A class of their own

From honey flavouring to a famous Cornish drinker, independent brewers are bringing innovation to beer. Adrian Tierney-Jones reveals the winners of Siba's national awards

As the Society of Independent Brewers (Siba) goes from strength to strength, its National Beer Competition is

making equally-impressive strides.

It was held this year at the Society's recent annual conference in Leeds. Going head-to-head were more than 50 beers, all of them

the winners of Siba's seven regional competitions held throughout the year.

Camra's Champion Beer of Great Britain is the award given the most column inches in the media, while the bi-annual Brewing

Industry International Awards serves the

global brewing industry. Siba's competition, on the other hand, is a relative newcomer, having only kicked off in the late 1990s.

"We started the competition to give our members a chance to be judged by their peers," says Siba's newly-installed president, Keith Bott. "The aim was to find the best beer in commercial terms. We were not fussy about beer styles, as US brewers, in particular, seem to be. Commerciality is what we are about."

This year two dozen judges were drawn from across the industry. Beer writers jostled with licensees and brewery suppliers, while MP Greg Mulholland and Punch Taverns managing director Francis Patten also helped out. Their enjoyable - and enviable - mission was to take their time tasting a selection of beers across nine categories, supplied by Siba brewers who had won awards at their regional competitions.

"Siba is saying that the awards are for the best beers produced by our members," says Bott. "However, our lack of effective publicity for past winners has meant a lack of public awareness of the awards. That's changing, and we are moving towards better publicity, starting with specially-commissioned pump clips highlighting the award. All awards are great for beer and this competition is about singing the praises of our national drink."

For the first time ever Siba will have a

branded bar at this year's Great British Beer Festival in order to promote the cask beer winners of its own national beer competition.

PREMIUM BITTERS

Brewster's Brewing Company, Rutterkin (4.6%), Silver Supreme Champion

BITTERS UP TO 3.9%

Brewster's Brewing Company, Hophead (3.6%)

Brewster's head brewer and co-owner Sara Barton was "absolutely thrilled" when her zesty golden ale was named as the winner in its class and also awarded silver in the Supreme Champion category. Further acclaim came when the brewery's session beer Hophead also won its class.

"Rutterkin is a beer that we've been brewing for four years," she says, "and winning this award will give it a great boost. These awards are an excellent sales tool."

Brewster's is a 10-barrel set-up that has recently moved from the beautiful Vale of Belvoir into the true-blue town of Grantham, Lincolnshire. It fired up its mash tun in 1998, and much media interest initially focused on the fact that Barton is a member of that select club — women brewers. However, attention now centres on the quality of her beers.

Meanwhile, the company continues to expand, having bought its first pub, the Marquis of Granby in the Nottinghamshire town of the same name. "The business and the pub are going very well," she says. "Though a bigger challenge for us in the future will be moving into the larger pub groups."

Premium Bitters Runners-up

2 Oakleaf Brewing Company, Hole Hearted (4.7%)

3 Buntingford Brewery, Royston Red (4.8%)

Bitters up to 3.9%

Runners-up

2 Caledonian Brewing Company, Deuchars IPA (3.8%)

3 Surrey Hills Brewery, Ranmore Ale (3.8%)

BEST BITTERS 4-4.5%

Howard Town Brewery, Wren's Nest (4.2%), Supreme Champion

Last year's Siba conference featured controversial comments about small brewers from Union Pub Company (now Marston's Pub Company) boss Stephen Oliver. Heaven knows what Oliver would make of the brewers of Wren's Nest, this year's Supreme Champion and top of the Best Bitter class.

Eight-barrel Howard Town Brewery, based in a former mill in the town of Glossop, Derbyshire, was set up by two husband-and-wife teams in 2005.

Co-founder Tony Hulme was at the conference to accept the award for the brewery's crisp and fruity bitter, which took its name from a now-demolished landmark mill chimney where wrens used to nest.

"Wren's Nest was our first main brew," he says. "We had produced an earlier brew with the same name but it was too dark in colour and eventually became our robust Howard Town Bitter. You could say we were pleased when the award was announced. I thought we were in with a chance, and when we won the gold in the class I thought we might get the champion's title. The advantage of the award is you are judged and voted for by your fellow brewers - it's marvellous to get their approval."

Best Bitters 4-4.5% Runners-up

2 Newby Wyke Brewery, Kingston Topaz (4.2%)

3 Wye Valley Brewery, HPA (4%)

MILDS

Potbelly Brewery, Beijing Black (4.4%), Bronze Supreme Champion

STRONG ALES

Potbelly Brewery, Crazy Daze (5.5%)

Kettering-based Potbelly is yet another small brewery making a habit of winning beer competitions. At last year's Siba conference, their luscious mild Beijing Black became Supreme Champion, while this year it took gold in its class and bronze in the Supreme Champion category.

"Beijing Black has been really good to us," says Potbelly's Toni Hooper. "We are now brewing a mild all the time and we are always asked for it. Pubs that want an old-style mild still exist." At the other end of the alcoholic scale, Crazy Daze is a strong golden ale, packed with flavour and deceptively drinkable for its strength.

Toni Hooper and Glenn Morris established Potbelly in 2005 and Hooper can now count 15 beer-award certificates on the office wall. "Awards certainly help boost sales," he says. "It's great to be able to put them on price lists and notify licensees. I'm new to the brewing business, but I apply the same strategy I applied to the belt industry, which is my other business: get a presence in the market. Our awards show we are not a one-off. We have worked hard on our consistency and kept our standards high."

Milds Runners-up

2 Rudgate Brewery, Ruby Mild (4.4%)

3 Moor Beer Company, Milly's Mild (4%)

Strong Ales Runners-up

2 Mayfields Brewery, Aunty Myrtles (5%)

3 Potton Brewery Company, Pride of Potton 6%

PORTERS, STRONG MILDS, OLD ALES AND STOUTS

O'Hanlon's Brewing Company, Port Stout (4.8%)

"Winning awards makes the sales job easier," says O'Hanlon's head brewer Alex Bell. "Though it does make the brewing team's life harder as demand increases," he says. He speaks from experience — the brewery's rich and eminently drinkable stout, that also contains port in the mix, is no stranger to awards.

The brewery is in an isolated location on a farm south of Exeter. It's a 30-barrel unit, with about 70% of beers going into cask and the rest into bottle.

Port Stout was developed by co-owner John O'Hanlon, drawing on his memories of an Irish hangover cure of a glass of port in Guinness, known as a corpse-reviver.

O'Hanlon says: "It has been a huge challenge to put our name on the map - to go from being small-fry to being noticed. On the other hand, we enjoy a challenge. The highlights have been the awards, especially when Port Stout won Champion Bottle-Conditioned Beer of Great Britain in 2003. That changed our profile and accelerated our export sales. Now it's the turn of the cask version."

Porter, Strong Milds, Old Ales and Stouts Runners-up

2 Thornbridge Country House Brewery, St Petersburg Stout (7.7%)

3 B&T Brewery, Edwin Taylor's Extra Stout (4.5%)

BOTTLED BEER

Bartrams Brewery, Comrade Bartrams Egalitarian Anti-Imperialist Soviet Stout (6.9%)

Although Marc Bartram is based in Greene King country near Bury St Edmunds, the regional gia