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Dorset brewer and pub operator Hall & Woodhouse has announced the launch of a new Badger cask beer, The Spanner, developed in partnership with television presenter and pub owner James May.

Formulated as an accessible 3.8% alcohol by volume (ABV) session cask ale, the beer is brewed entirely with British ingredients. The commercial rollout will commence on 7 September 2026 across Hall & Woodhouse's estate of managed public houses, alongside May's own venue, The Royal Oak in Swallowcliffe, Wiltshire.

The release underlines an ongoing commitment to traditional British cask ale and on-premise sessionability, positioning a lower-strength, heritage-led brew directly into the brewer's managed pub portfolio.

Collaborative Recipe Development

The development of The Spanner originated from a shared interest in traditional British cask brewing between Hall & Woodhouse head brewer Toby Heasman and May, who acquired The Royal Oak in 2020.

Initial recipe formulation and trial batches were conducted on a micro-scale pilot system before moving into commercial-scale production at the company's Blandford St Mary brewery.

The brewing architecture incorporates regional raw materials and local water sourcing:

🌾 English Barley and Hops: Sourced entirely from British growers to deliver a classic, balanced malt and hop character.

💧 Jurassic Chalk Filtered Water: Brewed using Dorset water naturally filtered through 50 metres of regional Jurassic chalk strata.

🍺 Clean Fermentation Yeast: Fermented using Hall & Woodhouse's proprietary house yeast strain to ensure a clean, crisp palate.

⚖️ Sessionable Strength: Formulated at 3.8% ABV to support social, session drinking occasions in community pubs.

Toby Heasman, Head Brewer at Hall & Woodhouse, stated that the collaboration focused on championing English ingredients and exploring the role of lower-ABV session beers in supporting conversation and dwelling time in British pubs.

James May added that the objective was to develop a dependable, straightforward British ale engineered for regular drinking rather than sensory over-complexity.

On-Premise Distribution

The commercial deployment targets Hall & Woodhouse's managed public house network across southern England and London, which includes venues such as The Ship & Shovell in Charing Cross, St. Stephen's Tavern in Westminster, and The Dockhouse in Brentford.

By introducing the beer directly on draught across managed bars, the regional brewer secures immediate volume distribution while giving May's independent Wiltshire pub an exclusive co-branded asset on the bar.

The commercial rollout of The Spanner cask ale will commence on Monday 7 September 2026 across participating Hall & Woodhouse managed houses and The Royal Oak.