The Edinburgh Craft Beer Festival returns on May 24 and 25, at The Biscuit Factory, with some of Edinburgh’s leading restaurants taking part, too.

Chef Stuart Ralston, from Aizle, will be creating a menu in miniature. Joining Aizle will be Harajuku Kitchen, a Japanese restaurant, famed for its authentic comfort food (especially chef patron Kaori’s gyoza). For good old-fashioned street food, The Pitt’s stalwart Buffalo Truck will be serving up its naughty but nice buttermilk chicken burgers, with more culinary vendors to be announced shortly.

This year’s festival will also play host to another impressive line-up of top-class performers, with DJ Yoda, Belle & Sebastian, Hip Hop Karaoke and Gentleman’s Dub Club among the confirmed acts.

Some of the world’s hottest new breweries will be showcasing their products, including Fierce from Scotland, To Øl from Denmark, Canada’s Collective Arts, and Stone & Wood from Australia, as well as major names in the brewing world that have never before poured in Scotland.

Collaboration with Pilot Beer

This year, the festival organisers, We Are Beer, will create a special brew in collaboration with Pilot, to be launched ahead of the event. At just 3.5% ABV, it’s a refreshing, low-alcohol pale brew, with zingy flavours of watermelon, mint and hibiscus.

Pilot director, Matt Johnson, said: “We Are Beer events are, hands down, the best beer festivals to be a part of. As a small brewery, it’s really humbling to be in the company of such a high-calibre line-up, and the atmosphere is always buzzing.

“The opportunity to make the festival beer was one we couldn’t turn down. We wanted the beer to be easy going and sessionable. Although we’ve played around with herbs in our beers, we’ve never used mint before, so this was the perfect opportunity to give it a go, and we think it will pair perfectly with the watermelon and citric zing of hibiscus. It’s a semi-sour because we’re going for a nice, refreshing tartness, whilst keeping the acidity in check to make sure it’s approachable and moreish.”

• For full details and tickets, click here