The husband and wife team from the Garibaldi, St Albans, Hertfordshire, have won the Master Cellarman of the Year Award, organised by Fuller's.
The tenants beat six other pubs, with judges praising the outstanding quality of beer in their pub and the care they put in keeping their cellar and bar.
All the finalists were visited by Fuller’s judges, head brewer George Young, and last year's winner Kim Rennie, manager of the Crystal Palace in Bath, Somerset.
David said there was no magic formula to serving good beer; it had to be kept at the right temperature and given time to breathe.
Credit to the staff
Caroline said they were absolutely delighted to have won. She said: “We really do take pride in our pub and our beer, and we’ll be even more proud with this trophy displayed behind the bar, for all to see. Our team works hard to maintain the high levels we expect, and so we’d like to thank them too.”
Trade quality advisers inspect Fuller’s pubs regularly and those that score 96% across four visits throughout the year are entered into the running for Master Cellarman of the Year Award. Cellar hygiene and dispense equipment is checked and beer samples analysed.
Hard work pays off
George Young said: “Since becoming head brewer in April, I’ve had many new jobs to take on, and judging the award has been one of my favourites. I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the finalists of the competition.
“I really love seeing the hard work put in by our pub teams to ensure our customers consistently receive pints of their favourite Fuller’s beers as they should be. I’m delighted for David and Caroline, they work so hard and it’s paid off for them”
The other finalists were the Beehive, Wandsworth, south London; the Hydrant, Monument, City of London; the Mawson Arms, Chiswick, west London; the Stag, Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire; the White Hart, Harlington, Bedfordshire; and The White Horse, Richmond, south-west London.