THE ORIGIN STORY
Welcome to the legend of English Lad. Our story starts with a racehorse, a gangster, and a can buried in Massachusetts. This is where it all began.
The Horse
In 1903, a chestnut colt named English Lad thundered to victory at Washington Park, Chicago. A legend was born—and a brewery took notice.
The Derby Champion
English Lad went on to win the Chicago Derby and the St. Louis Derby in 1904. He was a sensation—a horse whose name demanded to live beyond the racetrack.
The Original English Lad Brewery
The Westminister Brewing Company of Chicago—connected to the infamous Manhattan Brewing Company—immortalised the horse on a beer can. English Lad Ale was born, sold in 12-ounce flats, cones, and quart cones.
The Capone Connection
The Manhattan Brewing Company had rather interesting shareholders. During Prohibition, Al Capone’s operations ran through these very breweries. By the time English Lad Ale hit the shelves in the late 1930s, the era of speakeasies had given way to six-packs—but the legacy remained.
One of the Rarest Beer Cans in the World
Brewed between 1938 and 1942, English Lad Ale vanished into history. Then in 2003, a metal detectorist in Massachusetts unearthed one of the rarest beer cans ever discovered—valued at over £1,500 today. The legend resurfaced.
See it for yourself →
The Rebirth of a Legend
Now, a Westminster Brewing Company in London inherits what a Westminster Brewing Company in Chicago left behind. Same name. Different city. Same audacity. A legend reborn for a new generation of English Lads—in all their glorious diversity.
THE LEGENDARY CAN
This is it. The original English Lad Ale can—one of the rarest finds in brewing history, now the inspiration for what comes next.
COMING SOON
The legend is being reborn. Westminster Brewing Company is bringing English Lad back to life—brewed in London, steeped in history.
ENGLISH LAD
Westminster Brewing Company
The legend lives on. A new chapter begins.
Photo from the Ebony Horse Club in Brixton who use horses to raise the education, life skills, wellbeing and aspirations of young people from disadvantaged communities within Lambeth. Photography by Helen Bartlett.