The Great British Beer Festival to be held online next month

The Great British Beer Festival, the UK’s largest trade and consumer show dedicated to the brewing industry, will become an online-only event for the first time this year.

Held by the Campaign for Real Ale, the event will be held between 11-13 September and feature a weekend of live beer tastings running from 2 pm – 9:30 pm on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Virtual beer tastings will be led by experts such as Roger Protz, Cheryl Cade and Adrian Tierney-Jones.

In normal times, GBBF is the biggest event in the UK beer calendar, with around 1,000 beers produced across the country and further afield on-pour for five days. It attracts upwards of 50,000 trade and consumer visitors to Kensington Olympia annually, and has been running since 1977.

But this year, the focus will be less on pulling pints and more on appreciation from afar. A number of independent brewers and cideries, including the very trendy Little Pomona in Hertfordshire, will be delivering masterclasses throughout the weekend going through things like European beer styles, the wonderful world of maltings, and how to grow your own orchard.

Festival organiser Catherine Tonry said: “The Great British Beer Festival is truly the heart and soul of what CAMRA is all about – bringing people together and making friends over a great pint. While we are sadly not all out on the festival floor this week, I am delighted to welcome back new friends and old to our very first virtual festival.

“It has been an incredibly difficult year for many people due to COVID-19, but we are looking forward to celebrating the very best beers that Britain has to offer in true GBBF style – albeit from the comfort of our own homes! We hope visitors will enjoy the wide range of beers, tastings, talks and tours available and mark their calendar for a weekend of fun, friendship, and of course, great beer.”