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25th November 2011

White Horse brewery to re-open Buck & Bell in January

A BOOMING brewery set to reopen a closed pub is aiming to take over another defunct Oxford hostelry as well.

The White Horse Brewery is reopening The Buck & Bell in North Bar Street as The White Horse At Banbury Cross in January.
And the brewery, which only started life seven years ago, has its sights set on another pub in Oxford.
It took over its first pub, The Royal Blenheim in St Ebbe’s, Oxford, in 2008.

The Buck & Bell was previously operated by major pub company Enterprise Inns.

White Horse managing director Andy Wilson said smaller firms like his were well placed to reopen pubs closed by major “pubco” companies.
Pubcos regularly operate a ‘tie’ deal, where landlords have to buy beers from the brewery owners at higher than average prices.
Mr Wilson said of major firms: “I think they expect too much of a return.
“They have shareholders, they have to make sure everybody gets their share of the cake and it doesn’t leave a lot for the person with the lease.”

Mr Wilson has spent more than £150,000 on the pub, which closed in June.
He declined to reveal which Oxford pub he was looking at, but said it was currently closed.

The brewery, which started life in 2004, is based at Stanford in the Vale.

Mr Wilson said local breweries could capitalise on a growing interest in county beers. He said: “They come to an Oxfordshire pub and they want to drink an Oxfordshire beer, they don’t want to drink a beer from the Outer Hebrides.”
He said he was pleased to secure the Buck & Bell’s future as it had been marketed with “redevelopment potential” for offices, shops or residential use.

Source: Oxford Mail