Twenty ales in battle for national supermarket prize
By: JimOldfield
June 12th, 2012
Twenty ales are battling it out to win six-months of guaranteed supermarket sales, after Sainsbury’s announced its regional finalists in its Great Beer Hunt 2012 competition. More than a hundred beers, in five UK regions, were pitched into the effort to win a six-month national listing with the supermarket chain.
They were evaluated by selected Sainsbury’s customers, working with a panel of beer experts, who have now drawn up the regional shortlist below.
Each of the ales on the final list will go on sale for a three-month regional run at Sainsbury’s in September – after which the two best performing ales from each region will go forward into a grand final on October 5.
The top two from the grand final will get a six-month, national run in Sainsbury’s stores.
The 20 finalists (ale, followed by brewery) are:
Scotland: Double Espresso Premio Caffe Birra, fromTraditional Scottish Ales; Prodigal Sun, Williams Bros Brewing Co; White Lady, Cairngorm Brewery; Wild Hop Gold, Harviestoun Brewery.
South-East: Atom Splitter, Wolf Brewery; Poppy Ale, Wolf Brewery; Bad Elf, Cotswold Brewing Co for Beer Counter; Lemon Head, Nethergate Brewery.
South-West: Snowy, Cotleigh Brewery; Willy Nilly, SA Brain; Horizon, Wadworth Brewery; Posh IPA, Yeovil Ales.
North of England: Batemans Mocha, Batemans; Manchester Star Ale, JW Lees; Scarborough Fair IPA, Wold Top Brewery; Wojtek, Beartown Brewery.
Midlands: Screech Owl, Castle Rock; Indian Summer, Elgood & Sons; 99 Red Baboons, Blue Monkey Brewing; Ivanhoe, Ridgeway Brewing Co.
