ALE AND HEARTY AS TEAM LOOKS WEST FOR SUCCESS

TRADITION IS THE MAXIM

A TEAM reviving what is claimed to be the country’s oldest brown ale pledged last night it will retain all its traditional qualities - despite it now being brewed in the North-West.

Doug Trotman and Mark Anderson, two former directors of Vaux who were deeply involved in the unsuccessful battle to save the Sunderland brewery, have bought its Double Maxim brand.

Together with the ex-head brewer from Vaux, Jim Murray, they are producing the brand – first produced in 1901 – once more through Robinsons brewery in Stockport.

And they have the good wishes already of those custodians of quality in ale – Camra, the Campaign for Real Ale.

Robinsons, a family owned traditional ale brewer, will both produce and package the restored Double Maxim.

The new company says the water Robinsons uses is “almost identical” to the Sunderland water that went into Double Maxim previously.

Double Maxim’s return could intensify a regional market battle of bottled browns, following Federation Brewery’s recent branding relaunch of its High Level Brown Ale from Gateshead, and Newcastle Breweries’ ongoing drive to push sales of the market-leading Newcastle Brown Ale world wide.

Mr Trotman and Mr Anderson, who were sales and marketing director and finance director of Vaux Breweries, have worked on the project for nine months.

They set up the Double Maxim Beer Company last December, following a frustrated bid to save the brewery, led by the brewery’s former managing director Frank Nicholson.

Mr Murray has brewed Double Maxim since 1968.

Sales of Double Maxim exceeded 5.7m pints in 1998 – 20,000 barrels plus. That was the year before Vaux Brewery closed.

The goal now, with new labelling, is to make Double Maxim the biggest selling regional ale brand within five years, and to see it become one of the top six national bottled ale brands within five years.

Hilary Florek, the firm’s spokeswoman, said last night: “A listing has already been secured with Safeway, which means Double Maxim will be going on sale in its supermarkets right away.”