Elgood’s Head Brewer Receives Silver Medal at International Brewing Awards 2015 for its Coolship Ale

Wednesday, May 13th, 2015

Elgood’s Coolship Lambic-Style Beer was presented with the Silver Medal in the Speciality Beer category at The International Brewing Awards 2015.

More than 400 people attended the celebration, among them many of the brewers and cider makers from all over the world who had entered the bi-annual competition.

Elgood's Alan Pateman (right) receives award at IBA.
Elgood’s Alan Pateman (right) receives award at IBA.

Medal winners were selected after a three-day judging session at the National Brewery Centre in Burton-upon-Trent in February 2015. A panel of 43 judges assessed close to 1,000 beers and ciders submitted from 50 countries. The winners came from 23 different countries and a broad spectrum of producers from regional micro-brewers to multi-national companies.  The Awards are unique in requiring that all judges are currently working as brewers or cider makers.  The awards luncheon was held at the London Guildhall.

Claire Simpson, Marketing Director of Elgood’ Brewery commented: “We are really pleased to receive the Silver Medal for one of our newest beers especially as we are competing against such tough international competition.   We were up against nine other Lambic/Sour beers from Belgium and the USA –and were the only Brewery to win a medal for our Lambic/Sour beer in this Speciality Beer Category.”

Elgood’s is one of the only brewers in the UK who are able to brew a Lambic-style beer, due to owning a unique pair of open cooling trays, known as ‘coolship trays’.  These are needed for the brewing process, allowing the beer to cool naturally overnight, attracting a range of wild yeasts and flavours dominant in the area. The beer then undergoes a spontaneous fermentation over a period of six to nine months.