Cisk 0.0 Alcohol-Free Lager, only recently launched on the local market, has been awarded a Gold medal in the Non & Low Alcohol Beer - Class 1 category at the International Brewing and Cider Awards 2021 held this week in the UK. Moreover, Cisk 0.0 has also been named overall Trophy winner of the Gold winners of the three classes of the same category, that included zero alcohol, low alcohol and ultra-low alcohol.
In addition, Cisk Strong, a 9% ABV Premium Lager, was awarded a Bronze medal in the Strong Beer - Class 1 - Lager category at the same awards.
A total of 138 medal and trophy winners have been announced at the world's most historic international beer and cider competition, the International Brewing & Cider Awards, which has taken place this week at the National Brewery Centre in Burton-upon-Trent.
Brewers and cider-makers from 24 countries received accolades at the International Brewing & Cider Awards 2021. In total, 126 medals and 12 trophies were awarded to beers and ciders from all over the world, including entrants from Australia, China, Japan, Luxembourg, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, USA and the UK.
Nine beer Trophy winners were announced which included winners from Japan and Malta.
Aside from Cisk 0.0 winning the Gold Trophy in the Non & Low Alcohol category, other Trophy winners included Yorkshire's Elvington Brewery (Keg Lager) and Jersey's Liberation Brewing Company (Cask Conditioned Ale).
Tokyo-based Spring Valley Brewery's Juicy Hop won Speciality Beer, while Ise Kadoya Beer, also from Japan, won the Strong Beer award for its Nou ga Trokeru Ultra Heaven 3xIPA.
The competition, which dates back to 1886, has a long history of championing the world's best brewers and cider-makers, and the competition's unique approach to the judging process sets it apart from other awards, earning it the reputation as the 'Oscars of the brewing and cider world'.
Judging took place between 16th to 18th November at the National Brewery Centre in Burton-upon-Trent, UK and comprised working professionals in the brewing and cider making industries from across the globe, led by Chair of Beer Judging, Rob McCaig and Chair of Cider Judging, Gabe Cook.
The stellar panel was chosen to reflect the current expertise in the tasting and commercial evaluation of beers and ciders going into the market and judges blind tasted many hundreds of beers and ciders submitted by brewers and cider-makers from around the world.
According to Eugenio Caruana, Chief Operations Officer and Head Brewer at Simonds Farsons Cisk plc, this important and prestigious competition is technically unrivalled since the beer is judged by working professionals in the brewing industry from across the globe. "With new zero alcohol categories introduced to the awards for the first time, we are extremely proud that Cisk 0.0 was not only awarded a Gold Medal in its class but also the overall Trophy from all Gold Medal Winners within the three classes of the Non & Low Alcohol Beer category. Regarded by many brewing professionals as the 'ultimate challenge', the creation of the highest quality and award-winning alcohol-free beer is testament to our skilled and experienced brewing team whose dedication and hard work have made this possible."
Ruth Evans MBE, Director of the International Brewing & Cider Awards, said: "It's been an honour to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary beers and ciders that both brewers and cider-makers have worked so hard to produce during what has been such a difficult 18 months for the industry.
"Despite being forced to postpone the Awards due to the pandemic, our brewing and cider community across the globe rallied together and continued to produce outstanding and innovative produce and it's this determination and success that's worth celebrating.
"I'd like to personally thank all the judges as well as all the brewers and cider-makers who entered their products and make this year's Awards one to remember.
"We'd like to congratulate Simonds Farsons Cisk plc on their achievements at this year's Awards and we're thrilled to be able to provide them with the recognition they so truly deserve."
Rob McCaig, Chair of Beer Judging, said: "For three days, we have seen and tasted some of the very best beers from around the world, crowning winners from all corners of the globe.
"Despite what has been probably the most challenging period in recent memory for the brewing industry, producers from around the world have presented some exceptional beers, ales and lagers.
"It has made the job of our judging panel extremely difficult because of the quality of the beers. Japan is proving itself as an evolving brewing nation producing quality products across the beer spectrum."
Mr Michael Farrugia, Executive Director - Operations & Business Development at Simonds Farsons Cisk plc, said "This very prestigious award for Cisk 0.0, as well as Cisk Strong, could not have come at a better time as we continue to grow our international business in new markets in the Middle East and Africa, where an attractive non-alcoholic and strong beer segment exists. Such accolades will no doubt help boost our efforts in this direction."
This year, new categories were announced to reflect key trends that have emerged in the beer and cider markets since the last event in 2019. In the beer competition, a new Zero Alcohol category was added to reflect the growth and interest in this market segment and in the cider competition a Rosé category has been added to reflect the growing trend for 'pink' ciders.
A full list of all 2021 medal and trophy winners can be found on International Brewing & Cider Awards' website: https://www.brewingawards.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Announcements.xls.
These highly respected awards have also been announced in the international media: https://beertoday.co.uk/2021/11/19/international-brewing-cider-awards-2021/ and https://www.beerandbrewer.com/sidewood-estate-wins-international-cider-trophy/.