Bob Lawson and Bob Hunter co-founded Ossett Brewery as a micro Brewpub, in what is today our taproom.

The first small-batch beers were brewed in '98 and we quickly began to be recognised and win awards...

Silver King, a straw-coloured ale that was at the time a rarity, wins its first National SIBA Champion Award.

By this point Bob H and Bob L had gone their separate ways, with Bob L purchashing ownership Bob H's share to become the sole owner of Ossett Brewery.

Our current Group CEO Jamie joins the business, returning to Yorkshire after a career in London and Tokyo.

The Black Bull, Liversedge becomes the first Ossett Brewery pub. Jamie refurbishes the pub and operates it as Landlord, discovering a real passion for pubs in the process.

25 years later the pub is still owned and operated as an Ossett site.

Jamie independently starts Izakaya Pub Company (meaning pub in Japanese), and a second pub, The Rat and Ratchet (which we'll come back to later) is added.

At the same time Ossett Brewery outgrows the Brewpub and moves next door into our current Brewery site.

Izakaya Pub Company is renamed to Ossett Pub Co - simply as a result of confusion about how to pronounce 'Izakaya'.

The Rat Brewery is (re)born in Huddersfield, brewing out of the basement at The Rat & Ratchet.

The legendary White Rat is brewed for the first time, and quickly became so popular that we couldn't keep up with demand.

Excelsius wins the overall SIBA National Champion Award alongside National Strong Ale Gold (which it has won 3 times in total).

The same year Ossett Brewery wins best UK Pub and Brewing Company at The Publican Awards.

Growth at Ossett Brewery means a need for increased tank capacity, a new packaging building and a complete refit of the existing brewhouse.

After several years of being brewed across The Rat & Ratchet and Ossett Brewery due to its incredible popularity, and after extensive blind taste tests, White Rat moves to be brewed exclusively at the main brewery site and into the Ossett Classic range.

Edd Simpson joins Ossett Brewery as MD of Brewing and Brands, and Matt Howgate makes the jump from Vocation to become Production Director.

2025 sees the launch of The Rat Range, a new craft offering that stands confidently on its own four feet and captures the ingenious instinct of the Rat - experimental, unafraid and endlessly creative.

From small beginnings in the back of a brewpub to a brewing powerhouse - today we brew over 9 million pints a year and our beers are enjoyed nationwide (and even further afield).