Greene King historic beer snapped up by Estrella Damm

Barcelona-based brewer Damm has agreed to buy all the Old Speckled Hen lines, including its non-alcoholic and golden ale versions.

Old Speckled Hen beer was created by Abingdon-based Morland Brewery which closed in February 2000. The beer is named after an MG car, a 1927 black and gold factory ‘runaround’.

READ MORE: Closure of record shop would be a travesty

The brewing site in Ock Street was shut down after the company was acquired by Greene King, which relocated production of famous brands like Old Speckled Hen to Bury St Edmunds. The former brewery site is now occupied by apartments.

The former Morland Brewery in Abingdon (Image: Oxford Mail)

Greene King said it would continue to brew the ale at its Westgate site in Bury St Edmunds during the sale “handover period”, but the process would later move to Damm’s brewery in Bedford, which it opened last year.

Nick Mackenzie, the chief executive of the 227-year-old pub chain, said the company was “delighted to have secured a partner in Estrella Damm who will continue to brew the ales in the UK”.

The companies did not disclose the value of the sale, but said after the deal is complete, Old Speckled Hen beers will still be available in Greene King pubs, as well as major supermarkets in the UK.

Old Speckled Hen was bought by Greene King from the Oxfordshire-based Morland Brewery in 1999.

Morland had first brewed it in 1979 to mark the MG Car Company’s 50th anniversary of its move from Oxford to Abingdon.

A Morland Brewery sign in Abingdon (Image: Andy Ffrench)

The business had asked Morland to brew a commemorative beer for the occasion, naming it “Old Speckled Hen” after their MG Featherlight Saloon, which they referred to as the “owld speckl’d un” because of its mottled appearance.

Its sale to Damm makes it the latest in a line of British beer brands to be bought by a foreign drinks group.

The MG’s connections with the town are celebrated at the Greene King-owned pub The Roaring Raindrop.

The Midget pub off Preston Road in the town was given a six-figure refurbishment from its owners in 2024.

Ian Harriss at The Roaring Raindrop in Abingdon (Image: Andy Ffrench)

Its name – linked with the town’s former MG car factory – was changed to The Roaring Raindrop – an MG car designed to tackle the land speed record in the 1950s.

The new name was agreed as the previous name was considered “offensive”, according to at least one complaint.

In 2015, Camden Town Brewery agreed to a takeover by AB InBev, the Belgian company behind Budweiser, Stella Artois and Beck’s, in a deal worth about £85m.

That year, SAB Miller, the drinks group which brewed Peroni and Miller, also agreed to buy London’s Meantime Brewing Company. AB InBev later bought SAB Miller.

In 2019, the British pub chain Fuller, Smith & Turner accepted a £250m offer for its entire drinks business from the Japanese beer group Asahi, including its flagship London Pride ale.

There are several popular Spanish beers sold in the UK that are brewed within the country, including San Miguel, which is made by AB InBev in Northampton, as well as Cruzcampo, which is brewed by Heineken in Manchester.

Luke White, the managing director of Damm UK, said: “Old Speckled Hen is an iconic British ale brand with a rich heritage and loyal following.

“The brand not only complements the current portfolio range by adding another category to our offering but it also reconnects the Damm Eagle Brewery to its historic British beer and ale production roots.”