9,000 pubs now have Cask Marque accreditation

The milestone was reached when the Court Inn, in Durham, was handed Cask Marque accreditation after being nominated by brewer Timothy Taylor’s.

Cask Marque executive director Paul Nunny said 30% of licensees selling cask ale were now Cask Marque accredited, and claimed it was an “amazing” achievement considering the high turnover of licensees in the industry.

He said: “In 1997 when Cask Marque was founded, just 250 pubs in the UK displayed the Cask Marque plaque at the end of the first year.

“To reach 9,000 accredited pubs in 2014 demonstrates the great improvement in the quality of cask ale today, and how important Cask Marque is in helping to promote the importance of quality to drinkers.”

Two inspections​

As part of the Cask Marque accreditation process, the Court Inn received two unannounced visits from Cask Marque inspector Jim Kerr in May and June.

All beers on the bar were sampled for temperature, clarity, aroma and taste, and were scored out of a maximum of 20 marks.

Trevor Davies, the owner of the Court Inn, said: “It’s been really useful to have Jim visiting the pub and sampling our beers.

“He picked up on some issues with our equipment, which were causing the beer to come out a little warm. He resolved these and on his next visit all our beers were absolutely spot on.

“I’m very proud to have gained the Cask Marque Award as it reiterates the quality of beer to our local drinkers, but will also bring in other customers who haven’t yet tasted the great beers we have on sale.”

Brewer support​

Andy Whitehead, Sales Manager at Timothy Taylor’s, added: “We are always delighted to support pubs that serve our beer in perfect condition. Quality is at the heart of what we do and is very important our customers feel the same.

“Well done to the Court Inn on achieving this milestone.”

Under the Cask Marque scheme, all accredited pubs receive two unannounced inspections a year by a qualified assessor who will test up to six cask ales on the bar. They will check the temperature, appearance, aroma and taste.

Cask Marque is supported by the free Caskfinder app, which helps cask ale drinkers find their nearest accredited pub. The app has been downloaded more than 110,000 times.