THE Orkney Brewery has secured a historic double, taking both first and second place in the prestigious Champion Beer of Scotland competition, being held in Edinburgh today (Thursday, 25 June).

The brewery’s 3.8 per cent Raven Ale won the overall title of Champion Beer, with its 4.0 per cent Red MacGregor ale placing second. The competition forms part of the Scottish Real Ale Festival, currently underway in the capital.

Norman Sinclair, managing director of the Orkney Brewery’s parent company, Sinclair Breweries Ltd, said: “We’re absolutely overwhelmed by this result. This is the first time the brewery has taken the two top spots in this important event, so we’re ecstatic. Our beers were up against some very stiff competition and subjected to what is a rigorous judging process, but their taste and quality have shone through and done us proud.”

Mr Sinclair, who has just returned from a promotional tour of Boston and New York, added: “It’s a historic day for all of us at the company and couldn’t have come at a better time. We’ll shortly be commencing with a major expansion of the Orkney Brewery, so this success is a very nice way to celebrate the start of this latest phase in our development.”

The redevelopment of the brewery, set to begin in the autumn, will see capacity greatly increased and visitor facilities improved.

“We’ve been working tirelessly for the past three years to bring our redevelopment project to fruition and I’m delighted to report that everything is now in place,” added Mr Sinclair. “The brewery is going from strength to strength, despite these difficult economic times, and we look forward to building on today’s success and maintaining Orkney’s reputation for quality.”

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This entry was posted on Monday, June 29th, 2009 at 9:45 am and is filed under scotland. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.