Author: lycee23

In-keeping with the beer’s name and dark colour, its bottle label uses a black and silver palette to depict a night-time Whitstable scene. It features an iconic oyster yawl — synonymous with the Kent seaside town from which the brand takes its name — along with Shepherd Neame’s popular pub on the beach, the Old Neptune.

“This smooth stout is crafted using a unique blend of four malts which impart a rich, complex flavour, balanced by the finest Target hops,” said Shepherd Neame brands marketing manager, Rose Davis.

“When poured from the bottle, the beer is finished with a smooth, creamy head, which is perfect to savour alongside classic seafood dishes such as oysters or fish and chips, or on its own!”

National account manager, Alex O’Connell, added: “During the past 12 months we have seen a significant growth in the popularity of stouts across the off- and on-trade, and we are pleased to tap into this trend, allowing discerning drinkers nationwide to sample the silky smooth taste of our sensational stout at home.”

Sarah Hughes Brewery’s Snowflake has been named Champion Winter Beer of Britain at the Great British Beer Festival Winter, in Burton upon Trent.

 Chair of the judging panel, Christine Cryne, described the beer as a “beautiful amber barley wine. The fruity, slightly spiced nose invited the drinker to indulge. The rich, smooth, sweet palate had orange spicy notes, balanced by a growing bitterness, leading to a spicy dry bitterness. Remarkably moreish.” 

Christine added: “The judges were impressed with the quality of the beers in the final and thought they all had something to say.” 

Simon Massey, director of Sarah Hughes Brewery and the Beacon Hotel, said: “This is fantastic news! Quality is what we strive for, and it is all down to the brilliant team who work in the brewery and the pub.

“This batch of Snowflake was brewed in September and sold out in two weeks over the Christmas period. We always put it out at the start of the Dudley Winter Ales Festival, where it sold out there, too. 

“I am very proud for my head brewer Ricky Follos. This is a massive achievement, and he should be very chuffed. The hard work really has paid off! 

“The brewery closed in the mid 50s, but my uncle, John Hughes, reinstated the brewery in 1987. He had a vision of what it could be, and I hope this award makes Sarah Hughes Brewery and the Beacons Hotel pub a must-visit destination in the Back Country.” 

In response to the struggles facing the pub and brewing trade, Simon said: “It is going to be another tough year for the industry. My overhead costs have doubled.” 

The joint runners-up in the competition were Elland Brewery’s 1872 Porter and Muirhouse Brewery’s Magnum Mild.

St Austell Brewery is funding a vital course, which is delivering a mental health fitness programme to young people.

The Pearl Exchange, in Bude, is a drop-in centre for 18 to 35-year-olds, where they can find an escape from a variety of issues through creativity and workshops. 

Following the death of Pearl Bamford in 2019, aged just 19, her parents, Rose and Johnny, felt compelled to assist the younger generation of North Cornwall to help them build more positive futures. They set up a charity to do just that.

With improving mental health for young people at the forefront of its goals, the Pearl Exchange approached the St Austell Charitable Trust to cover the cost of providing a one-day intensive course working with mental health practitioner Katie Griffin to deliver her ‘Thera-Sea’ mental health fitness programme.

The programme promotes the idea that the understanding and management of mental health is a lifelong journey, one that participants can take ownership of by equipping themselves with an educational, science-backed approach to aid the prevention of mental ill-health.

The St Austell Charitable Trust has been supporting local charities, good causes, and individuals in need across the South West since its launch in 2003. To date, it has raised more than £1 million.

“We’re always looking to support causes in and around the South West which are actively making a difference to people’s lives, and that is exactly what the Pearl Exchange is doing,” said Piers Thompson, St Austell Brewery’s external relations director.

“It’s so important to look after our mental health, and for a charity to reach an age group which can really benefit from this course is one of the reasons we wanted to help provide a crucial resource for local young people.”

A spokesperson from the Pearl Exchange added: “We are so grateful to St Austell for their generous donation. This donation will enable us to provide an accredited mental health resilience day in January 2024, equipping 12 participants with the skills to revolutionise their mental health wellbeing and create lasting change in their lives.”

The course will be open to young people who will be further supported by the charity through signposting to its counselling support or workshops. The Pearl Exchange aims to run the course in January 2024 to kickstart people’s mental health resilience at the beginning of a new year.

There are five winners and four highly commended pubs across categories ranging from refurbishment to new build.

New Build (newly built pubs in 2022)  

Strawberry Thief, Swindon (winner) – an ambitious new-build for Arkell’s brewery in a new development on the edge of Swindon known as Tadpole Village.

Conversion to Pub Use Award  

Turk’s Head, Exeter (winner) – originally an inn for more than 700 years, this property was entirely reconfigured from a pizza restaurant into a pub while keeping its historical character.

bod Matlock, Matlock (highly commended) – a building that originally housed a Boots chemist, which retains its art-deco heritage.

Fourth Fiend, Meltham (highly commended) – a conversion by Three Fiends brewery of a 19th-century school building later used as a Conservative Club. Use of traditional features such as match boarding and different wall finishes gives the impression that a single large space is divided into bar and lounge areas.

Refurbishment

Cadogan Arms, London (winner) – the restoration of the pub sought to recreate the lost early Georgian architectural details and ornate timber panelling of the original building.

George, London (highly commended) – intensive renovation of this pub pays homage to its history as a hub for the political, cultural and social movements of the late 18th century.

Historic England Conservation Award (sponsored by Historic England)

This is given for work which conserves the pub’s architectural features, while updating its facilities. 

Black Lion, London (winner) – a Grade II*-listed property dating back to 1898, with features of special historical interest in the main bar and dining room.

Spread Eagle, London (highly commended) – a pub and hotel that has been sensitively restored to a very high standard, harking back to its glorious hey-day, while being exceeding respectful to the fabric of the building.

Community Local (reserved for outstanding refurbished street-corner pub)

Gordon Arms, Bedford (winner) – a neighbourhood hangout which offers great beer and food plus friendly service.

CAMRA awards director Laura Emson said: “We hope beer lovers across the country will seek out these examples of excellence and plan visits whether they are local or just visiting. It has been an incredibly difficult few years for the pub industry, so let’s all support our locals this year and raise a glass to these shining examples in pub excellence.”

Devon-based Utopian Brewery has scooped a world’s best style title at the World Beer Awards, with Rainbock winning the seasonal maibock category.

It was one of only four English breweries to pick up a ‘world best’ award. It comes on the back of a haul for the brewery in the earlier country awards round. Then, it picked up three golds for Frankishes Rotbier, Bohemian British Lager, and the Rainbock. There was silver for its Premium Lager and bronze for Harlequin Pils.

“We were absolutely delighted to pick up the five medals in round one as there is very strong competition from both big and small breweries across the country,” said Utopian managing director, Richard Archer.

“But to win a world best style award is off-the-scale good and thoroughly deserved recognition of the outstanding talent of our head brewer, Jeremy Swainson, and his amazing team of James Foster, Ben Bourn, Simon Shakespeare, Colin Blick and Graham Reynolds. It takes a full team effort to produce a world-beating beer, and we are blessed that we have such an amazing one.”

Jeremy said: “The Maibock is quite a challenging beer style to brew, and as it only gets brewed once a year you don’t get any practice. It needs a lot of patience and attention to look after it through those long winter months, so it is truly a team effort.

“I’m super-pleased for the team to get this recognition for all the hard work they put in and their total dedication to making great beer.”  

In only its fifth year of brewing, Utopian has established itself as a brand that’s driving innovation in brewing, in particular creating international-style lagers with only 100% British-grown ingredients.

Its five medal-winning brews showcase a huge array of classical lager styles and prove that great lager can be made with only home grown malt and hops.

“The Rainbock holds a special place for us as we first brewed it in our start-up year, January 2020,” said Richard. “By the time it was ready to pack, after 100 days in tank, we were in lockdown and the world had become a very different place.

“Rainbock was a really important beacon for us though that time, helping us spread the world about our lagers and broaden awareness. It played a big part in helping us get through those early months of the pandemic, and so to now have it recognised on the world stage is a lovely reminder of its importance to us as a business, and also, of course, of what an amazing beer it is.”

The Peakender festival, hosted by Thornbridge Brewery, returns to the Bakewell Showground this month with live music, comedy, street food, and great beer.

The family-friendly event, from 18th-20th August, is now in its eighth year and goes from strength to strength. More than 40 breweries will showcase over 200 beers. Camping and glamping are available for the weekend, as are day tickets.

“Peakender is all about getting outdoors and enjoying the beautiful Peak District,” said Thornbridge sales and marketing director Dom Metcalfe.

The fact that there is great beer, great food, and brilliant entertainment for all the family to enjoy is a bonus. The festival has grown year on year, and this year is going to be the best yet!”

For ticket information, schedules of entertainment — including the inaugural Peakender dog show — and live acts, visit peakender.co.uk/.

VOLT e-bikes has announced a collaboration with Mad Squirrel Brewery to launch a limited edition Post-Ride beer, to be enjoyed by riders.

Coming in at 3.7% ABV, the tropical, single-hop pale ale is ideal for a mid-day break on a hot summer’s day or as post-ride refreshment after a long journey.

The beer is available from Mad Squirrel’s website, its taprooms in Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, and its suppliers across the UK.

The new partnership is being celebrated with a competition where entrants can win a customised VOLT London, the award-winning commuter-focused urban e-bike inspired by the UK’s capital. Alongside this, entrants can also win cases of the Post-Ride beer and exclusive VOLT and Mad Squirrel branded merchandise. Full details of the competition are available here.

The collaboration reflects VOLT’s commitment to look beyond the cycling industry and forge partnerships with UK brands, bringing sustainable practices to their sector.

Mad Squirrel is paving the way for the beer industry. Alongside rainwater collection and solar panels, it is also investing in new technologies to reduce waste and increase recycling from the brewing process. Its ‘slurry silo’ holds old hops that would have gone to waste, and when full, the contents are transported to an anaerobic digestion plant where they are converted into biofuel.

The number of UK breweries becoming insolvent has tripled in the past year, with smaller brewers worst hit, according to data cited by tax and audit firm Mazars.

Using Insolvency Service data, the company said the number of insolvencies rose to 45 in the year to March 31, 2023, up from 15 in the previous year. Paul Maloney, associate director at Mazars, said the insolvencies are largely of smaller craft breweries who have “suffered from an oversaturated market and from rising overheads”.

Maloney said: “Craft breweries have been struggling for some time but rising prices have brought their financial challenges to a head.

“Craft brewers often offer ‘premium’ beers, but consumers are turning to cheaper options. As such, discounted brands produced by large international brewers and supermarket own brands are increasingly the choice for consumers.”

He added that the craft beer market has become “heavily overpopulated” over the last decade.

“The cost-of-living crisis now means many of these brewers are fighting for a place in a shrinking market,” he said. “Some of them will not make it.”

Beer Day Britain, the UK’s annual celebation of our national drink, will take place this year on 15th June, with special activities set to take place around the country.

The focus of the day is the National Cheers To Beer (#cheerstobeer) toast at 7pm. This simple activity is not only marked across the UK, but by beer drinkers around the world, who participate each year on 15th June, with many people joining in that #cheerstobeer as it trends on social media.

“Every day is beer day for beer lovers, but 15th June is extra special and gives us a chance to celebrate the national drink,” said event instigator Jane Peyton.

“And beer tastes so much better when consumed with friends in a pub with a great atmosphere!”

T&R Theakston has announced that it has secured listings for cans of Old Peculier in 240 Asda stores across the UK. The beer has been canned since 2021.

The news comes as the brewery sees demand for its beers continue to grow in both the on- and off-trades. Alongside the new listings for Old Peculier, 140 Asda stores will also be selling cans of Theakston Best Bitter.

“These two new listings are evidence of the continued strength of our portfolio,” said Simon Theakston, joint managing director of T&R Theakston.

“Theakston Old Peculier has continued to capture the attention of the country’s discerning drinkers, and we’re delighted that it is becoming more widely available as a result of this growing partnership with Asda.

“Additionally, to see the increased off-trade success of Theakston Best Bitter speaks to a consumer preference for high-quality, handcrafted beers such as our own.”

He added: “This new listing is testament to the continued work of our sales colleagues to develop our off-trade channel. We’re looking forward to continuing to work with our retail partners during this next stage of off-trade growth, ensuring that our customers can enjoy their favourite beer at home, as well as in pubs and bars across the country.”