A COUNTY Wexford brewery, representing Ireland, was the proud recipient of a silver medal at the 2016 World Beer Awards which were held in London recently.

Jack Doyle’s Brewery of Blackwater won for its Irish Stout product.

The World Beer Awards are an annual international event, generally recognised as the premier beer competition of the year.

The awards are open to all licensed breweries, from artisan micro-breweries like Jack Doyle’s right up to macro-breweries such as Heineken.

The event, therefore, is the perfect platform for brewers to test their beer against the world’s best and gain exposure on a world stage along the way.

Completely independent, the competition is judged each year by a panel of top beer sommeliers from around the world.

Entries are judged solely on the taste and quality of their beer, meaning the judges were clearly wowed by the taste of the Wexford stout.

A idea of the quality the competition attracts can be gleaned from the list of breweries included among this year’s winners.

Heineken; Germany’s Weihenstephaner, the oldest brewery in the world; Sam Adams, the second-largest craft brewer in America and ground-breakers in the craft beer movement such as Brewdog of Scotland, all picked up awards this year.

Commenting on the win, Liam Doyle of the Blackwater-based brewery said: “we feel immensely proud to be considered worthy of mention by the top beer experts in the world, especially in such exalted company, and to be able to bring this medal home to Wexford.”