Beers at your fingertips

The Great British Beer Festival is normally a rather jolly occasion. Lots of excellent beer, good company and thousands of satisfied drinkers.

But a rather ugly scene took place in 2004 when the crowd witnessing the announcement of the Champion Beer of Britain took great exception to Greene King IPA winning a gold award.

To my absolute amazement boos and jeers rang around the old exhibition hall. The atmosphere was briefly a bit nasty. Sure, it might have been a surprise result but we are only talking about beer here, I thought.

Well, I guess that makes me more the fool. This is exactly the kind of thing that beer does to people. You might think it is simply a product to enjoy and savour. But for many people it is so much more than that. It is the subject of fierce debate, argument, love, hate, passion… and the occasional jeer.

And that is why The Publican is giving you the opportunity to share your views about favourite beers with the nation. To to www.thepublican.com/beerguide and you will find our very own beer guide, which aims to be the number one online resource for beer lovers.

Each page showcases a beer from around the country, from microbrewers to family brewers, independents and regionals.

You can rate each beer using a special poll voting system, as well as offer up your own opinions on each brand in the comment section. Here's a sample of some of the comments from readers on beers we already have on the site:

Adnams, The Bitter: ​

Wendy, January 23, 2008, 16:27 ​

"Love it. Its hoppy, dry taste is so distinctive. My customers can't get enough of it."​

Otter Ale​

Matt Brownbill, January 23, 2008, 16:47 ​

"Easy to drink, great taste. I worked in Devon for a few years and the locals couldn't get enough of it, although in other parts of the country, I'm not sure it can hold its own against Flowers."​

Courage Best​

Leslie Bailey, 24 December, 2007, 15:14 ​

"Tried Courage Best again and was surprised at what Wells & Young's have managed to do, it now tastes like it once did before. When brewed at Tadcaster it seemed to have lost something. Now all of a sudden you can taste hops and malt instead of the soggy cardboard of the past few years. I must try Directors Bitter to see if it is the same as it was in the 1960s and 70s. I now actually go for the Courage Best again in preference to some of the 'guest ales'."​

This is a long-term work in progress which will eventually become the licensed trade's first port of call for information and opinion on beer brands - it's time to get involved and log on!