Australian breweries Brick Lane, BentSpoke Brewing Co., James Squire and Lion have taken home various medals in the International Brewing and Cider Awards.
The awards, which have been held since 1886, opt for an Olympic-style grading system where only one bronze, silver and gold medal is awarded for each class.
Judging for the awards took place between 16th – 18th November at the National Brewery Centre in Burton-upon-Trent in the UK. The team of judges, led by Rob McCaig, Chair of Beer Judging, also included Australians Bradford Tetlow and Bill Taylor.
BentSpoke’s Crankshaft IPA won gold for the Smallpack Ale (abv range 5.5% – 6.9%) class after it also won first place in the 2020 GABS Hottest 100 earlier this year.
The brewery also took home silver in the Smallpack Ale (abv range 2.9% – 4.4%) class for its Barley Griffin pale ale. While its Red Nut IPA won silver in the Strong Beer (abv range 7% – 9.9%) class.
Head brewer and co-founder Richard Watkins said it was a great achievement to see BentSpoke succeed in the reputable awards.
“It’s a fantastic achievement for the whole BentSpoke team. BentSpoke has done very well previously in both the 2017 and 2019 and now again in 2021 awards. This is equally the most prestigious beer awards in the world and the longest running beer awards as well,” he said.
“At BentSpoke we pride ourselves on our beer quality. It is great recognition for the whole team winning awards overseas for our beers.”
Brick Lane’s Sidewinder won silver in the Non & Low Alcohol (0.06% to 1.1% abv) class while its Baba Yaga Russian Imperial Stout also took silver in the Strong Beer (10% and above abv) class. The brewery also won bronze in the Fruit speciality (abv range to 6.9%) class with its Someday Sour Blood Orange.
Lion’s James Squire Zero won bronze in the Non & Low Alcohol Beer (zero up to 0.05% abv) class while its Hahn Ultra Crisp won silver in the Speciality Gluten class.
Meanwhile in the cider awards, South Australia’s Sidewood Estate won the International Flavoured Cider trophy for its Strawberry Apple Cider.
Each winner will be able to collect their medals and trophies at an awards luncheon to be held on 6th April 2022.
The full list of winners can be found on the International Brewing and Cider Awards’ website.
Read the full media release below.
A total of 138 medal and trophy winners have been announced at the world’s most historic international beer and cider competition, the International Brewing & Cider Awards, which has taken place this week at the National Brewery Centre in Burton-upon-Trent.
Brewers and cider-makers from 24 countries received accolades at the International Brewing & Cider Awards 2021. 126 medals and 12 trophies were awarded to beers and ciders from all over the world, including entrants from Australia, China, Japan, Luxembourg, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, USA and the UK.
Nine beer Trophy winners were announced which included winners from Japan and Malta. Tokyo-based Spring Valley Brewery’s Juicy Hop won Speciality Beer, while Ise Kadoya Beer, also from Japan, won the Strong Beer award for its Nou ga Trokeru Ultra Heaven 3xIPA.
Malta-based Simonds Farsons Cisk won the Non & Low Alcohol category for its Cisk 0.0, whilst other Trophy winners included Yorkshire’s Elvington Brewery (Keg Lager) and Jersey’s Liberation Brewing Company (Cask Conditioned Ale).
In the cider awards, Sheppy’s Vintage Cloudy Cider from Taunton-based Sheppy’s Cider, won The International Classic Cider Trophy, while overseas entries triumphed in the other two Trophy categories.
Sidewood Estate from South Australia picked up The International Flavoured Cider Trophy for its Strawberry Apple Cider while Ramborn Cider from Luxembourg won The International Innovative Cider Award for its Ramborn Ice Perry.
The competition, which dates back to 1886, has a long history of championing the world’s best brewers and cider-makers, and the competition’s unique approach to the judging process sets it apart from other awards, earning it the reputation as the ‘Oscars of the brewing and cider world’.
Judging took place between 16th – 18th November at the National Brewery Centre in Burton-upon-Trent, UK and comprised working professionals in the brewing and cider making industries from across the globe, led by Chair of Beer Judging, Rob McCaig and Chair of Cider Judging, Gabe Cook.
The stellar panel was chosen to reflect the current expertise in the tasting and commercial evaluation of beers and ciders going into the market and judges blind tasted many hundreds of beers and ciders submitted by brewers and cider-makers from around the world.
Ruth Evans MBE, Director of the International Brewing & Cider Awards, said: “It’s been an honour to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary beers and ciders that both brewers and cider-makers have worked so hard to produce during what has been such a difficult 18 months for the industry.
“Despite being forced to postpone the Awards due to the pandemic, our brewing and cider community across the globe rallied together and continued to produce outstanding and innovative produce and it’s this determination and success that’s worth celebrating.
“I’d like to personally thank all the judges as well as all the brewers and cider-makers who entered their products and make this year’s Awards one to remember, and we’re delighted to reward the best of them with the recognition they so truly deserve.”
Rob McCaig, Chair of Beer Judging, said: “For three days, we have seen and tasted some of the very best beers from around the world, crowning winners from all corners of the globe.
“Despite what has been probably the most challenging period in recent memory for the brewing industry, producers from around the world have presented some exceptional beers, ales and lagers.
“It has made the job of our judging panel extremely difficult because of the quality of the beers. Japan is proving itself as an evolving brewing nation producing quality products across the beer spectrum.”
Gabe Cook, Chair of Cider Judging, said: “It has been a privilege to be able to chair the most important and prestigious competition of its kind for the cider industry.
“We have welcomed international judges, including representatives from America, Ireland and Japan and the UK, to preside over world-class entries from across the world.
“Consumers’ palettes are becoming more discerning and, as we have seen other drinks categories expand and diversify, the same is true for cider. Cider-makers are expanding their offer and we have seen some remarkable examples these last three days.
“To crown winning ciders from the likes of Canada, China, Luxembourg and Switzerland – nations not widely known for their cider production – shows how the category is increasing its international footprint and growing in popularity.”
This year, new categories were announced to reflect key trends that have emerged in the beer and cider markets since the last event in 2019. In the beer competition, a new Zero Alcohol category was added to reflect the growth and interest in this market segment and in the cider competition a Rosé category has been added to reflect the growing trend for ‘pink’ ciders.
A full list of all 2021 medal and trophy winners can be downloaded here.
The gold, silver and bronze winners will collect their medals and trophies at an Awards luncheon to be held on 6th April 2022.