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Beer lovers turn out in force for Winterfest in Salisbury

BEER and cider lovers packed the Salisbury Guildhall at the weekend for the second annual Winterfest.

More than 400 people attended the festival, organised by the Salisbury & South Wiltshire branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), over January 24 to 25 to try the many different beers and ciders on offer.

Half the 24 real ales on sale at Winterfest came from nearby brewers.

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A Salisbury CAMRA branch spokesperson said: “Old Sarum brewers Dark Revolution supplied two beers, including Dark Matter, a smooth oatmeal stout that is a blend of eight different malts, while Downton Brewery’s New Forest Ale was, as always, a crowd-pleasing session bitter.

“Microbreweries were represented by the Dead Duck Brewery from Hale on the outskirts of the New Forest and another one-man outfit, Small Paul’s Brewery from Gillingham, north Dorset.”

The youngest attendee by some distance was five-day-old Millie Robinson, the daughter of James and Nicola Robinson, who run the brewery Stonehenge Ales at Netheravon, north of Salisbury.

They popped in for a brief visit with their first child after a check-up at Salisbury District Hospital, where Millie was born on January 20.

Apart from introducing Millie to local CAMRA members, they were also presented with certificates for the success of two Stonehenge beers in the London and South East regional competition for the CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain.

James and Nicola Robinson with their daughter Millie Picture: Salisbury & South Wiltshire CAMRA

James and Nicola Robinson with their daughter Millie Picture: Salisbury & South Wiltshire CAMRA

Danish Dynamite topped the bill with the Gold award for the Premium Pale, Blonde, and Golden Ales category, while Pigswill came second and picked up a Silver in the standard bitter category.

Danish Dynamite will now go forward to the national final of the competition with a good chance of picking up the award for Champion Beer of Britain 2025.

“The reaction from festival-goers to Winterfest has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Andrew Hesketh, festivals co-ordinator for the Salisbury & South Wiltshire branch of CAMRA.

“We are looking forward to Summerfest, our summer festival, which will be held at the Guildhall on June 20-21.”

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