Cheers to the best lager in the country!

Brewer's Lager wins Gold at SANBT!

It’s an unbelievable honour to have been awarded the gold medal for our Brewer’s Lager at the highly esteemed South African National Beer Trophy of 2023. And to top it all off, our Brewer’s Lager also won the category for “Best Light Beer” – meaning the best beer of all in its class!

The SA National Beer Trophy explains best in class as the following: “While gold medals adorned the highest scorers, the crowning glory belongs to the beer in each class that not only achieved the gold standard but also encapsulated the quintessence of its category, a trophy befitting the epitome of brewing excellence!”

In addition to the above award, our beloved Skeleton Coast IPA, also won an admirable silver medal – woohoo! 

We spoke to our brewers to ask them a bit more about what these awards mean to them, as well as some of the brewing processes behind these award-winning beers…

What does this award / recognition mean to the brewers (you) personally and professionally?

Lager is one of the most difficult beers to get great so winning this award truly shows the passion of the brewers and the efforts we’ve been working towards in the brewery – both in terms of growth in the team as well as our knowledge of beer production. (Nico du Plessis - Head Brewer)

What advice or tips would you share with aspiring brewers who aim to create exceptional craft beer like the award-winning lager from Jack Black Brewing Co?

Learn your processes well. A great recipe is only as good as its execution! (Nico du Plessis - Head Brewer)

Could you share your journey or process involved in crafting this particular lager, that set it apart from others? (personal opinion)

 At Jack Black we don’t brew specifically for competition - we select our entries right from our regular runs, and this is what makes it so nice to win an award for our overall effort to our craft. The hard work that goes into brewing beer in South Africa with its limited resources, the relentless hours, dedication, and love of beer has led to this consistency to brewing a lager of this quality. Overall, our team is strong and our brewhouse is good – but it’s the passion that counts! (Philip Vivier – Shift Lead Brewer)

What advice or tips would you share with aspiring brewers who aim to create exceptional craft beer like the award-winning lager from Jack Black Brewing Co?

Work hard. Learn from people who have worked hard. Never stop pursuing perfection, for a beer is only as perfect as its next best batch! (Philip Vivier – Shift Lead Brewer)

How do you think the award will resonate with the Jack Black loyal customers and new enthusiasts?

I believe that with or without this achievement our loyal customers know in their hearts that we make the best lager in the country, however it is now a bragging right for those customers to share the good news..ha ha ha. As for new enthusiasts, it'll win over some die-hard fans of other beers. (Ryan Behnken - Shift Brewer)

What advice or tips would you share with aspiring brewers who aim to create exceptional craft beer like the award-winning lager from Jack Black Brewing Co?

Monitor fermentations (temperature, pressure, gravity, and time), don't stress the yeast, give the yeast good wort, treat it well, and it'll return good beer. (Ryan Behnken - Shift Brewer)

What advice or tips would you share with aspiring brewers who aim to create exceptional craft beer like the award-winning lager from Jack Black?

Brewing beer is an art - constant improvement, maintaining quality and good brewing practice does wonders for your final product and having a strong team behind the beer goes a long way. Don’t be afraid to ask experienced brewers for help, sometimes they have small tricks that are often overlooked. (Anthony de Beer - Shift Lead Brewer).

A huge thank you to the Jack Black Brewing Team for all the hard work, passion and dedication that they put into brewing Jack Black Beer every single day. And another huge thank you to the craft beer lovers of South Africa, without your passion for delicious, well-crafted beer, we wouldn’t be able to do what we love. It’s incredible to share our love of beer with all of you. If you’d like to read the full list of awards, there’s a great article on Food24.