The ‘indie' beer alternatives to the big brands

Telegraph

21-03-2025

We all know that most of the big names in beer are owned by just a handful of giant global corporations. But YouGov data published by the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates (SIBA) found that 81 per cent of beer drinkers believe consumers are being misled by those companies. They've been buying up formerly-independent craft breweries without a lot of drinkers realising.
Brands like Beavertown, Camden and Fullers are now owned by beer giants Heineken, AB InBev and Asahi respectively. Buying these beers diverts sales from truly independent businesses, and often sends our hard-earned money out of the UK to global shareholders.
Backing independent brewers gives us access to diverse, interesting beers on the bar as well as supporting valued small businesses which reinvest their money into the local economy. 'Indies have heart and soul, which is reflected in our beers.' says Ben Cleary of his independent Full Circle Brew Co in Newcastle upon Tyne. 'We provide jobs and training within our local communities and our tap rooms are social hubs – you just don't get this with the global beer giants.'
The impact of lockdown and the rising costs of energy and ingredients have been taking their toll on brewery numbers for years now. The latest figures, to September 2024, show that the UK is now home to 1,721 breweries, down from 1,828 in January 2023. That's a six per cent drop in eighteen months and it represents the loss of hundreds of jobs.
There has been no end of Guinness alternatives touted in the press recently but little mention is made of the fantastic alternatives to the other big brands. We've lined up some of the best on the market.
Chances are, these independent beers will end up costing you more. That's an undeniable fact. They don't have the economies of scale that the beer giants have. Indies aren't looking to scrape every last ounce of profit they can from what they brew either, so high-grade ingredients and careful craftsmanship are the name of the game.
That said, there is now an excellent range of independent beers available in the supermarket where those big orders have made the products a little less expensive. There's no doubt that quality costs but, in my opinion, it's worth every penny. And those pennies will be supporting small businesses and their local economies.
Forget
Fuller's London Pride Amber Ale (Owned by Asahi)
4.7%, £2.35 for 500ml bottle, Tesco
Try
Full Circle Goose Chase
5.8%, £3.70 for 440ml can, The Wobbly Duck
The fourth biggest selling cask ale by volume in the UK, London Pride has been on the bar since 1958, brewed at Fuller's Griffin Brewery. But when Fuller, Smith & Turner sold its brewery business to the Japanese firm Asahi in 2019, the move was likened to the ravens leaving the Tower of London.
Take one sip of Full Circle Brew Co's strong bitter, Goose Chase, and you'll never look back. The Newcastle upon Tyne brewery's gorgeously deep amber beer is complex and slightly sweet. Flavours of biscuit and baking spices intermingle with fruity, marmalade tones and a hoppy pine finish that will keep you coming back for more. Find other Full Circle beers in Sainsbury's.
Forget
Camden Hells Lager (Owned by AB InBev)
4.6%, £3 for 660ml bottle, Sainsbury's
Try
Adnams Kobold English Lager
4.7%, £2.10 for 500ml bottle, Ocado
The Camden Town Brewery became a subsidiary of the world's biggest brewing group in 2016 after building a reputation for craft lager since 2010. Historic Southwold brewer Adnams' Kobold is the perfect alternative to Camden Hells. It's got the same floral and citrus tones with bready backnotes. It's a light, easy drinking lager with a hint of sweetness and moderate bitterness that keeps it fresh on the palate. Get this one ready for summer barbecues.
Forget
Beavertown Neck Oil Session IPA (Owned by Heineken)
4.3%, £3 for 440ml can, Sainsbury's
Try
Castle Rock Session IPA
4.0%, £30 for 12 x 440ml cans, Castle Rock Brewery
Neck Oil is ubiquitous in these lands, finding favour as an easy drinking session-strength beer with bold fruit flavours – then pushed out to tied bars countrywide by Heineken.
Get the same taste experience and support the good brewers of Nottingham by enjoying Castle Rock Brewery's Session instead. This naturally hazy pale bursts with juicy passion fruit, orange and a background vibe of pine. Soft, juicy and lightly sweet, it's as full of flavour as Neck Oil once was, unusually for a lighter ABV beer. Find other Castle Rock beers in Asda
Forget
John Smith's Extra Smooth (Owned by Heineken)
3.4%, £4.72 for 4 x 440ml cans, Asda
Try
Anspach & Hobday Ordinary Bitter Smooth
3.4%, £3.80 for 500ml can, Hop Burns & Black
The best-selling bitter in the UK commands keen loyalty among its most ardent fans, but many argue that the nitrogen serve that gives it the signature smooth texture is disguising the fact that it doesn't really taste of very much. You can enjoy the same full body, but with many more layers of complexity with Anspach & Hobday's Ordinary Bitter Smooth. This luxurious bitter combines flavours of currants, toffee and even a Weetabix-like hit of malt. It's slightly sweet with dried fruit tones and the dry finish keeps you coming back for that next sip.
Forget
Brixton Brewery Reliance Pale Ale (Owned by Heineken)
4.2%, £6.75 for 4 x 330ml cans, Morrisons
Try
Weetwood Turncoat New England IPA
4.0%, £3.95 for 440ml can, Whitmore & White
Before Heineken moved in on Beavertown, it acquired a minority stake in Brixton Brewery in 2017. The move was billed as a vehicle for growth; increasing capacity tenfold, yet keeping it firmly rooted in Brixton when London's craft beer scene was growing strongly.
In 2021, the drinks giant took over the business in full before finally, perhaps inevitably, announcing that production would be moved to Beavertown in Enfield in 2024.
Reliance is not a bad beer, but it's hard to feel connected to a brand that has moved so decisively away from its roots. Try Cheshire's Weetwood instead. Turncoat is a lightly hazy New England IPA with tropical fruit flavours and a back note of biscuity malt flavour. An approachable beer with a dry finish that has just been named the UK's best cask session pale up to 4.4% in SIBA's Independent Beer Awards 2025. Find other Weetwood beers in Tesco.
Forget
Staropramen Czech-style Pilsner Lager (Owned by Molson Coors)
5%, £2.55 for 660ml bottle, Tesco
Try
Budweiser Budvar Original Czech lager
5%, £2.10 for 500ml, Morrisons
While the focus of this article is UK indie brewers, it would be churlish not to present an authentically Czech alternative to Staropramen. It's called a 'Czech-style' lager because Molson Coors whips it up at its brewery in Burton upon Trent. Budweiser Budvar is a state-owned Czech brewery (not to be confused with the American brewery of the same name), and all of its beer is made in the town of České Budějovice. Technically, every Czech citizen owns a share in the enterprise so they have 10.5 million owners. This full-bodied lager has a crusty tiger loaf aroma, with floral sweetness. It's aromatic and dry with a slight grassiness and a light finish.
Forget
Sharp's Doom Bar Amber Ale (Owned by Molson Coors)
4.3%, £2.50 for 500ml bottle, Tesco
Try
Sambrook's Junction Best Bitter
4.5%, £34.45 for 12 x 500ml bottles, Best of British Beer
The UK's best selling cask and bottled ale is everywhere, thanks to Cornwall's Sharp's Brewery being bought out by Molson Coors in 2011. If you want your money to support London's oldest independent brewery rather than the US/Canadian giants, then try Sambrook's Junction instead.
A finalist in SIBA's (Society of Independent Brewers and Associates) Independent Beer Awards 2025, Junction is packed with delicious British hops giving a woody, herbal backnote to the slightly sweet malt-led flavour. It has great bitterness, hints of blackcurrant and a caramel tone on the finish. A true symphony of flavour from a quintessentially British style of beer.
Forget
Hobgoblin Ruby (Owned by Carlsberg Britvic)
5%, £2 for 500ml bottle, Waitrose
Try
Theakston Old Peculier
5.6%, £2.15 for 500ml bottle or four for £7 with Nectar, Sainsbury's
The Wychwood Brewery in Oxfordshire that first brewed the Hobgoblin series was shuttered by the Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company in 2023. Since then, Marston's has got out of brewing altogether and Carlsberg Britvic has quietly dropped all reference to Wychwood so Hobgoblin is just a brand name now, a shadow of its former self.
If you like the blend of fruity and biscuity tones that Ruby offers, then there's another classic hiding in plain sight that can easily surpass it. Old Peculier is the signature brand of Yorkshire's Theakston's Brewery. This rich dark amber beer is hearty and full bodied. Within that richness, you'll find luxurious fruit tones – black cherry and date – as well as hints of banana from the Theakston twin-strain yeast and a slight grassy tone from those famous British Fuggles hops. Old Peculier is one of the beers that has made British brewing great indeed.
Forget
Shipyard American IPA (Owned by Carlsberg Britvic)
5%, £2 for 500ml bottle, Morrisons
Try
Wylde Sky Brewing Pacific Pale
4%, £4 for 440ml can, Dead Time
It was exciting when beers from Portland's Shipyard Brewing Co first landed on these shores. But since Marston's and then Carlsberg Britvic got their hands on its signature Shipyard IPA, the beer has lost much of its impact. Brewed in the UK, the grapefruit burst seems muted. The hop punch lacks power. It is just another pale ale.
Spend your pennies with Cambridgeshire's Wylde Sky instead. Since 2018, its beers and taproom have been an important part of a flourishing community of local food and drink producers. Pacific Pale is a highly drinkable ale that has grapefruit and passion fruit flavours growing from its hazy depths, tempered with a good drying bitterness. A UK-brewed American-style IPA to be proud of.
Forget
Tennent's Lager (Owned by C&C Group)
4%, £2.35 for 500ml bottle, Tesco
Try
Signature Brewery X Travis Raze the Bar
4.8%, £3.90 for 440ml can, Forest Wines
While Tennent's may be Scotland's undisputed bestseller, it's a pretty one dimensional offering. Despite that, it is treasured by its fans. 'A cold, clean pint of Tennent's is the greatest thing in the world' says Dougie Payne of hit band Travis.
No wonder, then, that when they partnered up for a collaboration brew with London's Signature Brew, Travis wanted something that gave a nod to the band's favourite beer. Raze the Bar does just that – a lightly sweet, fresh lager with a touch of orange marmalade, shortbread crumbs and a great bitterness. Signature's contemporary overhaul of Tennent's is every bit as delicious as you'd expect from a brewery of this calibre. 'It's got that Tennent's thing, but also lovely lemon citrus. It's more complex. A delicious beer,' Payne said after tasting it for the first time.
What is an independent brewery – and how can you find them?
SIBA has a three-part definition of what an independent brewery must be:
Relatively small
A manufacturer of beer for commercial sale up to a maximum permitted volume of one per cent of the British beer market.
UK-focused
A sole trader or company that is permanently based in the UK and carries out a minimum of 75% of its total beer production here.
Masters of their own destiny
An independent brewery cannot be under the control of – or connected with – any other entity operating within the UK brewing industry.
To help consumers make an informed choice, SIBA has started the Indie Beer campaign. This offers an online checker (indiebeer.uk) so beer lovers can check whether their favourite brews are made by a true independent. There is also an Indie Beer mark that producers can use on pump clips, cans and bottles to highlight their status as an independent UK brewer.