Welbeck Abbey Brewery Triumphs at Great Taste Awards

Great Taste, the world’s most coveted food awards which celebrates the very best in food and drink, has announced the Great Taste stars of 2018. Out of over 12,600 products to be judged, local microbrewery Welbeck Abbey Brewery was awarded an astounding six awards! This includes five 1-star accolades for their bottles of Portland Black & Henrietta, as well as for their Red Feather, Harley, and Cavendish mini kegs. Their Red Feather bottle was awarded a 2-star accolade.

“It was our first year ever entering the awards and we were completely overwhelmed with our results,” Welbeck Abbey Brewery’s Creative Director, Jess Low, explains. “Everyone at the brewery works incredibly hard and we really love what we do, and we want our products to reflect that. We are so proud to have our ales recognised in these prestigious awards and grateful for the feedback we received from the judges”.

Judged by over 500 of the most demanding palates, Great Taste is widely acknowledged as the most respected food accreditation scheme for artisan and speciality food producers. As well as a badge of honour, the unmistakeable black and gold Great Taste label is a signpost to a wonderful tasting product, which has been discovered through hours and hours of blind-tasting by hundreds of judges. Of the 12,500+ entries into Great Taste this year, 192 have been awarded a 3-star, 1,207 received a 2-star and 3,254 were awarded a 1-star accolade. Welbeck Abbey Brewery’s award-winning products can always be found at The Welbeck Farmshop, as well as at a large number of pubs, restaurants, and independent bottle shops in the local area. Follow them on Social Media or visit their website for more information at www.welbeckabbeybrewery.co.uk .

-ENDS-

Notes to editors:

Welbeck is one of the great traditional landed estates, nestled within Sherwood Forest. It is home to an artisan village, producing specialist foods and crafts in a beautiful rural setting.

The brewery is based at the centre of this community; housed in a listed barn, it produces hand crafted ales using the estate’s own spring water and a unique strain of nurtured yeast.

The brewery is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 4pm.

www.welbeckabbeybrewery.co.uk

For further press information please contact:

Jess Low ku.oc.yrewerbyebbakceblew@acisseJ()

T: 01909 512 539 (Monday, Tuesday & Friday only)

About Great Taste

Great Taste is the largest and most trusted accreditation scheme for fine food and drink. Established in 1994, it encourages and mentors artisan food producers, offering a unique benchmarking and product evaluation service leading to an independent accreditation that enables small food and drink businesses to compete against supermarket premium own label brands.

Since 1994 over 134,000 products have been assessed. This year 12,634 products were blind-tasted by panels of specialists: top chefs, food writers, influencers, food critics, restaurateurs and fine food retailers.

Great Taste ratings

3-star: Extraordinarily tasty foods – less than 3% of products are awarded a 3-star each year – don’t

leave the shop without buying it!

2-star: Above and beyond delicious – less than 10% of entries will achieve this rating

1-star: A food that delivers fantastic flavour. Approximately 25% of entries will achieve this rating each year.

What are Great Taste judges looking for?

They’re looking for great texture and appearance. They judge the quality of ingredients and how well the maker has put the food or drink together. But above all, they are looking for truly great taste.

How do they work?

Each team of three to four judges blind-tastes around 25 products per session, discussing each product as a coordinating food writer transcribes their comments directly onto the Great Taste website, which producers access after judging is completed. Over the years, numerous food businesses, start-ups and well-established producers have been advised how to modify their foods and have subsequently gone on to achieve Great Taste stars. Food or drink that is deemed worthy of Great Taste stars is also tasted by a team of arbitrators, who taste, confer and agree on the final award given. If judges feel that a product needs some adjustment, and is therefore not likely to receive an award, the food or drink gets a second chance on a referral table, where another team blind-tastes and deliberates. For a Great Taste 3-star award, the vast majority in the room - which can be as many as 30-40 experts - must agree that the food or drink delivers that indescribable ‘wow’ factor.

What should consumers look for?

The logo. The Great Taste symbol is their guarantee a product has been through a rigorous and independent judging process. It’s not about smart packaging or clever marketing – it’s all about taste.

Great Taste Press Enquiries:

Amy Brice at Freshly Ground PR

E-mail: amy@freshlygroundpr.co.uk

Telephone: +44 (0) 7717 893123