The Greene King brewery was established in 1799 by Benjamin Greene.
Successful for over 200 years, Greene King earned a bad name for themselves in the 1970s and 1980s when they took over and closed down Morland, Ruddles, Hardys & Hanson and Tolly Cobbold, keeping the beer recipes for themselves and brewing them at their Bury St. Edmonds brewery but keeping the original names such as Ruddles County and Morland Old Speckled Hen. The Belhaven brewery in Dunbar continues to operate in Scotland. Due to this the name has become a sewar word within the real ale community with most people referring to GK in polite conversation.
Should you have frequented a Greene King pub ten or fifteen years ago, most only sold Greene King IPA (3.8%) and Abbott (5.2%). If you were lucky you'd locate one with these plus Morland Old Speckled Hen and on a rare occasion you'd discover one with these three plus a guest ale.
Greene King also operates Hungry Horse, Loch Fyne and Metropolitan Pub Company. In Hungry Horse pubs you will tend to find only IPA and Abbott.
This is slowly changing. Two pubs on Merseyside are breaking the Greene King mould. The Freshfield at Formby (http://cyberbeer.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-freshfield-formby.html) and The Pumphouse on Liverpool's Albert Dock have a selection of 10-14 real ales and serve an extensive food menu.
This article is based on my personal experiences and things other drinkers have said to me over the course of fifteen years. It is in no way endorsed by Greene King PLC or The Campaign For Real Ale (CAMRA).
