Wimbledon Brewery lands first national deal with Marks & Spencer

Wimbledon Brewery has announced that it will be brewing the aptly named Wimbledon Ale, which is flavoured with elderflower, exclusively for Marks & Spencer stores.

Wimbledon is the latest brewer to announce a partnership with the UK retailer which will see its beer sold in stores in cans carrying the Marks & Spencer name.

The new beer, which hits the shelves this month, is brewed “with notes of elderflower” and will be available in 600 M&S stores across the country, priced at £2 per can.

Wimbledon’s range of bottled and canned beer is already available in 82 M&S stores in and around London, but this marks the south west London brewer’s first national supermarket contract.

The beer range is currently available in local Waitrose stores as well as Booths which operates in northern England.

Master brewer Derek Prentice, who oversees the brewing operations at Wimbledon, said: “We’ve been delighted to make this beer especially for Marks and Spencer. It’s based on a golden ale, brewed with Maris Otter malt and oats along with northern and southern hemisphere hops. In the late hopping stages of the brew we added whole elderflowers; this just adds very subtle elderflower notes to really round out the character of the beer”.

Michael Wallis, M&S beer buyer, added: “Wimbledon Ale is one of a number of own-label cans that we have added to the M&S range this Spring as we continue to look for great British beers and ciders to offer our customers. Brewed in SW19 by Wimbledon Brewery, the brewery prides itself on combining the best of ingredients and craftsmanship and this marries with what we are looking to offer our customers at M&S. Light and citrussy with elderflower aromas, we hope that this beer will be a big hit this summer”.

This month, Marks & Spencer also announced the addition of a saison beer to its branded range, courtesy of Cornish brewery St Austell.