'Distraught, sad and unhappy' - Dudley beer lovers have their say on popular Banks's mild being removed from pubs
Drinkers at the Dudley Winter Ales Fayre have said the planned removal of Banks's Mild from the region's pubs was another blow for pubs and the industry.
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The decision to cut Banks's Mild from being sold in pubs is one which has caused consternation and anger among fans of the beer and the brand.
Banks's Mild is one of eleven beers which is seeing production cut by Carlsberg Marston's, alongside Banks’s Sunbeam, Bombardier (keg), Eagle IPA, Jennings Cumberland Ale, Mansfield Dark Smooth (keg), Mansfield Original Bitter (keg), Marston’s Old Empire, Marston’s 61 Deep, Ringwood Boondoggle and Ringwood Old Thumper.
The decision to pull Mild, which was among the first beers made by Banks's, came following a review of products by Carlsberg Marston's which picked out products where demand had declined.
It is one which has provoked a furious response from people in the brewing industry, with Gillian Hough, from CAMRA, saying the move was another example of a globally owned business wiping out UK brewing heritage.
Carlsberg Marston's said Jennings Cumberland ale, Marston’s Old Empire IPA and Ringwood Boondoggle would continue to be sold as bottled beer, while Banks’s Mild would still be sold in keg, and in can, and Bombardier Amber Beer would be available in cask and in bottles.
At the Dudley Winter Ales Fayre, there were plenty of fans of beer enjoying tastes from across the country, but also trying stuff closer to home and the news of Banks's Mild's demise as a pub drink was one many of those attending the festival were finding hard to understand.
John Franklin from Quarry Bank said the Banks's logo was one people associated with pubs, with the 40-year-old also saying that it wouldn't taste the same out of a can.
