St Austell Brewery has grown steadily from the initial vision of a young Cornishman called Walter Hicks in 1851 to become one of the largest private companies in Cornwall, England. Still an independent, family owned regional brewer, St Austell Brewery has become part of the fabric of the South West, with its distinctive black and gold paint work adorning its public houses, the drays which supply over 2,000 free trade customers and of course, its award winning cask beers.