London Cask Beer Awards
The judging for the London Cask Beer Awards (LCBA – previously the Champion Beer of London) took place at the Ealing Beer Festival in July. The beers, which came from all over London, were divided into ten categories as below. The winner of each category went forward to the final judging panel which decided the overall winners. There were over 30 judges, drawn from a variety of backgrounds, including brewers, publicans, beer writers and CAMRA trained judges. Given how difficult it is to get beers into CAMRA’s Champion Beer of Britain competition, the LCBA provides an ideal avenue for promoting London’s beers and cask beer generally.
Lotte Peplow, the Brewers Association’s American Craft Beer Ambassador for Europe and an international beer judge, chaired the final panel. The overall champion was Fuller’s HSB of which Lotte said, “The judges commented on the great appearance and flavour as well as the delivery in the aroma. The beer was well balanced and in style for the Premium Bitters category.”
Ben Hart, the organiser of the Ealing Beer Festival, added, “CAMRA is aware that cask beer is under threat but it really is the crème de la crème when we are talking about beer. And that’s why we run the competition; it’s to promote cask beer and support the many great brewers who brew it in London. We are really proud to host the only beer judging competition to be just about London cask beer”.
The London Brewing Company’s 100 Oyster Stout took the overall silver award while the bronze went to Anspach & Hobday’s The Porter. The full list of winners is below.
Christine Cryne
