Pubs urged to clean up their act on beer and cellar standards
Cask Marque to promote Beer & Cellar hygiene ratings to consumers in the New Year
From warm cellars to greasy glassware, pubs are being urged to ensure their hygiene is up to scratch ahead of a major consumer beer quality awareness campaign launching in early 2027.
Around 7,000 UK pubs currently have a 4* or 5* Beer & Cellar Hygiene rating, which measures 11 key markers from the cellar to the beer glass, awarding one to five stars, similarly to food hygiene ratings. Industry accreditation body Cask Marque, which oversees the scheme, aims to have at least 30,000 4* or 5* rated pubs by the end of the decade.
The consumer campaign launching in early 2027 will encourage beer drinkers to check the pub’s rating before their visit, online at https://perfectpintpromise.co.uk/pub-cellar-ratings/. Cask Marque will also raise consumer awareness of star ratings displayed outside pubs. The Campaign for Real Ale, CAMRA, is also including pubs’ hygiene ratings on its pub search website.
Paul Nunny, director of Cask Marque, says: “Beer quality should be at the heart of every pub’s offer, but that’s not always the reality.
“The initial trial for out Perfect Pint Promise beer quality scheme showed that nearly half of pints served in UK pubs fail to meet basic standards, and that customers who are disappointed either switch brands or switch pubs.
“That, in itself, should make both pub operators and brewers sit up and take notice. However, as well as customers voting with their feet after a disappointing pint, high cellar and dispense standards have a direct impact on yields and beer quality. Our analysis shows that improved cellar practices improve beer yields by 10%. With the budget adding more cost on pubs, including the minimum wage increase, this is a way that pubs can directly improve the bottom line. Quite simply, pubs with a 4/5* cellar rating are making more profit from beer sales.
“Just as many customers wouldn’t go out for a pizza or burger without checking the business’ food hygiene, once the consumer awareness campaign get underway, many will make similar decisions based on the Beer & Cellar Hygiene rating.”
The four main area where pubs fall short of the standards required are:
Cellar temperature
Glassware condition and cleanliness
Line and coupler cleanliness
Cleanliness of glasswashers
However, Cask Marque’s support has an immediate, demonstrable impact. In the 12 months to September 2026, 71% of outlets scored a 5* rating during their initial inspection, with 79% rated 4/5*. This increased to 86% of outlets achieving a 5* rating, and 95% 4/5*, after Cask Marque’s intervention.
Cask Marque is currently offering Beer & Cellar Hygiene Audit accreditation for £95 annually, rising to £98 in 2027, with some beer and cellar equipment suppliers offering pubs’ financial support for the audit. For more information email info@cask-marque.co.uk
About Cask Marque
Cask Marque is a not-for-profit organisation supported by the industry. Formed in 1998, it works to improve beer quality in the on-trade through training, learning and accreditation. Cask Marque has a 68% rating for consumer recognition of its logo, and the CaskFinder App is used by 50,000 beer drinkers a month to find Cask Marque pubs
Cask Marque currently checks:
Beer at the brewery gate through SALSA+Beer
The supply chain through the Distributor Charter
Pub and bar cellars through its star-rating programme
Bar staff training through the award-winning e-learning programme Beer Pro; Cask Marque is also the No. 1 provider of cellar management training
Beer in the glass by 55+ experienced, independent assessors who visit around 20,000 pubs and bars per year across the UK.
Cask Marque also runs:
CaskFinder, an app used 50,000 times a month by consumers looking for pubs and bars committed to serving quality beer.
The Guild of Beer Sommeliers, created to encourage professionalism in beer education
Cyclops, a universal industry descriptor for beer
Cask Marque’s accreditation programmes, which all dovetail, are:
Cask Marque: An accreditation which shows that an outlet serves great quality cask ale, scored out of 5 for temperature, appearance, aroma and taste on each beer. Pubs need an average of 16-20 across beers to pass. Pubs and bars awarded accreditation display a plaque outside.
Perfect Pint Promise: An accreditation for pubs and bars serving quality draught beer and cider, delivered by Cask Marque. As well as the same standards measured by Cask Marque, the PPP assesses staff training. Pubs and bars awarded accreditation display a PPP plaque outside.
Beer & Cellar Hygiene Audit: An 11-point cellar audit with a star rating of 1*-5*, with 4*/5*a pass. The rating is displayed outside the pub, as well as available to check online. All Cask Marque and PPP pubs must have 4/5* rating to be accredited
For further information please contact John Porter via john@shielporter.com.
Third-party news items are published as received for informational purposes. Publication does not imply endorsement by the Guild. Please use the contact details within the post for any enquiries.
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