Another presentation to the team of Andy and Jo, (see Ninkaci on 23rd January), this time it was Andy’s turn to be the main focus. At his request we were delighted to make the presentation to mark the pub’s tenth consecutive year in the Good Beer Guide at the pub’s 40th beer festival, a record in our branch area. After Branch Chair Matt made the presentation, Andy presented CAMRA members and pub regulars present with celebratory t-shirts, as seen in our penultimate picture. The final pictures shows Matt making a presentation to Champion Beer Scorer 2023 David Platt, who visited and assessed beer in 118 pubs over that year.

Harvey’s Prince of Denmark won Beer of Festival at Eastbourne in 2022 and when its Christmas Ale won our Sussex Beer of the Year for 2023, it was time to make a presentation to Head Brewer and Joint MD Miles. We were very pleased to be invited, joined by members of East Dorset Branch who were presenting a beer festival award for Harvey’s Dark Mild, along with committee members of Brighton & South Downs Branch. We were generously allowed the run of the tap room, see picture, while Miles took East Dorset on a brewery tour. The presentations took place in the brewery yard, ex Branch Chair Peter presented the award from 2022 and Chair Matt the 2023 certificate.

The top scoring pub in our area for 2023 in the National Beer Scoring System was the George Inn, a great credit to landlady Alison who is relatively new to the pub and has continued to improve the range of ales offered and has kept the standard high. Unfortunately due to family circumstances, at the last minute Alison was unable to join us at for the presentation, so her duty staff for the evening accepted it from Branch Secretary Peter on her behalf.

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This beer in this bar in the Enterprise Centre had been scored by CAMRA members the best in the branch area for a bar serving real ale by KeyKeg for both 2022 and 2023. So by way of catching up, the first presentation of 2024 was by Branch Chair Matt was to present both awards to Joanna, manager of Ninkaci, supported by husband Andy. In our pictures Jo and Andy are seen holding the awards. On the same evening, Matt presented Mark and Gavin, brewers of Eastbourne microbrewery, Route 21, the Beer of the Festival Award for their beer Stroll. This was only the second year they had supplied beer to Eastbourne Beer Festival and both we and they were delighted that a local brewery should get such recognition from the drinkers who attended the festival. In our pictures, Mark is standing to the left of Gavin.