Castle Rock it at the GBBF

Castle Rock Brewery’s Harvest Pale has been crowned the "Best Beer in Britain" at the Great British Beer Festival, held earlier this month at Earls Court, London.

With an abv of 3.8%,Harvest Pale is described in CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide 2010 as "blonde and refreshing with distinctive citrus hop."

The Nottingham brewed real ale was judged the Supreme Champion over a host of other finalists in seven different beer categories (bitters, best bitters, strong bitters, golden ales, milds, winter beers, and the speciality class), including beers from both small microbrewers and large regional brewers.

Roger Protz, a member of the final judging panel, praised the winner, saying: "Against intense competition from eight other brilliant beers, Castle Rock Harvest Pale stood out and was the unanimous choice of all the judges for its great blend of tangy hop and juicy malt. A wonderfully refreshing and complex beer."

A delighted Chris Holmes, Castle Rock Brewery chairman, added: "We’ve won dozens of awards over the past five to six years, but the best moments have been since our new brewer, Adrian Redgrove, who started four years ago, began producing high quality, consistent beer. The last 18 months we’ve been brewing at capacity because of the success and popularity of Harvest Pale, which has led to the opening of a new brew house in two weeks’ time which will treble our capacity."

While Castle Rock Brewery secured the Gold award for 2010, this year’s Silver went to Timothy Taylor Brewery’s Landlord, with the Bronze award going to Surrey Hills Brewery’s Hammer Mild.

Complete list of winners:

Overall winners
Champion Beer of Britain – Castle Rock, Harvest Pale (3.8% abv, Nottingham, Notts)
Second – Timothy Taylor, Landlord (4.3% abv, Keighley, West Yorkshire)
Third – Surrey Hills, Hammer Mild (3.8% abv, Guildford, Surrey)

Mild category
Gold – Surrey Hills, Hammer Mild (3.8% abv, Guildford, Surrey)
Silver – Greene King, XX Mild (3% abv, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk)
Joint Bronze – Golcar, Dark Mild (3.4% abv, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire)
Joint Bronze – Nottingham, Rock Ale Mild (3.8% abv, Nottingham, Notts)

Bitter category
Gold – RCH, PG Steam (3.9% abv, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset)
Silver – Moor, Revival (3.8% abv, Pitney, Somerset)
Joint Bronze – Orkney, Raven (3.8% abv, Stromness, Orkney)
Joint Bronze – Purple Moose, Snowdonia Ale (3.6% abv, Portmadog, Gwynedd)

Best Bitter category
Gold – Timothy Taylor, Landlord (4.3% abv, Keighley, West Yorkshire)
Silver – St Austell, Tribute (4.2% abv, St Austell, Cornwall)
Joint Bronze – Evan Evans, Cwrw (4.2% abv, Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire)
Joint Bronze – Great Oakley, Gobble (4.5% abv, Great Oakley, Northamptonshire)

Golden Ale category
Gold – Castle Rock, Harvest Pale (3.8% abv, Nottingham, Notts)
Silver – Marble, Manchester Bitter (4.2% abv, Manchester, Gtr Manchester)
Bronze – St Austell, Proper Job (4.5% abv, St Austell, Cornwall)

Strong Bitter category
Gold – Thornbridge, Jaipur IPA (5.9% abv, Bakewell, Derbyshire)
Silver – Fuller’s, Gales HSB (4.8% abv, Chiswick, Gtr London)
Bronze – Beckstones, Rev Rob (4.6% abv, Millom, Cumbria)

Speciality Beer category
Gold – Amber, Chocolate Orange Stout (4% abv, Ripley, Derbyshire)
Silver – O’Hanlon’s, Port Stout (4.8% abv, Whimple, Devon)
Bronze – Breconshire, Ysbrid y Ddraig (6.5% abv, Brecon, Powys)

Winter Beer of Britain winner (announced in January 2010)
Elland, 1872 Porter (6.5% abv, Elland, West Yorkshire)

Bottled Beer of Britain winners  
Gold – St Austell, Admiral’s Ale (5% abv, St Austell, Cornwall)
Silver – Pitfield, 1850 London Porter (5% abv, Epping, Essex)
Bronze – Great Oakley, Delapre Dark (4.6% abv, Great Oakley, Northamptonshire)

Ben McFarland, 20.08.2010