I would like to thank all the volunteers who helped out at Ealing Beer Festival this year. Despite torrential rain and high winds we set up and delivered a great experience for all who made their way to the event. Given the tempestuous conditions, a curse for outdoor events, it is no surprise that attendance was some 1,500 people less than in 2022. This year we introduced handpumps for the first time to highlight the beers in the Champion Beer of London competition. Although significant extra work was involved, they gave a new perspective to the festival’s central bars section. My thanks go out especially to Mike Chislett and Laurence Stant for spending many days creating the plinths needed to mount the handpumps onto the bar front, to Nick Banyard for spending hours under the bar, connecting the beers to the handpumps, and to the cooling team for operating a more complicated cooling setup than usual. Once again, we offered a great selection of beer, cider and wines, hand picked by our volunteers. For the second year we used the big top marquee, which received a positive response from visitors and staff alike and has now become a feature of the festival. The entertainments teams booked some great acts for us and these gave the festival that extra special dynamic. Thank you to everyone who donated their unspent tokens to the festival charity Dementia Concern. The total raised was in excess of £1,500. Lastly but not least, I must thank the festival committee for all their time and effort on the planning and delivery of the festival and to my brother, Jon Hart, for his diligence with both breweries and distributors for the cask and keg beer order. Keep an eye on these pages for news about next year’s Ealing Beer Festival.
Ben Hart
Festival Organiser