A unique scheme to find Britain's most popular real ale has been launched by Cask Marque, in association with Morning Advertiser and The Daily Telegraph.
Called the Best of British Beer Awards, the competition will ask real-ale drinkers to vote on a promotional drip mat for their favourite ale in Cask Marque pubs, or "polling stations" as they will be called, in the week between March 17 and 25.
Never before have consumers been able to nominate their choice directly. In Camra's Great British Beer competition, the nearest equivalent, members put their nominations to a panel at Camra's branches.
The country will be divided into into 11 regions, with the winners from each going through to the grand final in London. There, drinkers representing each region will choose a national winner through a blind tasting.
Daily Telegraph readers taking part in the competition have the added incentive of using a £1-off voucher published every day in the paper during the week (limited to one token per day, per outlet). Ale suppliers may choose to support their licensee customers by picking up the redemption costs.
The Daily Telegraph will be running a four-week campaign to encourage cask-ale drinkers to take part, and 3,500 newsagents are signed up to promote the awards on their billboards. Cask Marque pubs registering to take part will be listed on The Daily Telegraph's website and included in a text-messaging service, which will alert thousands of real-ale enthusiasts during the promotion.
The Morning Advertiser is encouraging Cask Marque pubs to take part in the competition because it should increase footfall, as cask-ale drinkers seek out outlets to redeem their voucher.
To participate, pubs must pay a £35 fee, plus VAT (£4.12), and will receive a POS kit, as well as voting drip mats, posters, ballot boxes and full licensee instructions.
Pubs wishing to join in, including pubs that wish to become Cask Marque members in order to take part, should ring 01206 752212 for full details.