There are nine operational breweries situated in the Keighley and Craven Branch. Click on the brewery link below for more detailed information on each one.
Over the past 30 years a few breweries have also come and gone.
Bridgehouse Brewery Ltd.,
Unit 1, Aireworth Mills, Aireworth Road, Keighley, W. Yorks., BD21 4DH
Tel: (01535) 601222. Email: info@bridgehousebrewery.co.uk
The current regular beer range is: Pale Bandit (3.6% - gluten free), Tequila Blonde (3.8%), Blonde (4%), Aired Ale (4.2%), Porter (4.5%), Landlady IPA (5.0%) and Holy Cow (5.6%). Other ‘guest’ beers are brewed on a regular basis.
The Bridgehouse Brewery opened in Keighley in March 2010 and very soon moved up the Worth valley to Oxenhope. In May 2014, Bridgehouse and Old Bear merged and the brewery moved to the Old Bear site in Aireworth Road. A new brewhouse was then built behind the Airedale Heifer pub at Sandbeds, between Keighley and Bingley, and the brewing is now done there. Search out for the beers in the pubs managed by the brewery: the Airedale Heifer in Sandbeds (between Keighley and Bingley), the Kings Arms in Haworth, the Black Bull in Haworth, and The New Inn, (Eccup, Leeds). The beers also feature regularly at the Willow Tree in Riddlesden and the Red Lion, Silsden, as well as in many other local freehouses.
January 2020
Snaygill Industrial Estate, Skipton BD23 2QR
Tel: (01756) 243243. Email: sales@copperdragon.co.uk
As of 08/11/2020 the website link above shows up on Norton as dangerous so you may prefer to look them up on https://www.facebook.com/CopperDragonBrewery.
Founded originally by Steve Taylor in 2003 in Skipton, Copper Dragon relocated to Keighley in Autumn 2018 and back to Skipton in Autumn 2020. Copper Dragon beers produced on a regular basis: Golden Pippin (3.9%), Best Bitter (3.8%), Silver Myst (4.0%), Scotts 1816 (4.1%). Sidewinder (a US-hopped session pale ale at 4.2%) is also available regularly and Black Gold (dark mild, now 4.0%) has been recreated. Further specials will appear in 2019.
November 2020
Craven Brew Co,
Midland Mills, Station Road, Cross Hills, Keighley BD20 7DT
Tel: 01535 637451 Email: hello@cravenbrew.co.uk
Regular Beers: BPA (Black Angus Porter) 4.5%, CPA (Craven Pale Ale) 4.8%, EFA (Extra Fine Ale) 4.2%, BYB (Best Yorkshie Bitter) 3.8%, SPA (Session Pale Ale) 3.7%, Blonde 4.0%
Head brewer Dave Sanders. In the premises of the former Naylor‘s Brewey.
Seasonal specials are also produced. Examples have included a red ale and a dark mild
Current July 2023
Dark Horse Brewery,
Coonlands Laithe, Hetton, Skipton BD23 6LY
Tel: 01756 730555. Email: richard@darkhorsebrewery.co.uk
Formerly the Wharfedale brewery near Hetton, the business was bought in 2008 by Richard and Carole Eyton-Jones. Richard has extensive brewing pedigree which began at the original Goose Eye brewery based at Goose Eye, Keighley in the 1980s. The brewery has a 15-barrel plant, although normal brew-length is 10 barrels. Up to 3 brews are done each week.
Regular beers are:
Craven Bitter, a mid-brown bitter at 3.8%. This was the first beer to be produced; it appeared in Summer 2008 and was sold as Hetton Best Bitter at the time.
Blonde Beauty A 3.9% golden ale, launched in late summer 2016.
Hetton Pale Ale (4.2%) is currently the main beer produced. It can be found in a number of pubs locally. It is also sold in bottled form.
Night Jar (4.3%) is a darker bitter which first appeared in summer 2015.
Special beers have been brewed from time-to-time.
Check the Dark Horse Brewery web-site for a list of current outlets.)
January 2020
Goose Eye Brewery,
Unit S, Castlefield Industrial Estate, Crossflatts BD16 2AF
Tel: 01535 605807. Email: info@goose-eye-brewery.co.uk
Regular Beers: Springwell (a light 3.6 bitter, often sold in pubs as a house beer); Goose Eye Bitter (a traditional 3.9% ‘northern’ bitter); Blackmoor (a 4% dark mild); Chinook Blonde (a 4.2% blonde); Golden Goose (a 4.5% golden all); Over and Stout (a 5.2% stout); Pommies Revenge (a 5.2% strong bitter)
Monthly specials and occasional beers are also brewed. Regular outlets locally include: Friendly Inn, Stanbury; The New Inn, Appletreewick; Parkside Social Club, Haworth; bar 13, Settle.
Goose Eye Brewery moved from Ingrow to Crossflatts in July 2017. Although strictly speaking, they are no longer in our branch area, we will always regard them as “ours”!
Current August 2017
Email: hello@lambbrewing.com
Situated behind The Queens Arms in Litton, Lamb Brewing Company produces a range of beers such as Pale (3.9 ABV), Bitter (a 3.7% traditional Yorkshire bitter), X Mild (a traditional 3.2% mild based on a 1930s recipe) and X Mild (Dark) (a version of X Mild darkened with caramel, 3.2%). At least one of these beer is usually available at the Queens Arms.
Another regular beer is Cream Ale, brewed for Skipton‘s Speakeasy pub in the style of a pre-prohibition American Cream Ale
Seasonal specials include Fresh Hop using Cascade hops grown in Littondale, an Elderflower Pale, and a Plum special also feature fresh ingredients grown in the valley.
The brewery name is often written LAMB, an abbreviation of Litton Ales, Milds & Bitters.
Edited July 2023
Settle Brewing Company
Unit 8, The Sidings, Settle BD24 9RP
Tel: 01729 824936.
Beers: Blonde (3.6%); Jericho Blonde (3.6%); Mainline (3.8%); Ribblehead (3.8%); Attermire Session IPA (4.2%). Settle also produce the following beers badged as Nine Standards : No. 4 Amber Ale (formerly Original Standard) (3.7%); No. 1 Golden Ale (formerly Gold Standard) (4.1%); No. 2. Pale Ale (formerly Silver Standard) (4.3%); No. 3. Porter (formerly Double Standard) (4.7%).
Settle Brewery is located in an industrial unit just south of Settle Railway station, having moved from a smaller unit even right next to the station in November 2016. Brewing started in January 2013 using a new 12-barrel Johnsons kit and the first beers went on sale in mid February. Brewer Ian Simkins originally brewed at Nine Standards, and transferred to Settle when production moved south. Regular outlets locally include the Talbot in Settle, the Turkey Inn at Goose Eye, Keighley and all three pubs in Giggleswick. Other outlets across Cumbria, the Yorkshire Dales, West Yorkshire and North Lancashire take the beers on a regular basis. Monthly specials are also produced, some in interesting styles e.g. Ernie‘s Milk Stout in November, Barghest Oatmeal Stout in March, Blood Orange IPA in early spring and Castleberg Cask Lager in the summer. Look out for one-off brews too e.g. the 5% 10 Hop, brewed in May 2016. Both Mainline and No 3. Porter won the gold award (i.e. they came top) in their categories in the 2017 SIBA North-east Beer Competitiion, held August 2017. No 4 Amber won the silver in its category at the National Competition in 2016, quite an achievement!
Current February 2018.
Timothy Taylor & Co. Ltd.,
Knowle Spring Brewery, Keighley, West Yorkshire BD21 1AW
Tel: 01535 603139
Regular Beers: Golden Best (3.5%); Dark Mild (3.5%); Boltmaker (previously known as Best Bitter) (4.0%); Knowle Spring Blonde (4.2%); Landlord (4.3%); Landlord Dark (still sometimes known as Ram Tam) (4.3%).
Seasonal beers: Poulter‘s Porter (4.8%); 1858 (5.3%); Cook Lane (5.8%). Latterly the bulk of these seasonal beers have gone straight to bottling, with just a small amount being made available as real ale cask conditioned.
Occasional brews:
Spring 2002 saw the launch of a special cask ale to celebrate the 300th Anniversary Duke of Wellington‘s Regiment. Called Havercake Ale, the 4.7% beer was available in pubs in the area in which the regiment formerly recruited i.e. in the West Riding of Yorkshire between Sheffield and Settle. Havercake has been brewed occasionally since.
A one-off, Le Champion, was brewed to celebrate the visit to Yorkshire of the Tour de France in July 2014, and was repeated for the Tour of Yorkshire cycle race in May 2015 and in Spring 2016.
Celebration (ABV 5.0%) - a rich, sweet, full bodied malty ale which impressed many - was first brewed in 2001 to celebrate a visit by HRH The Prince of Wales. It reappeared in 2008 as part of the company‘s 150th anniversary and once again in 2023 to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III
Current February 2018, revised July 2023
Wishbone Brewery Limited,
2A Worth Bridge Industrial Estate, Chesham Street, Keighley BD21 4LG
Tel: 07867 419445
Regular beers include: Blonde (3.6%); Bandit (a 3.8% golden ale); Rascal (a 4% pale ale); Tiller Pin; (a 4.2% American Pale Ale, first brewed with and for the Boat House in Skipton); Abyss (a 4.3% stout); Gumption (a 4.5% best bitter).
Wishbone Brewery is the brainchild of Adrian Chapman. Brewing commenced in early autumn 2015, initially brewing Blonde, Bandit and Gumption. Other beers have since been added to the regular beer list and Adrian continues to experiment with new recipes for beers of all styles. Some, especially the stronger ones, are brewed without using finings amd may have a slight natural haze. The beers have a high reputation and are available in several pubs in the local area. For further information, check out the brewery on social media Twitter or visit their web-site (link in section header).
Current November 2016, revised June 2021
Based at the Barley Bottom Homebrew supplies shop in Silsden, the brewery, which opened in Spring 2012 and closed in October 2013, produced several beers including Cobbydale Bitter 4%, Cobbydale Blonde 4%, Cobbydale Gold 4%, Golden Cascade 4%, Clogg Dancer 4%.
Beer Monkey Brew Co, Enterprise Way, Airedale Business Park, Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23 2TZ
Beer Monkey was located at the former Copper Dragon/Grey Hawk brewery premises just off the Southern end of Skipton bypass. Brewing was on a Bavarian specified 30-bbl plant, giving the flexibility to produce both cask and kegged products from its own borehole water supply. Regular cask beers were: Blonde Rogue (ABV 3.8%); Bitter Revival (ABV 3.9%); Evolution Pilsner (ABV 4%); Uncle Monk‘s IPA (ABV 4.5%).
47 Kirkgate, Silsden, West Yorkshire, BD20 0AQ
The brewhouse was at the rear of the Red Lion pub in Silsden. The original beer was called Cobby’d Ale. Later beers included Dark Stuff, Eye Pee Aye, and Luke‘s Brew. The brewery was active in 2017, 2018, and 2019 but reported as mothballed by January 2020. The pub has since changed hands.
This brewery is no longer brewing in the Keighley and Craven area, having relocated to Cleckheaton, where it is still in production. The beers were available in Gascoigne‘s Smoke House, Delicatessen and Café on Haworth Main Street. As the signage on the premises in Haworth says Haworth Steam Brewery many people not in-the-know expect the brewery to be behind the pub.
Situated behind The Queens Arms in Litton, the Litton brewery produced a range of beers such as Litton Ale, Potts Beck, Leading Light, Gold Crest and Dark Star in the early 2000s. After a couple of changes of ownership and management at the pub, brewing ceased in 2012 but new owners resurrected it in 2017 before it closed again. Lamb Brewing is now based on the site.
Naylor’s Brewery Limited,
Midland Mills, Station Road, Cross Hills, Keighley BD20 7DT
Regular Beers: Yorkshire Ale (a 3.8% bitter); Gold (a golden 4% bitter); Mosaic (a golden IPA at 4%); Velvet (a 3.9% dark mild; Pinnacle Blonde (4.3%, the only survivor or the original Pinnacle range that was produced from 2007 to about 2012); Black and Tan (a 4.4% chestnut coloured ale); Old Ale (a 5.9% old ale, much of which is bottled). In addition at least two specials are brewed each month. Most of the beers were bottled, although none were bottle-conditioned.
Robert and Steve Naylor (“the Brews Brothers”) started brewing next to the Old White Bear, Cross Hills, in February 2005. In November 2006 the expanding brewery moved to larger premises at Midland Mills, still in Cross Hills village. In 2009, a beer-shop opened on the premises under the name of Naylor’s Beer Emporium and in 2013 the shop and brewery moved across the yard and was expanded further. In 2015 the bar was expanded to house an upstairs eatery. The removal of the ground floor office in late 2019 expanded the area available for bar customers. Ceased brewing in Summer 2021
Old Bear Brewery, Unit 1, Aireworth Mills, Aireworth Road Keighley, BD21 4DH
The Old Bear Brewery was established in 1993. A family business, it was originally located at the Old White Bear in Cross Hills and it‘s final location was in a 19th-century textile mill on Aireworth Road, Keighley. Former owner/head brewer, Ian Cowling, moved to Bridgehouse as brewery manager when Old Bear ceased trading at the end of April 2014, but has moved on since. The Aireworth Road site is now the head office and storage of Bridgehouse Brewery. Various cask beers were produced on the 10-barrel plant, both regulars (e.g. Estivator - 3.8%, Black Mari‘a - 4.2%, HoneyPot - 4.4%, Goldilocks - 4.5%, Hibernator - 5%) and the occasional seasonal/special such as the renowned Duke of Brontë which claimed to be Yorkshire‘s strongest cask ale. Beers were also available in bottle-conditioned form using bottles from sister company Bottle Rescue, a community venture which offered learning disability placements in bottling and bottle recycling. See Bridgehouse Brewery above.
Brewer Andy Gascoigne from the Oxenhope Moorland Brewery at the Waggon & Horses reckoned that, at 1405 feet above sea level, his brewery was the highest in Britain (any comments?). Regular beers were Oxenhope Best Bitter (3.6%), Moortop Gold (4.5%) and Old Tosser (5%), in Winter only. The brewery closed 16th September 2004, when Andy sold the pub and moved to Scotland. Andy now runs Haworth Steam Brewery - see above.
Ryedale Brewery, Hardings House, Hardings Lane, Cross Hills, North Yorkshire BD20 7AD.
Beers: Pale (3.8%); Gold (3.8%); Ryedale Angler (3.8%); Ryedale Rambler (3.8%); Bitter (4%). Stout (4.3%).
Tony and David Williams set up Rydale brewery just outside York in 2013. In Spring 2016 the brothers moved the brewery to Cross Hills, but brewing ceased and the premises were put up for sale in 2017.
Three Peaks Brewery, Settle, North Yorkshire.
Beers: Pen-y-ghent bitter (3.8%); Ingleborough Gold (4%); Whernside Pale Ale (4.2%); Blea Moor Porter (4.5%).
Founded in November 2006, the Three Peaks Brewery was run by husband and wife team Colin and Susan Ashwell. The brewery was initially located in the cellar of the Ashwell‘s Settle home, and only a single beer, Pen-y-Ghent, was brewed on the 1¼ barrel plant. In June 2011 the second beer was launched, Ingleborough Gold, using a combination of First Gold, Brewers Gold and Golding hops. In 2012 the brewery moved to an industrial unit at the top of Buckhaw Brow on the old A65 and expanded to use a 5-barrel plant. In July 2013 Whernside Pale Ale appeared as the third beer - 4.2% ABV, brewed with New Zealand Jade hops. Other occasional brews have included: Andrew‘s Smoked Beer (ABV 3.9%) brewed using smoked malts source from Bamburg in Germany, brewed November 2013, March 2014 and again in November 2014. Boatmen‘s Stout was created in October 2016 to commemorate the 200th Anniversary of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal. The Ashwells mothballed the brewery before selling it the plant, brand, and recipes to a couple who have relocated it to Nelson, Lancashire.
Turkey Brewery, The Turkey Inn, Goose Eye, Oakworth, Keighley, West Yorkshire
This brewery has closed.The brewing plant was located at the rear of the Turkey Inn. The pub and brewery were sold in early 2008 and the brewing plant has since been sold on. The pub is still going strong and regularly features in CAMRA‘s Good Beer Guide!
This brewery has closed.The details below have been left for historical purposes. The web-site link is to the Cricketers Arms, Keighley which trades as Worth Inns and is still run by the Mitchell family who ran the brewery.
Regular Beers were: Alesman Bitter (ABV 3.7), Worth Best Bitter (ABV 4.5)
Seasonal/Occasional Beers: Beckside Mild (ABV 3.6), Nearys Stout (ABV 4.0), Knobwilter Wheat Beer (Summer ABV 5.2), Old Toss (ABV 6.5); Ruggies Russet Nectar (Autumn - ABV 7.8); Santas Toss (Winter - ABV 8.0)
Pubs: Worth Brewery had two tied pubs, the Brewery Arms and the Cricketers Arms - both in Keighley. Sadly both are now closed.