Yorkshire breweries win big at SIBA
The SIBA National Independent Beer Awards 2024 are the UK’s biggest independent beer competition and are the trade association’s National finals. In order to earn a place at the competition brewers must first win at their regional competition – making these overall Champions very much the ‘best of the best’ when it comes to British independent craft beer.
The SIBA Independent Beer Awards 2024 are organised by the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates at BeerX, the UK’s biggest beer and brewing trade event, taking place at Exhibition Centre Liverpool.
Yorkshire’s breweries won a raft of prizes, with six gold medals, one silver and four bronze. In addition, Harrogate Brewing Co took home the title of “Overall Champion of the Keg Beer Awards” with their Nidd Mild.
Gold Winners
Bottle/Can Premium Lager – Ilkley Brewery – Slake (4.5%)
Bottle/Can IPA – Atom Brewing Co – Ultrasonic (6.0%)
Bottle/Can Double & Triple IPA – SALT Beer Factory – IKAT (8.0%)
Bottle/Can Imperial & Strong Ale – Harrogate Brewing Co – Kursaal (9.0%)
Keg British Ales – Acorn Brewery – Barnsley Bitter (3.8%)
Keg Amber, Brown & Red Ale – Harrogate Brewing Co – Nidd Mild (3.7%)
Silver Winners
Bottle/Can Pale Ale – Brew York – CONEY (4.5%)
Bronze Winners
Bottle/Can Speciality & Flavoured Beer – Little Critters Brewing Company – Nutty Ambassador (6.0%)
Keg Session Lager – Ossett Brewery – Yon Helles Lager (4.0%)
Keg Session Pale Ale – Harrogate Brewing Co – Wavey Marms (3.8%)
Keg Stout & Porter – Acorn Brewery – Old Moor Porter (4.4%)
Overall Champion of the Keg Beer Awards – Harrogate Brewing Co – Nidd Mild (3.7%)
Congratulations to all!
Rebrand and redundancies at Black Sheep
Black Sheep announced a “brand refresh” this week, claiming that it gives them “the opportunity to look to the future and deliver the Black Sheep experience to our highly valued, loyal customers old and new.
Our ethos and our iconic beers remain the same: we brew to challenge convention, with fresh Dales water in Masham, Yorkshire.”
This “fresh, eye-catching branding” will begin shipping out once existing stocks have been diminished. The cynics out there might suggest that you may not notice the difference.
The Stray Ferret are reporting that the owners of Black Sheep have also made some redundancies this week, under the heading of “strategic restructuring”.
Chief executive Mark Williams said:
“This is an incredibly difficult time for all, and we are saddened the impact of this decision will have on our valued colleagues.
“Making redundancies is always the last resort, but unfortunately we have been forced to consider all options available to us.
“This is about making the brewery as efficient as possible, and securing its legacy for years to come.”
At the time of writing it was unclear how many redundancies had been made.
New release from Brew York
“I don’t think we’ll ever know who did this. Everyone in town’s a suspect…”
Brew York have teamed up with their great mates from Sureshot Brewing to solve one of the greatest mysteries of the century… Who Shot Mr Burns?! The resulting 5.5% NEIPA is loaded full of juicy hops to bring bold flavours of citrus and tropical fruits.
Sureshot Mr Burns is available in the Brew York webshop now.
Happy birthday Triple Point Brewing!
Triple Point Brewing celebrate their 5th birthday on 15th March (HAPPY BIRTHDAY GUYS!!!) and to mark the occasion they have released three new beers!
This is what they say:
DYAD #9 – 8% DUAL HOP PALE ALE
Peach. Orange. Papaya.
Hazy. Juicy. Smooth.
Amarillo and El Dorado hops.
BOMBORA – 8% DOUBLE NEIPA
This is THE hoppiest DIPA we’ve done.
Soft. Thick. Tropical.
Bursting with tropical fruit and deep mango.
Cryo El Dorado, Cryo Mosaic, and Nectaron hops.
SOLO HBC – 3.8% HAZY PALE ALE
Mango. Lychee. Citrus.
Not strong, but big.
Low bitterness, super sessionable.
HBC 586 hops.
All three beers are available now in the Triple Point webshop.
New release from SALT
To mark the 20th anniversary of Fightstar and their reunion show, SALT have collaborated on a one-off hazy IPA which absolutely rocks.
With Waves of Vic Secret hops which will give you Hazy Eyes and a Sharp Tongue, you won’t want to Waste A Moment tucking into this IPA. They’ve truly made this beer The English Way, laced with the finest jumbo oats and malt to increase mouthfeel.
After one or two, you’ll certainly Sleep Well Tonight.
Please Don’t Forget, We Apologise For Nothing.
*Please note these are not our puns!
Pale-Hniuk’s Laughter is available from the SALT webshop now.
Theakstons keep it in the family
More Masham news this week – Theakston’s have announced that sixth generation family member Will Theakston – eldest son of Simon – has joined them as Channel Development Manager.
A former army officer who has gone on to forge a successful career in the hospitality and drinks sector, Will brings with him a wealth of experience, knowledge and passion, and they are incredibly excited to have him on board for this next chapter.
