Harrogate independent brewery wins 'Oscars' at international beer awards

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Rooster’s Brewing Company, which is based at Hornbeam Park, has won two medals at the International Brewing and Cider Awards 2021.

The brewery’s Thousand Yard Stare Hazy Pale Ale won a silver medal in the speciality Gluten Free beer section whilst Baby-Faced Assassin, the brewery’s highly regarded IPA won a bronze medal in the Strong Cask conditioned Beer section.

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.

Tom Fozard, director at Rooster’s Brewing Co.,said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have both of these beers recognised for their quality by the judges.

"Thousand Yard Stare is a juicy pale ale that we developed during the course of the various lockdowns last year and is one of two gluten free beers we added to our range at the beginning of 2021.

"It’s a beer we’re extremely proud of and have been extremely pleased with the feedback we’ve been receiving for it so far.

"Baby-Faced Assassin, our flagship IPA has won countless awards over the last decade.

"It’s great to see our team’s hard work and uncompromised approach to brewing having been recognised on the international stage once again."

Named after the phrase coined to describe the unfocused gaze of a battle-weary soldier, Thousand Yard Stare is a light, full-flavoured, hazy pale ale with an intense tropical fruit nose.

It’s a 5.4% ABV beer which, like many of Rooster’s beers, is vegan-friendly and also gluten-free.

A regular award winner Rooster's Baby Faced Assassin is a single-hopped IPA using 100% Citra hops with a long, dry finish and moderate carbonation.

The International Brewing and Cider Awards competition, which dates back to 1886, has a long history of championing the world’s best brewers and cider-makers,.

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’.

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."

Factfile: What is Roosters?

Roosters was first established in 1993 by the pioneering brewer Sean Franklin, who developed a new style of beer that had, up to that point, never been tried in the UK before.

Having won pretty much everything there was to win, in 2011 Sean decided to retire and chose to sell the brewery to Ian Fozard and his sons, Tom and Oliver, in a move that ensured Rooster’s would remain a family-owned brewery.

Ian has had an affinity with beer for more than 40 years, having been an active member of CAMRA since the 1970s and the founder of Market Town Taverns, which grew into a portfolio of 15 bars and pubs across Yorkshire.

Oliver, who has been brewing professionally since 2000, became the head brewer at Rooster’s, and Tom, also an active brewer, became the company’s commercial director. Oliver was awarded Brewer of the Year in December 2020 by the British Guild of Beer Writers.

In 2018, it became clear that Rooster’s was rapidly outgrowing its site in Knaresborough and in 2019 the decision was made to invest in a new state-of-the-art brewery and taproom at Hornbeam Park in Harrogate.

Over the course of 2019 and the early part of January 2020, the company created a bespoke, state-of-the-art facility that it now calls home, in a move that saw it return to the town where Rooster’s was first started some twenty-seven years earlier.

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