Batemans triumph in Sainsbury's Beer Hunt

Batemans Mocha, a new beer from Batemans of Wainfleet, Lincolnshire, has been named as the winner of the prestigious Sainsbury’s Great British Beer Hunt 2012, with Manchester Star Ale, from J W Lees, unveiled as the runner-up. Batemans Mocha has been awarded the title after a six-month search across Britain, fending off strong competition from more than 140 beers. Batemans has won a six-month listing for Mocha in Sainsbury’s stores nationwide from mid-November, with Manchester Star Ale also winning a six-month listing.

The Great British Beer Hunt aims to bring new and interesting beers from around Britain to Sainsbury’s customers. The search started earlier this year, with more than 140 beers battling it out in a series of regional heats. Twenty of these beers were chosen by regional panels of Sainsbury’s customers to go head-to-head in Sainsbury’s stores, on sale for a three-week period in September throughout the country. Ten finalists based on sales volume made it through to the grand final in London on 5 October.

Batemans is a brewery that takes a huge pride in producing traditional beers, but 18 months ago it made the decision to start developing beers with unusual flavours. A rich, smooth beer made with real Arabica coffee and Belgian chocolate called Mocha was a firm favourite with customers and judges alike.

Jaclyn Bateman, sales director, said: “We think it’s so important to introduce new people to the beer category and encourage them to experiment with different tastes and styles, and we hope to continue to achieve this goal with Mocha. Traditionally, we’ve always produced classic style beers, but we hope new styles of beers such as Mocha will become classics of the future. We’re absolutely delighted to win Sainsbury’s Great British Beer Hunt and be part of a movement that champions British beer.”

Andy Phelps, Beer, Wines and Spirits Manager at Sainsbury’s, added: “Following an exciting six-month search around the country, we’re pleased to congratulate Batemans on their well-deserved win and are looking forward to putting Mocha on sale in our stores across Britain. Sainsbury’s customers have played a huge part in our search for the winner of the Great British Beer Hunt this year, judging the beers during the regional heats and voting with their shopping basket for their top 10 finalist beers in September. So I’m sure this prize-winning ale will be a popular listing. Great British Beer Hunt sales this year have increased by 25%, which clearly shows how much our customers have enjoyed trying out the spectrum of beers available.”

The winners were selected from the following 10 finalists:

Batemans Mocha; Willy Nilly: S A Brain; Wild Hop: Harviestoun Brewery; Manchester Star Ale: J W Lees; Dorothy Goodbody’s Blissful Brown Ale: Wye Valley; 99 Red Baboons: Blue Monkey Brewing; White Lady: Cairngorm; Ivanhoe: Ridgeway Brewing; Bad Elf: Cotswold Brewing; Poppy Ale: Wolf.