Warwickshire Bitter wins Olympia Gold

A bitter beer first brewed as a one-off for a pub in Lincolnshire has walked away with the prestigious Champion Beer of Britain award at the Great British Beer Festival at London Olympia.

Goats Milk was produced by the Church End brewery in Warwickshire for the Goat pub in Market Deeping in Lincolnshire but proved so popular that it’s become a regular beer in the brewery’s range.

Paul Hamblett from Church End, seen with the trophy awarded at the CAMRA festival, says “It wasn’t a name we would have chosen but it just stuck.”

Head brewer Carl Graves says the 3.8% beer has a simple recipe of Maris Otter pale malt with a touch of crystal malt and malted wheat and is hopped with American Cascade and Chinook hops.

The judges on the final panel said the beer was the stand-out one among the six finalists and praised its fine balance of malt and hops and refreshing palate.

The winners

Mild

Bronze Winter’s Mild

Silver West Berkshire Maggs Magnificent Mild

Gold Rudgate Ruby Mild

Bitter

Bronze Triple fff Alton’s Pride & Sambrook Wandle Ale

Silver Bishop Nick Ridley’s Rite

Gold Church End Goats Milk

Best Bitter

Bronze Surrey Hills Shere Drop & West Berkshire Good Old Boy

Silver Blackedge Pike

Gold Tiny Rebel Cwtch

Golden Ale

Bronze Oakham Citra & Ludlow Gold

Silver Fyne Ale Jarl

Gold Blue Monkey Infinity

Strong Bitter

Bronze Salopian Automaton

Bronze Barngate Red Bull Terrier

Gold Greytrees Afghan Pale

Speciality

Silver Cromarty Red Rocket & Black Port Porter

Gold Saltaire Triple Chocoholic

Overall winners

Bronze Tiny Rebel Cwtch

Silver Bishop Nick Ridley’s Rite

Gold Church End Goats Milk