Award winners celebrate with ceremony host, chef and briadcaster Nigel Barden
Gloucester Brewery and Swannay Brewery have taken home golds in the cask and keg categories of the SIBA Independent Beer Awards, with Wibblers Brewery being named the best bottled or canned beer producer.
The champion cask beer is Gloucester’s 9% ABV Imperial Stout — a punchy beer described as rich, smooth, and warming, with aromas of roasted coffee and sultanas.
In the craft keg competition, Scottish brewery Swannay won with its Muckle IPA, muckle meaning ‘big’, with generous hopping in the brew.
In the can and bottle competition, Wibblers’ Port Infused Imperial Stoat , tok gold, a big, bold imperial stout, like the cask winner, but this time infused with the flavours of port, and also 9% ABV.
‘Standard has been so high’
Jared Brown, founder of Gloucester Brewery, said: “It means a lot to win this award amongst so many fantastic breweries and where the standard has been so high. Even to get a category gold was enough, but then to go on and win the overall gold is amazing. It’s a really complex beer and at 9% you can really pack in loads of flavour and make the beer deep and complex.”
John Middleton, of Wibblers Brewery, said: “To get two golds, including the overall champion, is a massive achievement, and the team will be delighted. It’s got a really complex recipe of malts, which contribute hugely to its flavour. It’s a really superb beer.”
SIBA competitions chair, Guy Sheppard, a brewer himself at Exe Valley in the South West, said: “The SIBA Independent Beer Awards represent the culmination of a year’s worth of regional awards in the run-up to the national finals, held here at BeerX UK in Liverpool.
“These really are the best of the best independent craft beers, in cask, keg, bottle and can, and I would like to congratulate all of the winners, and in particular our overall golds. Very well done!”
Full list of winners
Overall Champion of the Cask Competition
| Sponsored by Close Brothers Brewery Rentals | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Gloucester Brewery | Imperial Stout | 9.0 |
| Silver | Loch Lomond Brewery | Lost in Mosaic | 5 |
| Bronze | Shiny Brewery | Wrench | 4.4 |
Cask British Dark Beers (up to 4.4%)
| Sponsored by IC Filling Systems Ltd | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Shiny Brewery | Wrench | 4.4 |
| Silver | West Berkshire Brewery | Maggs’ Magnificent Mild | 3.8 |
| Bronze | Brewster’s Brewery | Aromatic Porter | 4.4 |
Cask British Dark Beers (4.5 to 6.4%)
| Sponsored by Rankin Bros & Sons | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Weal Ales Brewery | Centwealial Milk Stout | 4.9 |
| Silver | Windswept Brewing Co Ltd | Wolf | 6 |
| Bronze | Green-Jack Brewing Co. | lurcher | 4.8 |
Cask British Bitters (up to 4.4%)
| Sponsored by Murphy & Son Ltd | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Fyne Ales Ltd | Hurricane Jack | 4.4 |
| Silver | The Earl Soham Brewery Ltd | Albert Ale | 4.4 |
| Bronze | Prescott Ales | Hill Climb | 3.8 |
Cask Premium Bitters (4.5 to 6.4%)
| Sponsored by Charles Faram & Co Ltd | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Great Oakley Brewery | Gobble | 4.5 |
| Silver | Whitstable Brewery | Pearl of Kent | 4.5 |
| Bronze | Milton Brewery | Minerva | 4.6 |
Cask Session IPA (up to 4.3%)
| Sponsored by Thomas Fawcett & Sons Ltd | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Quantock Brewery | QPA | 4.0 |
| Silver | Loch Lomond Brewery | Southern Summit | 4 |
| Bronze | Great Oakley Brewery | Tiffield Thunderbolt | 4.2 |
Cask Premium PAs (4.4 to 5.4%)
| Sponsored by Crisp Malting Group | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Loch Lomond Brewery | Lost in Mosaic | 5 |
| Silver | Ainsty Ales | Cool Citra | 4.4 |
| Bronze | Bedlam Brewery | Bedlam Amagansett | 5.0 |
Cask IPA (5.5 to 6.4%)
| Sponsored by Rankin Bros & Sons | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Oakham Ales | Green Devil IPA | 6.0 |
| Silver | Loch Lomond Brewery | Bravehop | 6 |
| Bronze | Saltaire Brewery | Unity | 6 |
Cask Speciality Light Beers
| Sponsored by Rankin Bros & Sons | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Avid Brewing Co Limited | Raspberry Ripple Ice Cream Pale | 4.6 |
| Silver | Moor Beer Company | Do It Together | 5.2 |
| Bronze | Ferry Ales Brewery Ltd | Farmhouse Ale | 5.0 |
Cask Speciality Mid to Dark Beers
| Sponsored by NFU Mutual | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Gloucester Brewery | Imperial Stout | 9.0 |
| Silver | Hammerton Brewery | CRUNCH | 5.4 |
| Bronze | RedWillow Brewery Ltd | Smokeless | 5.7 |
Cask Strong Beers 6.5% and over
| Sponsored by Bulk Storage & Process Systems Ltd | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Loch Lomond Brewery | Outlander | 6.5 |
| Silver | Exmoor Ales | Exmoor Beast | 6.6 |
| Bronze | Bowland Brewery | Dragonglass | 7.4 |
Overall Champion of the Bottle/Can Beers
| Sponsored by Schoeller Allibert Limited | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Wibblers Brewery (Farms) Ltd | Port infused Imperial Stoat. | 9.0 |
| Silver | The Sheffield Brewery Company | Berlin Black | 5.7 |
| Bronze | Sonnet 43 Brew House | Miss Scarlets Revolver Toasted Coconut Mocha Porter | 6.8 |
Bottle/Can British Dark Beers (up to 4.4%)
| Sponsored by Norriq Ltd | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Wolf Brewery | Sirius Dog Star | 4.4 |
| Silver | Stonehouse Brewery Limited | Ballast | 4.4 |
| Bronze | Cullercoats Brewery Limited | Polly Donkin | 4.3 |
Bottle/Can British Dark Beers (4.5 to 6.4%)
| Sponsored by Cask Brewing Systems Inc | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | The Sheffield Brewery Company | Berlin Black | 5.7 |
| Silver | Electric Bear Brewing Company | Inspector Remorse | 4.7 |
| Bronze | East London Brewing Company Ltd. | Quadrant Oatmeal Stout | 5.8 |
Bottle/Can British Bitters (up to 4.4%)
| Sponsored by Napthens | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Liberation Brewery | Liberation Ale | 4.0 |
| Silver | Loddon Brewery | Night Of The Stag | 4.4 |
| Bronze | Acorn Brewery of Barnsley Ltd | Yorkshire Pride | 3.7 |
Bottle/Can Premium Bitters (4.5 to 6.4%)
| Sponsored by Beatson Clark | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | Wold Top Brewery | Wold Gold | 4.8 |
| Silver | Cheddar Ales Ltd | Karst | 4.9 |
| Bronze | Fyne Ales Ltd | Highlander | 4.8 |
Bottle/Can Session IPA (up to 4.3%)
| Sponsored by Rastal GmbH X Co KG | Brewery | Product | ABV |
| Gold | RedWillow Brewery Ltd | Weightless | 4.2 |
| Silver | Gun Dog Ales | Jack’s Spaniels |
