Raising a glass to the best brewed beer

Earlier this month, I was fortunate enough to be involved in the judging at the Nottingham Beer Festival, held at the Castle. Organised by SIBA, the Society of Independent Brewers, this event is a must in any ale lover’s calendar!

Not only were the general public able to come along and sample an extensive range of barley pop, the best of the Midlands’ micro-breweries also battled it in the annual beer competition finals. 

As ever, there was no bitter taste left in the mouth… the event was a huge success, drawing a record number of visitors – so much so that tickets had already sold out weeks ago!

As one of the competition judges, I was able to tease my taste buds, sampling entries in the standard bitters and best bitters categories. The standard once again this year was extremely high, and in the former, the Grainstore Brewery were very ‘hoppy’ to clinch gold for their Rutland Bitter! In the latter category, Black Hole Brewery was set for stardom with their Cosmic concoction.

It’s important to put micro-breweries in the spotlight, because many are small business which need all the help they can get in today’s tough trading conditions. Awards such as these offer a great way for firms to boost their profile and get third party endorsement for their products.

At Russell Scanlan, we’re also playing our part in supporting the sector. We offer a specialist insurance package – our Masterbrew Scheme – which for many, means peace of mind thanks to a comprehensive but affordable policy. We’re always looking for other ways to help these types of business, so do get in touch if you have any ideas you’d like to discuss with us!