It was Boxing Day, and the pubs we wanted to visit were either closed or not serving food. So we ended up at this place with the promising name and the sleek looking bar. Turns out, it's an American-themed roadhouse-style restaurant, with Haggis on the menu. But it does have an attractive bar and served us a pint of Tennent's Special Ale, which was a pleasant surprise, unlike the regular Tennent's product.
So while I can't be arsed to find a picture of The Filling Station, I did take the time to do my research on the Tennent's corporate family tree. Hugh and Robert Tennent started Wellpark Brewery in Glasgow in 1740. They originally brewed stout and ales, of course. One of the Tennent descendents fell on his head in 1884, lost his sense of taste, and decided to start brewing Tennents Lager the following year. This beer would one day account for 60% of the lager sold in Scotland.
Wellpark Brewery was acquired by Charrington United Breweries in 1963.
Charrington United merged with Bass in 1967 to form the Bass Charrington Group.
In 2000, InBev of Belgium (or as I like to call them, the Axis of Lager) bought Bass Charrington.
However, in 2009 InBev agreed to sell Wellpark Brewery and the Scottish and Irish distribution rights for Stella Artois and Beck's to C&C Group of Ireland for the tidy sum of £180 million. C&C Group are known for cider: Bulmers Irish (not to be confused with the real Bulmers of England), Magners, and now Gaymers.
Ironically, that would make Tennents - sponsors of Rangers - the property of an Irish cidery.
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