WHEN it comes to variety, the Rendezvous and Royal Oak in Weymouth have got it covered this autumn with what organisers hope will be the biggest and best ever Proud of Our Ale Festival.

The launch is coinciding with national cask ale week, now in its 10th year.

Not quite long enough to sample the range of up to 70 ales though the local haunts are rolling the barrel out to run the festival across six weeks from September 22 to October 31.

Whether it’s real or craft, Britain’s favourite brew has seen a huge revival in recent years with one in two drinkers having tried cask and 16 per cent trying their first pint at a cask ale festival – a great opportunity to taste the drink.

The celebration will see the pubs serving a host of regional, craft and micro-breweries, from blond to dark and everything in-between.

Drinkers will also get a collector card where they can claim a free pint of beer of their choice after six visits to the bar, plus a chance to show off their knowledge in Top of the Hops – special weekly beer quizzes.

Brews on offer include Sharp’s Doom Bar ABV 4.0 per cent, Wadworth 6X 4.1 per cent, Fuller’s London Pride ABV 4.1 per cent and the chestnut-coloured Abbot Ale ABV 5.0 per cent from Greene King.

Unique and interesting ales include Marston’s Revisionist Salted Caramel ABV 4.3 per cent, Holden’s Golden Glow ABV 4.4 per cent and the 2016 CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain Timothy Taylor Boltmaker ABV 4.0 per cent.

Suzanne Baker, commercial director at Stonegate Pubs, said: “You can’t replicate the taste of cask and craft ale at home.

"The only place you can truly experience it is in the pub.

“There is a beer for everyone. With our fantastic level of choice, we’re sure customers, even non beer drinkers, will find one they fall in love with.”