Vocation Brewery Celebrates an Award-Winning Year as Its Yorkshire-Born Beer Shines on the National Stage
- Guild Secretary
- 2 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Hebden Bridge, UK: 17 December 2025 – Yorkshire’s Vocation Brewery, known for its bold and great-tasting beers, is raising a glass to an exceptional year of recognition after securing a string of awards across various highly respected competitions. The independently-owned brewery, rooted in Hebden Bridge, has seen a raft of its beers celebrated by judges from the Great Taste Awards, the World Beer Awards, the SIBA North West Independent Beer Awards and the SIBA Can & Bottle North West Region Awards.
“Our brewery’s journey started with a small team brewing in an old chicken shed perched 1,000 feet above sea level in the hills above Hebden Bridge, so to receive this level of national recognition across several competitions is something we’re incredibly proud of,” says Gail Lumsden, Chair & CEO at Vocation Group. “These awards are a testament to the dedication and craft of our brewing team – and it’s fantastic to see Yorkshire beer celebrated both nationally and regionally.”
Standout Success at the Great Taste Awards
In the highly coveted Great Taste Awards, Vocation earned five medals including the prestigious 3-Star rating for its signature IPA, Life & Death, for the second year running – an accolade awarded to fewer than 1.9% of entries across all food and drink categories. The brewery also saw stars awarded for its Crush Hour, Love & Hate, Naughty & Nice Chocolate Stout and gluten-free offering, Heart & Soul. The Great Taste Awards are one of the most respected and rigorous national food and drink accreditations in the UK, judged blind by chefs, buyers, food writers and industry experts.
Recognition Continues at the World Beer Awards
Vocation’s success continued in the ‘England Category’ at the World Beer Awards, one of the world’s leading global beer competitions. The brewery achieved two Gold and ‘Country Winner’ titles – for Hop, Skip & Juice and Naughty & Nice Chocolate Stout – alongside Silver medals for Life & Death and Crush Hour.
Society of Independent Brewers and Associates (SIBA) Accolades
Closer to home, the brewery also enjoyed a strong showing at the SIBA North West Independent Beer Awards, where Crush Hour secured Gold (Category Champion) in the Keg Pale Ale category and later earned Bronze in the ‘Overall Champion’ of Keg Beer competition – a result which now sends the beer forward to the national final at BeerX 2026. Plus, Naughty & Nice White Chocolate & Raspberry achieved Silver in the ‘Speciality & Flavoured Beer’ category.
Further success followed in the SIBA Can & Bottle North West Region Awards, where Love & Hate took Silver in the ‘Bottle & Can IPA (5.6%–7.4%)’ category – making it a ‘Category Champion’ and also progressing it to BeerX in March 2026. Naughty & Nice White Chocolate & Raspberry also received recognition, with a Bronze in the ‘Bottle & Can Speciality & Flavoured Beer’ category.
Yorkshire Craft, National Recognition
Reflecting on the year’s achievements, Rob Beck, Head Brewer at Vocation Brewery, says: “As a brewing team, we obsess over getting every detail right – from hop composition and bitterness profiles, to fine tuning balance and the unique character of each style. To see our work recognised across such a wide range of respected competitions is incredibly special."
ENDS
Notes to Editors
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· Great Taste 2025 Judges’ Testimonials:
§ Life & Death: “Everything we would look for in a bold IPA. It is moreish and we wanted to come back time and time again. It is exquisite.”
§ Crush Hour: “A great citrusy aroma that makes us salivate…a great summer beer.”
§ Naughty & Nice: “Luxurious liquid with nice bitter chocolate notes…The recipe has been developed thoughtfully.”
§ Love & Hate: “Instant punch of juicy tropical flavours…A delightfully complex, multi-layered New England IPA.”
§ Heart & Soul: “Tropical berry fruit followed by a gentle bitterness…Delicious, well-made beer with great clarity.”
About Vocation Brewery - Bold and flavourful beers for the many.
Vocation Brewery was founded in 2015 by John Hickling, who left his job to follow his calling and brew the big, flavourful beers that he loves. From its humble beginnings in an old chicken shed high up on a hill, 1000 feet above sea level, Vocation Brewery has grown strongly and now brews over 10 million pints a year which are sold nationally in the UK and throughout the world.
Brewing a breadth of beers, including exemplary IPAs, pale ales, stouts, and barrel aged beers, Vocation Brewery crafts distinctive beers with interesting aromas and flavours that invite conversation.
The UK-based brewery has recently unveiled a brand refresh, underpinned by Vocation Brewery’s belief that great tasting, quality beer should be for the many and for every occasion.
Alongside filling fridges across the globe, beer lovers can enjoy Vocation Brewery’s craft beers in numerous bars across the country, including its very own bar, Vocation & Co. With locations in Hebden Bridge, Halifax, Sheffield and Manchester, Vocation & Co acts as an extension of its brewery, creating a warm social space for local communities to enjoy great tasting beer.
Vocation Brewery’s range of beers are available to purchase directly from its website, and are stocked in grocery, high-street and online retailers, including Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda, Morrisons and Amazon.
For more information, please visit www.vocationbrewery.com and/or follow them on Instagram (@vocationbrewery).
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