Master Brewer turns Quiz Master for Cask Ale Week

Arkell’s Brewery’s Head Brewer, Alex Arkell celebrated Cask Ale Week by co-hosting a Cask Ale Quiz Night at The Sun Inn, Coate.

Famous for its cask ales, 3B, 2B and Wiltshire Gold, Arkell’s jumped at the chance to support Cask Ale Week with a Great British pub quiz.

Cask Ale Week ran from 26 September until 3 October. It in aid of raising the profile of cask beer in the UK and getting beer drinkers to visit their local to try a pint of cask ale in order to grow the category once more. It is run by Cask Marque, the accreditation scheme for pubs who serve the high quality cask beer.

The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) revealed last week that an estimated 76 million fewer pints of cask have been sold in the nation’s pubs since the pandemic.

Chief executive Emma McClarkin said: “The plight of cask beer is a huge concern for our sector. Pubs are the home of cask beer so if sales of it are declining then it means the viability of our pubs are reducing too. We all missed a proper pint of cask ale in the pub during lockdowns.

"We cannot take cask beer for granted anymore. With the sector reopen once more it is vital we promote our pubs and the range they have on cask which they so expertly keep and serve. Doing so will help our brewers and pubs in their recovery and ensure this uniquely British style of beer can recover to the glory it deserves.”

Alex Arkell said he was keen to share his passion for cask ale and joined regular quiz master Ben Williams from Let’s Get Quizzical UK for a specially themed cask ale quiz which included blind tasting of cask ales, a round all about the brewery and its history, and some general beer-themed questions.

Alex Arkell said: “It was a fantastic evening and great to see a real mix of people in the teams taking part – all enjoying the fun and the cask ales – hopefully those new to cask ale will have realised what a treasure it is we have”.

The event was hosted at Arkell’s The Sun Inn, Coate, where new Managers Tom Titcombe and Mairead O’Shea have been in post for only 4 weeks. The pair previously ran The Kings Arms, Chipping Norton for Arkell’s.

Tom said:“Our beers are Cask Marque accredited and we’re really keen to introduce the wonderful selection of Arkell’s cask ales that we have on offer.  The Sun Inn welcomes new customers as well as regulars and if you ever want to have a taster first, just ask!  We know you’ll enjoy it and ask for a pint!  We look forward to seeing you at The Sun”.