You can take a tour of Britain’s oldest brewery and it’s an hour from south east London.
Shepherd Neame is famously known as Britain’s ‘oldest’ brewery, dating back 326 years to 1698, brewing beers inspired by the hop farms of Kent. The brewery owns 18 south London pubs including The Crown in Blackheath, which recently underwent a £750,000 transformation, reopening earlier this year.
The brewery also offers tours where visitors can visit the brewery based in Faversham on the Kent Coast to learn more about the brewing process from start to finish. During an 80-minute tour of the 400-year-old brewery site you’ll be taken through the beer brewing process, getting to try some of the fresh Kent-grown malted barley and hops that are used to make the beer, before trying some brewed beer at the end.
On the tour guests will also visit the Old Brewery Store featuring a display of historic delivery vehicles, old pub signs, a collection of hop memorabilia and a recreation of a cooper's workshop. The experience ends with visitors being able to pick up a souvenir from the Brewery Shop before finishing the tour.
The experience was awarded a Hidden Gem accolade by VisitEngland in October 2022, listing it as one of nine winners in the South East which go the extra mile to provide a high quality day out. The town of Faversham is also home to nine of Shepherd Neame’s owned pubs, perfect if you fancy another pint or two after the tour.
Giles Hilton, Head of Customer Relations, said: “At Shepherd Neame, we’re very proud to be Britain’s oldest brewer, and we want others to know all about our history – but we’re also a 21st century brewer, and we want our visitors to see how we produce our award-winning range of classic and contemporary ales and lagers today - and naturally to try them too.” The tours are open to people aged 18 and over.
