A Highland brewery has picked up a top industry accolade for one of its ales and is in the running for another.
Man Overboard, made by the family-run Cromarty Brewing Company, won the imperial/double IPA category at the World Beer Awards.
The drink is now among the finalists for the title of best pale beer in the world, which will be announced next month.
Held in London, the World Beer awards attracted more than 1,900 entries from 36 countries. Category winners were decided by the judging panel’s scoring after two rounds of blind tasting.
The Cromarty Brewing Company, based on the Black Isle, opened in 2011 and is run by Chap and Jenni Middleton and their son Craig.
Craig joined the family business after taking a first class honours degree in brewing from Edinburgh’s Heriot Watt University and working at several other breweries to gain industry experience.
He said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been winners in the awards where we came up against some wonderful beers from all around the world. It is a bit of a dream come true to have impressed the judges, who know about beer.
“There are so many craft breweries now, just in Scotland never mind the world. We share a passion for good beer. The challenge is to make some that is truly distinctive.”
There are now up to 90 craft breweries in Scotland.
The Cromarty company was congratulated by Rachel Athey, membership and commercial director at Scotland Food and Drink.
She said: “We have always known that Scottish beer is among the best in the world and this win shows the rest of the world are realising this too.”
