News
Euro beer drinkers prefer the strong stuff
Research by Anglia Ruskin University shows that beer drinkers in mainland Europe prefer stronger drinks than their British counterparts. The most popular exported British beer is Halcyon Imperial IPA (7.4%) brewed by Thornbridge, followed by BrewDog's Jack Hammer IPA (7.2%). The favourite continental brew is Westvleteren 12 brewed by Trappist monks. A further Trappist beer from the monks of Rochefort abbey is also popular
Added: Wednesday, October 21st 2015
Cask ale brewer to celebrate pub's key role
Pubs have been the centre of community life for centuries in Britain and their role as hubs of society will be celebrated in a series of films by Greene King to be aired this month. Each film has been taken by a publican and will show customers drinking, chatting and enjoying pub life. The pubs include the Hawley Arms in London's Camden, used by many famous showbiz people, and the Olde Trip to Jerusalem in Nottingham, believed to be England's oldest pub
Added: Monday, October 19th 2015
Hop on a bus to relish Kent's harvest ales
With Kent's Green Hop Festival in full swing, five breweries will run special bus trips on Saturday 10 October that will allow beer lovers to sample a special beer range brewed with hops fresh from the harvest. The festival is the brainchild of Eddie Gadd of Gadds' Brewery who is keen to promote English hops that are under threat from imported varieties
Added: Sunday, October 4th 2015
Cask Ale Week celebrates iconic beer
Cask Ale Week, the annual celebration of Britain's iconic beer style, runs until 4 October and this year features scores of beers brewed with Maris Otter, craft brewers' favourite malting barley that has won 16 awards in the annual Champion Beer of Britain competition. The celebrations -- backed by beer talks, tastings and Meet the Brewer events -- will be staged in pubs throughout the country
Added: Monday, September 28th 2015
Booming cask beer is big boost for pubs
Cask beer -- real ale -- is on a roll and is offering a lifeline to the pub trade, says Pete Brown in the 2015 edition of the Cask Report. Real ale accounts for 17% of all beer sales and its share of the pub trade is expected to rise to 20% by 2020. The report says cask beer drinkers visit pubs twice as often as other consumers and encourage other people to join them when they go out for a beer
Added: Thursday, September 24th 2015
The barley that came back from the dead
Maris Otter barley, rescued from oblivion 50 years ago, was celebrated at a special beer festival in Norwich on 17 September. The variety was popular with craft brewers but was dropped by big farmers and maltsters in favour of higher yielding new varieties. But Banhams in Norfolk and Robin Appel in Wiltshire rescued Maris Otter and now it's in great demand with the growing legion of new brewers. Chris Hill of the Eastern Daily Press reports
Added: Friday, September 18th 2015
Britain's beer boom goes roaring on
British breweries have grown by 10% over the past year, the 2016 edition of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide reports. There are now 1,424 breweries in the country and they can draw on 11,000 cask beers to serve to their customers. One of the new entrants to the brewing arena is the Brewhouse & Kitchen chain,offering good food alongside beers made on the premises. In Bristol, Mark Wainwright is seen in his brewhouse
Added: Thursday, September 10th 2015
'Green beer' from Britain's eco breweries
A growing number of British brewers are "going green" by recycling used ingredients, using solar panels for heat and capturing rain water for cleaning. Several, including Purity in Warwickshire, have developed a series of reed beds where water is purified and returned to the breweries: the reed beds encourage wild life to find habitats. Pictured: brewer Florent Vialan at Purity
Added: Thursday, September 10th 2015
Top pubs jostle for national crown
Britain's top 16 regional pubs are named today by CAMRA to coincide with the launch of the 2016 Good Beer Guide. The pubs -- including the Old Poets Corner in Ashover, Derbyshire (pictured) -- have come through a long trail of judging by local CAMRA branches, who choose local and regional pubs. The lucky 16 will now go forward to be judged in the national competition with the National Pub of the Year announced next February
Added: Thursday, September 10th 2015
Micros lead the pub revival
The new Good Beer Guide reports a growing number of micro or pop-up pubs that offer cask beer at sharp prices and offer drinkers new outlets, using buildings that have often lain empty for years. Martyn Hillier, pictured, started the micro revolution with the Butchers Arms in Herne, Kent, and he expects there will be 200 by the end of the year
Added: Thursday, September 10th 2015