Record medal wins for Ilkley Brewery
In its biggest awards haul yet, Ilkley Brewery has won five medals for four of its beers at the SIBA North East Beer Competition which took place yesterday, Wednesday 18 September, at the York Beer and Cider Festival.
Record Medal wins for Ilkley Brewery
Ilkley was the only brewery to take home three gold awards on the day, with one silver and one bronze medal completing the prestigious collection.
The brewery’s awards roll call includes:
- Gold for Dinner Ale in the Bottled Beers Upto 4.9% category
- Gold for The Chief in the Bottled Beers Over 5% category
- Gold for Ilkley Black in the (cask) Standard Milds category
- Silver for The Chief in the overall Champion Bottle category
- Bronze for Holy Cow in the Speciality Bottled Beers category
This is also the first time beers from Ilkley Brewery’s Origins range have been recognised in an awards line-up. Bringing home the metalware for the range is Dinner Ale, The Chief and Holy Cow.
Ilkley Brewery’s newest recruit, Christa Sandquist, attended the awards: “Having only been in post for a month, it’s astonishing to be part of such a massive awards celebration. It’s definitely an exciting time to come on board,” said Christa.
“It’s fantastic to see the brewery’s beers recognised in such a high profile setting. There was a lot of competition from some brilliant north of England breweries so being victorious in so many categories was even more of a honour.
“Personally, I am thrilled that Ilkley Black and Holy Cow did so well as these were two brews that I was responsible for making when I started here last month. They are exceptional beers and wholly worthy of the gold and bronze medals they were awarded.”
Triumphant beers
The four medal-winning beers each deliver their own distinct dose of character. Dinner Ale is a 3.3% light, crisp ale made using Australian and American hops and is the perfect accompaniment to food. The Chief is a double-hopped American IPA, made with Magnum, Columbus and Chinook hops, which packs a punch at 7%. At 3.7%, Ilkley Black is a traditional dark mild which has a blend of five malts to give a smooth, mellow profile. Finally, the bronze winner, Holy Cow, is a 4.7% cranberry milk stout which boasts a delicate balance between the sweetness of the milk and sharpness of the fruit.
Dinner Ale, The Chief and Holy Cow all feature in the brewery’s Origins line which celebrates traditional brewing methods combined innovative techniques, taking influences from some of the world’s greatest ales.
To find out more about Ilkley Brewery, visit: www.ilkleybrewery.co.uk or follow Ilkley Brewery on Twitter @Ilkleybrewery and Facebook www.facebook.com/ilkley.brewery
