Charles Wells' History
The Early Years
In 1875, a site came to auction on the banks of the River Ouse as it ran through Bedford.
The site contained a coal depot and a brew house. Included in the price were 35 pubs, most of which were in Bedford and the surrounding area. It was this that caught Charles' imagination. Beer.
Charles thought beer would always be in demand, even in the hardest of times. Charles bought the site and began work turning the small brew house into a fully-fledged brewery, which could serve the county.
Water is an absolutely vital ingredient and has a huge impact on the beer's flavour. In 1902 Charles climbed a hill, just a couple of miles from the brewery and sank his own well to tap into an underground reservoir of water, purified through layers of chalk and limestone.
Today all Charles Wells beer is still made with water drawn from the well sunk by Charles 90 years ago.
