Titanic Grande Reserve Plum Porter 750ml

Stoke-on-Trent has given the world pottery, oatcakes and, somewhat unexpectedly, one of Britain’s most beloved independent breweries.

Founded in Burslem in 1985, Titanic Brewery began with a fairly simple ambition: brew good beer. Several decades later the brewery produces millions of pints a year, operates its own pubs and remains one of the defining names in traditional British brewing.

The name comes from Captain Edward Smith, the captain of the RMS Titanic, who was born in Stoke-on-Trent. Thankfully the brewery itself has enjoyed considerably more success than its namesake vessel.

Titanic became particularly famous for beers like Plum Porter, which somehow manages to combine dark malt, roast character and fruit sweetness without becoming novelty beer. Alongside it sit classic bitters, stouts and pale ales that remain deeply rooted in British pub culture.

What keeps Titanic relevant is that the brewery never abandoned traditional cask beer while many others chased trends. The beers are designed first and foremost to be enjoyed in pubs, which remains a surprisingly useful philosophy.

Sometimes reliability is underrated. Titanic have spent nearly forty years making a strong case for it.