There’s been a decline in the number of Northern Irish breweries operating this year.

Baronscourt from Newtownstewart seems to have gone completely and there’s been an absence of recent social media activity from Lurgan’s Spadetown which, according to the Companies House website, has changed its name to Simply Juice. If you know more, let me know.

Add to all that, there was the demise then resurrection of the Farmageddon brand (now brewed by Fermanagh Beer Co which also produces Inishmacsaint).

But hey, on the positive side we saw the introduction of what we’ll call a cuckoo brewery Tilt & Pour (cuckoo: when the brewer uses another brewery’s equipment to brew their beers – in this case, Heaney), Beer Hut moved premises into Kilkeel town centre and there’s a new brewery being launched soon in Castlederg.

A full list of current Northern Irish breweries is available here.

Quite a few of our brewers are still finding things exceptionally tough out there and they’ll need business to pick up very quickly – I include some well known names in that statement. Simple fact folks, if you value your favourite brewery you’ll need to buy its beer.

This leads me on to better news by giving my Golden Pints Awards for the best beers that passed my lips in 2023. Yes of course I didn’t have every single NI beer brewed so I’m very sure that my views will differ to yours. Let me know your thoughts on what your favourites were this year.

Northern Ireland New Beer of the Year: BOUNDARY – ONE, TWO, TEN!

The brewing monster truck that is Boundary was in its usual top gear this year with over forty, yes 4-0, new beers released in 2023. With those kind of numbers it shouldn’t really come as much of a surprise that they win this category for the second year in a row.

The 10.6% ABV imperial stout One, Two, Ten! was a late entry to this category, being one of Boundary’s four Christmas beers of 2023. I’m a bit of a tonka freak and, used properly, it’s utterly delicious in a beer such as the imperial stout. This one was akin to a creamy, dark fruit bakewell tart with a dab of cinnamon on top. Boom!

Honourable mentions:
* Tilt & Pour – Helles (Lager)
* Beer Hut – Ten Ton Tonka (Imperial Stout)
* Lacada – Ciento (West Coast IPA)
* Mourne Mountains – Spectre (Dry Stout)
* Boundary – Skipper & Orla (Belgian Quadrupel)

Northern Ireland Collaboration Beer of the Year: OUT OF OFFICE x BEER HUT – YOU’RE CRAZY IN THE COCONUT

This is the second year running the Beer Hut fellas have won the collaboration category and it’s the first ever accolade on this blog for new Belfast city centre brewery Out of Office. If you’re unfamiliar with OoO, above the Ulster Sports Club in High Street, it opened last year and you need to visit. Brewer Katie joined forces with Beer Hut in June to produce a delicious, slightly sour Coconut IPA. Light in coconut, a touch of sweet lychee and a refreshingly great 4.5% ABV palate cleanser.

Northern Ireland Brewery of the Year: BULLHOUSE

It’s been quite a ride for the Belfast brewery over the past 12 months. Bullhouse East pub in east Belfast looks to have gone from strength to strength since its opening in 2022 – it looks bunged every time I drive past it and the last time I was inside the place it was heaving at 4 o’clock on a Saturday afternoon. I think there are at least six core beers being brewed for most of the year and there’s always a great selection of new beer in the tank to satisfy the tickers among us. Also throw in the summer time Bullapalooza festival out the back of the brewery and it’s easy to see why Bullhouse is now undoubtedly one of Northern Ireland’s forerunners in the beer scene. It’s come so far in the past couple of years.

Irish But Not Northern Irish Beer of the Year: THE WHITE HAG – FESTA NUDA 2023

This is the second time this collaboration stout involving The White Hag from Sligo and Birrificio Lambrate of Milan has won this category. In 2021 I wrote that if it reappeared then I’d buy more. Well, in 2023 it reappeared and unsurprisingly I bought more. Demerara sugar, coffee, creamy vanilla and a touch of Irish whiskey make it a quality 9% ABV sipper.

Honourable mentions:
* WHIPLASH – Let It Happen (Double IPA)
* KINNEGAR – Brewers at Play No. 34 (Imperial Stout)
* GALWAY BAY – Resin & Rye (American Barleywine), Two Hundred Fathoms (2022) (Imperial Stout), Boulevardier 2022 (Barleywine) and BA Sixty Ships Down (Imperial Stout)

GB Beer of the Year: BREW YORK – BARREL AGED EMPRESS TONKOKO HEAVEN HILL EDITION 2023

Aye it’s another tonka imperial stout, bite me. If it’s a cracker, it’s a cracker. The gang at Brew York brewery from York City in England are the undisputed kings of brewing superb tonka beers. They’ve produced a vast range over the years including Tonkoko, Imperial Tonkoko and the benchmark for all big ABV tonka beers: Empress Tonkoko. Add to this list the 2023 barrel aged Empress range which include versions of Plantation Rum, Buffalo Trace Bourbon and this one with Heaven Hill Bourbon Whiskey. It’s full of the expected Empress Tonkoko creamy coconut with a fantastic sweet and smokey bourbon backbone running through it. Eee, tha’s reet grand tha’.

Honourable mentions:
* Vocation – BA Madeira (Imperial Stout)
* Cloudwater – Chubbles 2023 (Triple IPA) and Chubbles Chubbles 2023 (Triple IPA)
* Overtone – 99 IBUs (Double IPA)
* Left Handed Giant – Walk Through Walls (Double IPA)
* Verdant – Nebulous Sky (Double IPA)
* Azvex – Suburban Crocodiles (Double IPA)

Northern Ireland Pub of the Year: THE DOG AND DUCK INN, Lisbellaw, Co. Fermanagh

Anyone who knows about our craft beer scene shouldn’t be overly shocked by this news. A rural pub serving really good Irish draught beer is exceptionally hard to find in this part of the world. Not only can you find it in this cracker pub, but you have a choice of beers! Draught and cask beer and cider with plenty of cans in the fridge. There’s a house beer too if you fancy it – Sprocker pale ale is brewed 15 miles away at Fermanagh Beer Company. I could write quite a lot here about The Dog and Duck’s beer, food, owners and community as well as the in-house Glenwinny distillery, but my best advice to you is simply go and visit, it’s a belter.

Northern Ireland Independent Retailer of the Year: DC WINES, Belfast

There are many great little off licences dotted all across Northern Ireland now, some have an exceptional range of hard-to-find beers and some provide fantastic customer service. What I love about DC Wines on the Boucher Road in Belfast though is that it has both great service and a quality range of local beers. There’s always a warm and friendly chat that doesn’t cross over into getting you served and out the door as quickly as possible. Plus it has one of the best ranges of Northern Irish beers you’ll find. Granted it may not stock as many exclusive, small batch Belgian lambics or Scandinavian pastry stouts as other stores but the customer service always makes up for that. Plus the prices are generally favourable – and in these times, saving a few pennies per beer is always a good thing.

I hope you have a good year ahead. Thanks for reading, enjoy plenty of great beers and best wishes to all our local breweries, good beer pubs and independent stores.