The new boss of a north Suffolk brewery has expressed delight after his beers scooped four top awards at an industry event.

St Peter’s brewery at St Peter South Elmham near Bungay took three double golds at the 2021 European Beer Challenge.

The competition — which is judged by leading beer buyers — is a chance for producers to showcase their products to some of the industry’s key influencers.

The brewery took double gold awards for its Cream Stout, Old Style Porter and Without Gold, and a silver for its Plum Porter.

The business was snapped up for an undisclosed sum by three friends who share a passion for beer around the start of this year.

One of them — Derek Jones — who has more than 20 years of experience in the industry including at MolsonCoors and SABMiller — became its chief executive.

“We are delighted to have won these awards which are testament to our brewers’ hard work and dedication to creating the very finest beers,” he said of the brewer’s latest accolade.

“These awards are judged by some of the leading names in the industry and the competition is always fierce with hundreds of entries from across the world. This is a fantastic way for us to showcase the quality of our products to the world’s leading beer buyers and hopefully make more connections that will boost our sales and visibility.”

During the competition each product entered is subjected to a rigorous blind tasting process — allowing newcomers to compete fairly against the world’s leading brands.

St Peter’s produces a range of craft beers, ales, stouts and porters, as well as a selection of gluten free, organic and alcohol-free beers at St Peter’s Hall.