The Maltings

The Maltings, Nailsworth

Two malthouses built for the Nailsworth Brewery, dating from approximately 1860–1870 (Malthouse No.1) and 1883 (Malthouse No.2). Both buildings are constructed of local coursed limestone with dressed quoins and door surrounds, and are situated on Tetbury Lane.

Malthouse No.1 lies to the north west of the site. The building is linear in plan with a projecting central gable that houses a hoist, accessed by a door at first floor level. The main elevation features a kiln to the left, its original conical roof removed and replaced with corrugated iron sheeting and a 20th-century metal shutter door. The steeply pitched roof is covered in plain tiles. The malthouse is single storey with basement and attics. Three 4-pane timber casement windows and three plank doors with arched dressed stone surrounds serve the ground floor; similar windows and surrounds appear to the basement, which becomes increasingly visible as the ground slopes away northwards. A small single storey 20th-century extension stands to the south of the kiln but is of no special interest.

The interior of Malthouse No.1 is divided into four floors. The basement and ground floors have asphalt coverings, each with a central row of cast iron columns supporting large timber pads carrying chamfered and stopped beams resting on stone corbels. Some timber pads retain stencilled malting numbering. The upper two floors are timber-built and contained entirely within the roof space. The lower of these is wholly clad in timber tongue and groove. The upper floor retains its trapdoors and the original hoist machinery, which projects into the central gabled wing. The kiln, accessed from the basement, retains part of its brick-built furnace, fire basket, and ventilation system. The patented heat regulator is by HJH King and appears in their 1906 catalogue as installed at the Nailsworth Maltings.

Malthouse No.2, dating from 1883, is situated to the south east, near the entrance. The complex incorporates the former counting house (enlarged for residential accommodation), the malthouse (slightly truncated by the counting house extension), and the kiln, arranged in an L-shaped plan. The buildings are of coursed local limestone with dressed stone quoins, with a small amount of brick to the upper floor of the extended counting house. The roof is steeply pitched and covered in plain tiles; the kiln's conical roof has been replaced with corrugated iron. Windows generally have stone cills and timber lintels.

Like Malthouse No.1, Malthouse No.2 comprises four floors, with the upper two in the roof space. The lower two have asphalt coverings and feature a central row of cast iron columns carrying large chamfered and stopped timber beams resting on stone corbels; some carry stencilled malting numbers. The upper two floors are timber. In the upper floor, just below the apex, runs a rolling gangway with timber rollers in situ. The roof is of queen post structure with some iron bracing.

The kiln contains rare wire wedge drying floors—a patented system comprising a wire grid below a floor of tight wire mesh. Both grid and mesh survive to the upper floor; the lower floor retains the grid only. This installation is the work of Henry Stopes of Stopes and Co, the foremost maltings engineer of the latter quarter of the 19th century.

Historical Context

The Brewery at Nailsworth was operated by the Clissold family from its establishment around 1800. In 1889 it was registered as a limited company. By 1908, having expanded through acquiring two other breweries, the Nailsworth Brewery was itself taken over by Cheltenham Original Brewery Co Ltd but went into liquidation and ceased brewing that same year. The Clissolds are recorded as maltsters of Nailsworth in 1830, possibly on this site, though no structures from that date survive. Malting on the site had ceased by 1902–3, when the most recent private owner's family purchased the Maltings.

Significance

The buildings represent a good survival of mid- to late 19th-century maltings associated with an important brewery of the period. The exteriors exemplify local limestone building construction of the era. The principal significance lies in the integrity of the interiors, which retain their original asphalt floors and substantial equipment and fittings related to their malting function. The kilns preserve rare and largely intact examples of malting technology, including patented wedge wire drying floors and engineering by Henry Stopes and HJH King. This rare condition and completeness justify Grade II listing despite the relatively late date.