Beer is almost as much of a staple in Britain as bread or milk. Everyone loves heading to the pub to relax after a long day, or when the sun’s out, or just whenever possible really. But as we all know, not all pints were made the same, and no one knows that better than the people at the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA).
CAMRA is on a mission to uncover and celebrate the very best in pubs, bars, and booze. This year it’s already named the best pub in the country, and at the 2025 Great British Beer Festival it helped to judge the annual Beer of Britain awards. A Cornish dark ale called ‘Mild’ was named this year’s ‘Champion Beer of Britain’, but there were other winners from the day that also deserve some love.
The cask beer showdown may be the main competition of the festival, but there’s an equally important battle between the nation’s best bottled ales to be named ‘Champion Bottled Beer of Britain’. After two years of expert judges and volunteers blind tasting and rating drinks from across the country, one bottle has come out ahead of all the rest.
The Proper Job IPA from St Austell’s brewery took home the gold from the awards ceremony on August 5. Judges described it as ‘the forerunner of many New World IPAs, a gorgeous looking gold coloured IPA with strong fruity nose and a perfect balance of biscuit, citrus fruits and bitter hops’, and called it ‘a beer to savour and enjoy’.
St Austell’s said it was ‘very honoured and delighted’ with the win. The drink was first brewed back in 2004, so the brewery has had a long time to perfect their craft. If you fancy trying it, you can grab some in your local supermarket and enjoy it in the comfort of your own home.
Monty’s Mischief, a strong golden IPA, claimed silver in the bottled beer contest, with Kernal’s Imperial Brown Stout taking bronze. All of them can be sampled at the Great British Beer Festival in Birmingham until tomorrow (August 9) – nab your tickets here.
Across in the capital, ‘London Black’, a nitro porter from indie brewers Anspach & Hobday, just came out on top of We Are Beer’s Top 50 UK beer awards. You can read more about that here.
Pubs according to Time Out
Fancy a drink? Why not have a try out one of Time Out’s faves? Here’s our favourite pubs in the UK, some seriously stunning boozers you might never have heard of, and the best beer gardens in the country.
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