Coniston Brewing's No.9 Barley Wine wins Champion Beer of Britain
Coniston Brewing Company's No.9 Barley Wine has been named the Champion Beer of Britain (CBOB) at the Great British Beer Festival in London's Olympia today.
The result comes after a year of local tasting panels and regional heats.
No.9 Barley Wine, which has an ABV of 8.5% was described by the judges as "having fantastic finesse, reminiscent of a fine cognac."
The Coniston brewed real ale was judged the Supreme Champion over 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 of the final judging panel said: "The judges in the final tasting were overjoyed by the tremendous quality of the beers this year. There wasn't a poor beer in the competition, and they were all of the highest quality. It was a tough choice, and the final results were very close."
David Smith of Coniston brewery said: "We were delighted to win the competition in 1998 with Bluebird, and we are delighted to win again. We've always been at the top and we're glad to regain the recognition we deserve. It's an all-British beer using solely British ingredients, very fitting for this Diamond Jubilee year."
Overall winners Gold- Coniston, No.9 Barley Wine (from Coniston, Cumbria)
Silver- Green Jack, Trawlerboys Best Bitter (from Lowestoft, Suffolk)
Bronze- Dark Star, American Pale Ale (from Horsham, West Sussex)
Mild category Gold- Rudgate, Ruby Mild (from York, North Yorkshire)
Silver- Hobsons, Hobsons Mild (from Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire)
Bronze- Son of Sid, Muckcart Mild (from Little Gransden, Bedfordshire)
Bitters
Gold- Purple Moose, Snowdonia Ale (from Porthmadog, Gwynedd)
Silver- Tintagel, Castle Gold (from Tintagel, Cornwall)
Joint Bronze- Flowerpots, Bitter (from Cheriton, Hampshire)
Joint Bronze- Fuller's, Gale's Seafarers Ale (from London, W4)
Joint Bronze- Salopian, Shropshire Gold (from Shrewsbury, Shropshire)
Best Bitters Gold- Green Jack, Trawlerboys Best Bitter (from Lowestoft, Suffolk)
Silver, Salopian, Hop Twister (from Shrewsbury, Shropshire)
Joint Bronze- Oakwell, Senior Bitter (from Barnsley, South Yorkshire)
Joint Bronze- Milton, Pegasus (from Milton, Cambridgeshire)
Golden Ales Gold- Dark Star, American Pale Ale (from Horsham, West Sussex)
Silver- Cumbrian Legendary Ales, Langdale (from Hawkshead, Cumbria)
Bronze- Hobsons, Town Crier (from Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire)
Strong Bitters Gold- Dark Star, Festival (from Horsham, West Sussex)
Silver- O'Hanlon's, Stormstay (from Whimple, Devon)
Bronze- Highland, Orkney IPA (from Swannay, Orkney)
Speciality Beers Gold- Dunham Massey, Chocolate Cherry Mild (from Dunham Massey, Gtr Manchester)
Silver- Little Valley, Hebden's Wheat (from Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire)
Bronze- Nethergate, Umbel Magna (from Pentlow, Essex)
Champion Winter Beer of Britain (from category winners announced in January 2012) Coniston, No.9 Barley Wine (from Coniston, Cumbria)
Hammerpot, Bottle Wreck Porter (from Poling, West Sussex)
Cairngorm, Black Gold (from Aviemore, Highlands)
Driftwood, Alfie's Revenge (from St Agnes, Cornwall)
Champion Bottled Beer of Britain winners
Gold- Stewart, Embra (from Loanhead, Midlothian)
Silver- Great Gable, Yewbarrow (from Egremont, Cumbria)
Bronze- Molson Coors, Worthington's White Shield (from Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire)
By Neil Gerrard
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