Posted on October 29, 2009 - by Greg Warwick

The Fentimans story. You’ve got to start somewhere!

Life is a story. A third of the fun is living it, another third is in telling it and the final slice is enjoyed in hearing others give their spin on it.  First person is always best.  This is the living, telling and retelling of Fentimans and I hope that you will join us.  My name is Greg Warwick.  Welcome to our blog!

In the beginning…

The Fentimans story began in 1905 when Thomas Fentiman, an iron puddler from Cleckheaton in Northern England, was approached by a fellow tradesman and asked to make him a loan.  A deal was struck and, as was the custom in those times, an Englishman’s word was his bond.  All that was required was a handshake and some security – in this case a recipe for Botanically Brewed Ginger Beer and Shandy.   However, the loan was never repaid and Mr. Fentiman became the owner of a rather unique and ultimately delicious recipe for success.

And what was the recipe?  Well, it’s a secret, but what I can tell you is that the ginger beer was made by adding bruised ginger to water and boiling it.  After a period of time, the temperature was reduced and sugar and brewer’s yeast were added and the mixture began to ferment in huge vats.

Botanical Brewing Process

Toward the end of the 7 day process, most of the larger ginger was removed and the yeast crust was scraped off the surface of the vats.  Then other natural flavourings, juice and water were added.  In those days, fermentation wasn’t regulated as it is today and the product wasn’t pasteurized, so the fermentation might continue in the reusable stoneware jugs, called ‘gray hens,’

Fentimans stoneware jugs distributed from 1905 into 1960's

and the level of alcohol could fluctuate slightly, but was generally less than 1 percent.  Today, the product is pasteurized in glass bottles and the percentage of alcohol is fixed below 1/2%, so the products are legally classified as “non-alcoholic” sodas and may be consumed by anyone of any age.

By the 1950’s, Fentimans employed 250 people  spread across five northern factories, and its soda wagons (horse drawn and later trucks) were criss-crossing the region, doling out ginger beer in the ‘grey hens.’   But life is about change and like so many family-run companies, the family’s members aged and withdrew money from the business, while the market for Fentimans declined as demand for door-to-door delivery was replaced by customers shopping in a new kind of store called a “supermarket” that stocked mass-produced soft drinks from major companies.  By the late 60’s, the last factory had closed and Fentimans went completely into mothballs by the mid-70’s.

Life is not linear.  A flashback…

In the 1960’s, a young boy played with equipment that crushed the ginger and listened to stories his grandfather told about grey hens exploding in the back of Fentimans’ horse-drawn wagons when it was hot and the fermented ginger beer couldn’t be contained in the jugs any longer.  Later as a teen, he would use the stoneware jugs as target practice, only to see them sell for over £50 (about $85) today.

The boy, Eldon Robson – great-great grandson of Thomas Fentiman – retained all these memories and stories until the late 1980’s when talks with relatives and friends encouraged him to bring back his family’s beverages.  After years of planning and development, Fentimans was re-born as Fentimans, Ltd in 1994 with a retro-style bottle and label that reflected the brand’s Victorian past.

Fitful growth & distribution expansion into the global markets

Thanks to consumers’ increasing desire for real food produced in the artisan way, Fentimans began to grow in popularity once again in the UK, gaining distribution with Waitrose and Tesco .  Before long, countries like Russia and Japan had discovered Fentimans and in 1996, so had the US furnishings chain, Restoration Hardware, which ordered containers for their sophisticated stores.  As a result of a 1999 article in the UK about retailer Waitrose, Dean & DeLuca approached Fentimans to carry the sodas in the US and distributors began to carry the line in 2000.  In 2001, Bread & Circus, later acquired by Whole Foods, in New England purchased the line through distributor British Aisles.  A West Coast US distributor was added in 2003 and more specialty stores began to carry the nostalgic line. In 2004, Whole Foods in New York began to purchase Fentimans and distribution expanded into Chicago through European Imports.

In 2006, Canadian Craig James met Eldon Robson and began to import Fentimans into Canada.  With the increasing costs of importing from the UK, Mr. James discussed the potential of producing Fentimans in North America.  After plans were completed, Fentimans North America, Inc. (FNA) was established in April 2008 and production began at The Lion Brewery in November of 2008 with imported raw materials (“faithful to the originals”).  Here’s a photo from the Fentimans North America’s first booth at the Fancy Food Show in New York, in June 2008.

The Fentimans North America Team August 2008

Of course, there hundreds of stories yet to be told in this brief history, above, and many more to follow.  But the juiciest part of life is in the here and now, so let’s get on with it.  Here is the current product range for Fentimans: Traditional Ginger Beer, Curiosity Cola, Victorian Lemonade, Mandarin & Seville Orange Jigger, Dandelion & Burdock, Shandy and Tonic Water.  Full descriptions of the products and more can be found on the Fentimans North America website or for a uniquely British perspective, check out the UK site.  Cheers!

The six Botanically Brewed Sodas