Oakham Ales was proud to be awarded Champion Golden Ale 2014 for its Citra at the recent Great British Beer Festival where the brewery also picked up the silver medal overall.
Oakham was the first UK brewer to launch a single varietal beer using the Citra hop in November 2009. With a 4.2% A.B.V. (draught) and a slightly stronger 4.6% A.B.V. (in bottle), the beer was originally brewed on an occasional basis. Customer response was so good, Citra earned a permanent place on the bar and in Oakham Ales bottled range in 2011.
Adrian Posnett, Managing Director of Oakham Ales said: ‘This is fantastic recognition for Citra as it was up against beers from all over the country — to be best in class and second overall is something the whole team is very proud of.’ Oakham Ales also won a gold and silver medal in the recent SIBA East (Society of Independent Brewers) Beer Competition. Black Hole Porter won the top prize in the Porter, Stouts, Old Ales and Strong Milds category and Bishops Farewell picked up the silver medal in Premium Bitters.
These two beers were nominated by 69 judges and selected from over 150 cask ales entered into the competition. Black Hole Porter will now go through to the SIBA national finals which take place at ‘Beer X’ to be held in Sheffield in March 2015. Oakham Ales’ Green Devil IPA won the National SIBA Competition in 2013. Black Hole Porter, one of the popular beers within Oakham Ales’ aged and vintage range, has a 5.5% A.B.V. with big, dark malt flavours which looks almost black in colour. It has a sweet, fruity hop taste that makes this strong porter easy to drink for its comparatively high strength.
It is a strong premium beer dominated by elaborate fruity hop notes with a grainy background and dry finish. Mr Posnett continued: ‘With so many different cask ales to choose from, it’s fantastic to win a gold and silver medal at this highly competitive regional beer competition. We now have the chance to compete again, at the national finals next year with our Black Hole Porter. The team at Oakham Ales would like to wish every reader of Blowing Bubbles a wonderful Christmas period and a successful and healthy 2015.
‘Keep an eye on our website as we will soon be unveiling details of our seasonal and specialty ranges for 2015 – there are a few old favorites re-appearing along with some exciting new beers for you to try.’ To order a special Oakham Ales Christmas gift pack or to find out more about seasonal ales Crackers and Slippery Goose, visit oakhamales. com.
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