Homebrew Final

Toast to top brew!

Bristol Beer Factory celebrated the flavoursome talents of amateur brewers this week at the official launch party for Bristol Beer Factory’s Visitor Centre in North Street, Bristol.

The inaugural homebrew competition was won by Richard Pool with his ‘Mountain Goat IPA’, a unanimous and very popular choice with the judges. Richard can now look forward to spending a day alongside the Bristol Beer Factory brewers, with the resulting brew sold in local pubs throughout Bristol. Richard will also receive a 72 pint cask of his beer and a meal for two in the Barley Mow.

Second in the competition was Chris Tazewell with his golden brew, ‘EastvilleAU’, with ‘And So To Bedminster’ winning the title of ‘Best named brew’. The award for the best label went to ‘Windmill Pale Ale’, which had a picture of a windmill gaffer-taped onto the bottle.

All 20 competition entrants were invited to the final where, in addition to sampling Bristol Beer Factory ales, they were treated to a fine array of tasty treats on offer from Trethowans Dairy, Mark's Bread, Crumpet Cakes & The Chocolate Tart. Mark Newman bakes his bread on the premises, all using organic flour and sea salt, and has produced a special sourdough featuring Bristol Beer Factory’s Number Seven. Crumpet Cakes is also based at the Visitor Centre, with Becca Luger making her delicious cakes upstairs. Goodies from these local businesses will be available to purchase at the Visitor Centre which will also feature historical brewing displays and brewery tours in addition to sales of Bristol Beer Factory beer and merchandise.

Bristol Beer Factory Production Director, Simon Bartlett, said, “The evening was a great success and we were really fortunate to have had a wide range of quality homebrews to try. The judging panel were impressed with the care and ingenuity which had gone into creating some really interesting beers using all sorts of ingredients including chocolate, coriander, orange peel, ginger and cardamom.”

Head Brewer, Chris Kay, was also full of praise for the entrants ‘The home brew industry is growing increasing popular with people who appreciate the variety and quality of traditional beer, and the art of brewing is such a fascinating process. We wanted to encourage people to take part to gain experience and valuable feedback on their brews but the competition is also a fun way to celebrate the ethos of Real Ale.”

Look out for ‘Mountain Goat IPA’ in Bristol Beer Factory outlets throughout Bristol from June 2010.