Journalists, writers, bloggers, broadcasters and photographers who communicate about beer or pubs are invited to enter the Guild of Beer Writers’ annual awards. Entries are now open with a closing date of 10 September and a highest-ever prize fund of £14,000.
Last year’s awards were inevitably reshaped due to the pandemic, with the winners announced on Zoom. This year, the Guild is bringing back its popular Awards dinner in London in December, where the category winners, overall Beer Writer of the Year and Brewer of the Year will be unveiled.
All entries will be judged on how well they further the Guild’s mission “to extend public knowledge and appreciation of beer and pubs”. Entrants can submit to 13 categories, which include a new Award for Best Book about Beer and Pubs, as well several returning after an absence last year: Best Young Beer Writer, Best Beer Writer in Trade Media, Best Beer Writer in Regional Media and Best Writing about Pubs.
Judging is carried out by a panel chaired by Emma Inch, Guild Chair; Keith Bott, MD of Titanic Brewery; Sarah Bridge, founder of the A Lady of Leisure travel website and former Mail on Sunday correspondent; Joanna Copestick, publisher at Kyle Books; Matt Eley, communications consultant and former editor of Inapub magazine; Paul Hegarty, Secretary of the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group; Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association; Ned Palmer, cheesemonger and author; Valentine Warner, chef, writer and broadcaster and Georgina Young, brewing director at St Austell Brewery.
Emma Inch said, “We were delighted with the response to our Awards last year, which clearly demonstrated the respect and affection felt for the competition. We’re even more delighted to be running them this year with more categories and a bigger prize fund thanks to our sponsors. Whether you’ve previously been shortlisted, or have never entered your work anywhere before, if you’re communicating about beer and pubs, these are the Awards to enter.
“In addition, we’re thrilled to be returning to One Great George Street for our annual dinner. Our Awards presentation has become a ‘must attend’ in the industry calendar, with bars provided by our sponsor brewers, wonderful food matched with beers, and the company of around 200 Guild members and industry friends. After a challenging year for beer and pubs, this is something we can all look forward to!”
The Guild will publish a shortlist for all categories in November, and winners and runners up for each will be unveiled at the Awards Dinner. One category winner will go on to win the overall Beer Writer of the Year Award and the Guild also will also name its Brewer of the Year, sponsored by SIBA, based on votes cast by Guild members.
The Guild Awards Dinner will be held on 2 December at One Great George Street, Victoria. Tickets for members and guests will go on sale on the Guild website later this year.
Full details of all categories, and advice on how to submit entries, can be found on the Guild’s website. Entries must be received via our dedicated entry website by the closing date of 10 September and works submitted must have been published between 1 October 2020 and 31 August 2021.
This year’s categories
- Greene King Award for Best Beer Writer, National Media
- Adnams Award for Best Beer Writer, Regional Media
- Heineken UK Award for Best Beer Communicator, Online
- Asahi UK Award for Best Beer Broadcaster
- Budweiser Brewing Group UK&I Award for Best Writing about No and Low Alcohol Beers
- Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company Award for Best Writing about Sustainability in Beer and Pubs
- VisitFlanders Award for Best Beer and Travel Writer
- Shepherd Neame Award for Best Writing about Pubs
- NEW FOR 2021: Guild Award for Best Book about Beer or Pubs
- Guild Award for Best Beer Writer, Trade Media
- Guild Award for Best Young Beer Writer
- Guild Award for Best Citizen Beer Communicator
- Guild Award for Best Beer Writer, Corporate Communications
- SIBA Brewer of the Year Award (by member vote)
Caption to attached image: winners of the Guild of Beer Writers Awards 2020, announced on Zoom
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Issued on behalf of: British Guild of Beer Writers
By: ShielPorter Communications
Further information: ros@shielporter.com / 07841 694137
The Guild is grateful to the following sponsors, whose support makes possible our annual awards and dinner.
Adnams
Established in 1872, Adnams combines innovation with tradition. Behind the walls of its Victorian-looking building, it has some of the most advanced and energy-efficient brewing equipment in Europe and constantly experiments with new, innovative techniques. Adnams brews a range of quality beers which reflect its heritage but also challenge conventions. The brewer uses locally-grown East Anglian grains of malted barley, rye, wheat and oats wherever possible and deploys a number of different hop varieties from Britain as well as across the world – all of which contribute to their beers’ individual characters. Adnams retains the values of an independent, family run business with a strong commitment to and leadership in sustainable business practice.
Asahi UK
Asahi UK is home to an exceptional portfolio of premium beer, ale and cider brands, including category leaders in the UK. The range includes international brands Peroni Nastro Azzurro, the No.1 Super Premium lager in the UK with every drop brewed in Italy; Japan’s No.1 beer, Asahi Super Dry, encouraging consumers to discover the taste of Karakuchi; and the recently relaunched firm favourite for the UK, Grolsch. A portfolio to be envied which also includes local heroes: Fuller’s London Pride, Meantime, Dark Star and Cornish Orchards. Asahi UK’s focus is on elevating experiences for our customers and consumers through innovation, unrivalled service and offering brands with undeniable quality and provenance. Asahi UK believes that every business has a responsibility to understand and act upon its environmental impact and we continuously work towards sharing more information with our suppliers, customers and consumers about both the footprint of our beers, and how we are working to reduce it. Our place in the local community is highly valued and we strive to ensure that we are always making a positive contribution to the communities in and around our UK Breweries. For more information on Asahi UK and parent organisation, Asahi Europe International visit www.asahibeer.co.uk.
Budweiser Brewing Group UK&I
Budweiser Brewing Group UK&I is part of AB InBev, the global brewing company which began life more than 600 years ago in a small brewery in Leuven, Belgium. Since that time, we’ve been passionate about brewing great beers. We also care deeply about bringing people together for a better world and we’re committed to doing that now and in the future as sustainably as possible. Here in the UK and Ireland, our beer is made with locally-grown ingredients and in local breweries. From the farms where barley for our beer is grown, through to brewing and all the way to the pubs and shops where our drinks are sold, we make and deliver the best beers in the world in a way that protects our planet and the people in it.
We support pubs and beer-lovers in the UK and Ireland. We recognise the inherent social role that responsible beer production and smart drinking can play in society and we reinforce and support that in the way we work, including with our ranges of low and no-alcohol beers.
Budweiser Brewing Group UK&I’s portfolio of beers combines the traditional with the innovative, with a constant focus on excellence. Some of our best-loved beers include global brands Budweiser, Bud Light, Stella Artois and Corona; international heroes like Beck’s, Leffe and Hoegaarden, our local champions Bass and Boddington’s and craft superstar Camden.
We are more than 1,400 committed, driven people in three breweries across the UK and in our London headquarters, all united by our passion for brewing the best beer. We’re building a company and supporting communities to last, which means we grow in a sustainable and responsible way that benefits us and all our communities.
Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company
Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company (CMBC) is a joint venture between Carlsberg UK and Marston’s PLC, combining over 300 years of shared values, history and heritage in UK brewing. CMBC offers customers an enviable portfolio of lagers, ales and craft beer brands from the best of two master brewing teams, plus beers under license from valued partners. These include lagers such as Carlsberg Danish Pilsner, Carlsberg Expørt and Poretti; premium cask and packaged ales, including Hobgoblin, Marston’s Pedigree, Tetley’s, Wainwright and 61 Deep; brands under license including San Miguel, Estrella Damm, Shipyard, Erdinger, Warsteiner and Kirin; a broad selection of alcohol-free beers; plus distribution of the Brooklyn Brewery and London Fields Brewery craft portfolios.
Our founders were driven by an ambition to brew for a better today and tomorrow. Over 170 years later, we continue to pursue the same purpose. We want to contribute to a better society wherever our beers are brewed and sold, and that includes taking a lead on sustainability. It is central to our purpose, and we also believe it’s the right thing to do – bringing clear benefits to our business and to society as a whole.
Greene King
Brewing in Bury St Edmunds, the home of Greene King, dates back 1000 years to day of the Doomsday book and in 2019 our two historic breweries, Westgate in Bury St Edmunds and Belhaven in Dunbar celebrated a combined brewing heritage of 520 years. With a diverse range in our beer portfolio, from pale ales to craft beers and from bitters to stout one thing is for sure, our passion for brewing top quality, delicious beer is as strong today as all those years ago. We are proud to be a sponsor of the Guild of Beer Writers Awards, a wonderful celebration of our national passion for great quality British beer, the writers who challenge the brewers and the brewing industry who continue to drive innovation in beer.
HEINEKEN UK
With over 2,000 passionate people, some of the nation’s most loved beers and ciders, 2,500 pubs, thousands of acres of orchards and three UK breweries, there’s more to HEINEKEN than the name above the door. Our portfolio of brands includes Heineken®, Brixton, Lagunitas, Birra Moretti and Red Stripe, backed by a full range of niche and speciality brands. We are also proud to work in partnership with Beavertown Brewery.
As long term supporters of the British Guild of Beer Writers, we truly believe in the power of storytelling – whether that be through the written word, a podcast, or a photograph. And we are proud to be sponsoring once again.
Shepherd Neame
Britain’s oldest brewer Shepherd Neame has been based in the market town of Faversham, Kent for over 300 years. Perhaps best known for great British classic ales such as Spitfire, which carries the Royal Warrant, its diverse portfolio includes Five Grain Lager, Bear Island East Coast Pale Ale and Bear Island Triple Hopped Lager, and the Whitstable Bay Collection. It also brews international lagers under licence including Samuel Adams Boston Lager, and is the sole UK distributor for premium Thai lager Singha. The independent family business boasts an award-winning visitor centre and more than 300 pubs and hotels throughout London and the South East, from the historic heart of the City to the Kent coastline.
SIBA
SIBA represent around 750 independent craft brewers across the UK and are the voice of British independent brewing. With their ‘Assured Independent British Craft Brewer’ seal, SIBA champion quality, flavoursome beers from independent craft brewers, as well as protecting the businesses of thousands of breweries across the UK through Government lobbying and campaigning in Parliament.
VISITFLANDERS
VISITFLANDERS represents the Dutch-speaking, northern region of Belgium, a country that has been synonymous with amazing beer for decades. Famous for our extensive range of beer styles, the region boasts a brewing heritage dating back to the 12th Century. Attracting beer lovers from all over the world, Flanders is also home to an enviable array of great beer venues, from cosy bars and traditional ‘brown’ cafés, to brewery taps and festivals held in stunning heritage locations; no wonder that our rich brewing and beer traditions make Belgium the only country where beer culture is officially recognised as part of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage listing.