The Berrys

George Berry, John Clarke's grandson, was only sixteen when, in 1803, he made the two day journey from Exeter. For seven years he must have played the part of apprentice, for it was not until 1810 that his name was stretched across the double-fronted facia of No. 3 St James's Street.

In 1838 the Chartist riots raged through provincial England and spread panic in London. Accompanied by his friend Prince Louis Napoleon, George Berry was sworn in as a special constable. This Prince Louis Napoleon, who as Napoleon III founded the Deuxième Empire in 1851, had a close association with No. 3, as during his two-year stay in London he used the cellars for sundry secret meetings with Sherer the (reputed) editor of the "Standard".

In 1854, George Berry died, and was succeeded by two of his sons, George and Henry. The style of "Berry Brothers" thus came into being and remained almost unchanged for almost ninety years.

George Berry II had seven children, of whom Henry Berry was chosen to represent the older branch of the family while the younger of the original two brothers was succeeded by his son, one of twelve children, Henry Percival Berry. These two cousins were succeeded in due time by Francis Lawrence Berry of the senior branch, and Charles Walter Berry of the junior.

While unusual wines such as Constantia or Tokay or the Tuscan Montepulciano were by this time represented in the Price List, the mainstays of the older lists were Sherries, Madeiras and Ports, wines from the classic regions of France and Germany and brandies, liqueurs and whiskies. Henry Berry was almost certainly the partner who established this policy and was the leading figure at No. 3 between 1880 and 1907. However, both Francis and Walter Berry felt that the firm did need some changes.

The creation of The King's Ginger Liqueur serves to illustrate the differences and strengths of each generation. In the early days of King Edward VII's reign, the royal doctor approached Berrys for something to ward off the chill felt by His Majesty when out in his "horseless carriage". Henry Berry promptly produced the firm's brandy and ginger cordial originally known as "Ginger Brandy - Special Liqueur" but in 1906, three years after its creation, it was the younger generation who thought to add it to the Price List and in 1934 rename it "The King's Ginger Liqueur" as it is known today.