Harvey’s Brewery

What the website says…

The process at Harvey’s is much the same method as the traditions of brewing have always been, but how we operate, where we source our ingredients and where our by-products go are what make our beers distinct.

Our take on Harvey’s Brewery…

You can’t live in the area and not try them, and when you do, it’s hard not to love a pint of Harvey’s. Whether it’s their Best Bitter, one of their excellent seasonal’s, something special like their Imperial Stout or something contemporary like the Polish hop Pilsner. In my opinion they have struggled to get their keg beers right but when you opt for cask it’s a reliable go to in most situations and the house Best ale across most of Brighton.

There are centuries worth of invaluable recipe know-how at Harvey’s, and the sheer variety of different styles and varying flavours they can create, time-after-time, year-after-year, decade-after-decade, earns them a lot of respect. There are also and decades of awards and accolades to their name that don’t lie. 

There are many purveyors of Harvey’s in brighton, but the 3 pubs run by Harveys in the city are The Lord Nelson, The Mitre and The Constant Service.

A bit of history…

Harvey’s Brewery appears to be Sussex’s oldest  running brewery and still under family ownership since 1790. The brewery has always been located in Lewes, originally over the road from it’s current site where it has been brewing since the 1840s.

The business, and the family, have had their fair share of ups and downs over the years, but in the 20th century turned things around and Harvey’s currently run 45 pubs across Sussex and London.

A more recent evolution was the development into into kegged beers and canning them as well.

With so many stories about their history on offer, we’ll let them tell it properly. For a full history have a read here..

How local are they?

Lewes is 15 short minutes from Brighton on the train and the very popular brewery tour is well worth signing up for if you like a bit of Sussex brewing history.

Our favourites 🍺

Of the core range the Armada Ale is definitely worth a try. Not too dissimilar to the Best with it’s dense hoppy flavour, it’s a sessionable beer, soft and glugable, but with an added bit of interest in the bitter finish.

Of the seasonal’s the Southdown Harvest is sweet, summery and scrumptious. A few pints of this this down on Cliffe High Street, metres from the brewery and in sight of the downs, is a summer highlight.