Think of the Suffolk Coast and you’ll picture big skies, fantastic countryside, family holidays and so much more.
So breweries may not be the first thing that springs to mind when you think of The Suffolk Coast but we have one of the nation’s favourites plus a host of small and micro breweries, all producing top-notch beers.
Adnams, is nestled right in the centre of
Southwold, our quintessentially English seaside town and can date the brewing of beer on that site to over 670 years ago. This family business started brewing in 1872 and has aficionado's of its beers right across the UK. The company is rightly proud of its heritage and plays a vital role in brewing great beer while being an integral part of the local community and being a major local employer.Down the coast at Lower Ufford near
Woodbridge is Uffa Brewery. Brewing out of the old coach house at the White Lion pub in Ufford, the team work hard to craft fine beers that they love and hope their customers do too. They brew in small batches, by hand – producing 700 pints at a time – giving an authentic drinking experience. The brewery is named after Uffa: King of the East. Local legend has it that Uffa forded the river Deben within sight of the brewery, giving the village the name “Ufford”. Uffa’s grandson Raedwald is believed to be the occupant of the ship-burial at
Sutton Hoo.Heading north along the Suffolk Coast to
Lowestoft, which boasts two breweries. Green Jack are a multi-awarding winning traditional real ale brewery based in the town and was founded in 2003 by Timothy Dunford. They have now grown into one of the largest real ale breweries in East Anglia and moved into a brand new, purpose-built brewery in the heart of historic Lowestoft in 2009. The move enabled Green Jack to produce greater volumes of its award-winning real ales. They deliver their beers both nationwide and globally and also sell online too. The beers are known for their hoppy character with a contemporary take on traditional English beer styles.And our final port of call on this whistle-stop tour of breweries on the Suffolk Coast is Trinity Ales of Gisleham, on the outskirts of Lowestoft. Trinity Ales was launched in August 2009 by Graham Hunt and is one of Suffolk's smaller breweries.The brewery derives its name from the local village church - just a stone’s throw away across barley fields is the Saxon round tower church of Holy Trinity. Trinity Ales may be small in size, but the ales it produces are big in character and great in flavour. Brewing takes place in a bespoke brew-house which is home to a four-barrel plant. It has the capacity to produce over 1000 pints of real ale a week, which are then bottled and labelled in the adjacent barn. The water used for brewing comes from its own ancient well, and ingredients are sourced locally.No trip to The Suffolk Coast would be complete without a day spent sampling of course, so make sure you plan a visit to the many
pubs and inns where you can enjoy a pint (or two) and a delicious meal to go with it!