Masham breweries, Theakston and Black Sheep

Masham has two working breweries within a short walk of each other, both with the Theakston family behind them. T&R Theakston goes back to 1827, when Robert Theakston started brewing at the Black Bull inn, and in 1870 the family built the brewery on Paradise Field that it still uses today. Its visitor centre, the Black Bull in Paradise, takes its name from those two places. Black Sheep is the younger brewery across town, and its tour opens with a film from its founders, Paul and Jo Theakston.

Doing one tour, a tasting and a wander round the market square makes a good half day for adults, and both tours in one day is possible with some planning. It suits a wet day well, since the tours and bars are indoors.

From Tea Time Cafe at 87 Market Place, Masham is about 30 minutes by car, heading west. Theakston asks visitors to park on Masham's Market Place, about two minutes' walk from the brewery, and to use HG4 4HH in a satnav. The Market Place car park is open all day but has fewer spaces on market days, which are Wednesday and Saturday. Black Sheep is at Wellgarth, HG4 4EN, a short walk from the square.

We have not found a bus from Thirsk to Masham, so plan on driving, and agree a driver before the tasting.

Book the Theakston tour first, because it needs at least 48 hours' notice online. Tours run Monday to Saturday at 11am and 2pm, last about 45 minutes and end in the Paradise Bar, where adults taste the beer. The bar has Best Bitter, Old Peculier, Peculier IPA, Lightfoot, XB and others on, three on keg and six on cask. Allow an hour and a half for the tour and tasting together.

At Black Sheep, the tour runs from the founders' film through the brewhouse to the smells of a working brewery, finishing with a tasting at the bar. Tours run Thursday to Saturday, and the visitor centre will arrange one on other days if you email or ring ahead. The bar, known as the Baaa...r, the kitchen and the Sheepy Shop open seven days a week, so lunch at Black Sheep fits between a morning tour at one brewery and an afternoon tour at the other.

On a Wednesday or Saturday morning the market fills Masham's square from 10am to 2pm.

The history is the draw at Theakston: the same family name over nearly two centuries, a brewery still on the site it moved to in 1870, and Old Peculier on the bar at the end of the tour. Black Sheep's tour has a more personal feel, with the founders introducing it on film and groups kept to 15. Having both a few minutes apart means a beer-minded visitor can compare two breweries with shared roots in one trip. The Sheepy Shop at Black Sheep is the place for a present to take home.

Check the age rules before you bring the family. Theakston admits no under-12s on its tour, babes in arms included, and 12 to 17-year-olds must come with an adult and get a soft drink instead of the tasting. Black Sheep sells children's and family tickets, so it is the brewery to pick with younger ones, but confirm its age rules when you book. Wear flat, fully enclosed shoes, because Theakston turns away sandals, open toes and stilettos. The Theakston tour has several flights of steep stairs and nowhere to sit, and Black Sheep's visitor centre lift is currently out of order, so anyone with limited mobility should ring ahead. Theakston is closed on Sundays. Black Sheep's tour showed as sold out online when we checked on 7 November, so book early or ring the visitor centre on 01765 680101. Black Sheep was sold in January 2026 and carries on trading, but check its current hours before travelling.