Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s biggest brewer, whose brands include Budweiser, Stella Artois and Beck’s, is understood to be calling time on most of its British ale brands in a sale process that could also see Boddingtons, once dubbed the Cream of Manchester, and Flowers sold off.

Bass has been brewed in Burton upon Trent since the reign of George III. Its famous red triangle logo has the distinction of being the first trademark registered in the UK.

However, it is understood that the sale process excludes both the trademark and international rights, including lucrative exports to America, where the beer is a familiar sight in trendy bars from Manhattan to San Francisco.

Despite its fame and longevity, Bass is now a minuscule part of the world’s biggest brewer, with volumes equating to a tiny fraction of the amount sold in its heyday in the 1980s.

The brand, now brewed under contract by Marston’s, a rival brewer, which owns Pedigree ale, has suffered from a combination of lack of marketing investment and falling consumer demand as its multinational owner has focused increasingly on its global lager brands.

Boddingtons, too, has declined under AB InBev’s hands. The brand was once a leading part of the old Whitbread Beer Company, but its fortunes have dwindled since the closure in 2005 of the Strangeways brewery in Manchester, where it had been brewed since the late 18th century.

Despite the long history of the brands that AB InBev is looking to sell, finding a buyer could prove tricky. Obvious suitors including Marston’s, Wells & Young’s, Molson Coors and C&C Group are understood to have ruled themselves out.

AB InBev declined to comment.

By Dominic Walsh

Based on the following sources: http://business.timesonline.co.uk