TWO Black Country breweries have tasted success at the Midlands Independent Beer Awards which took place at the Birmingham CAMRA festival.

Kinver Brewery clinched a silver medal in the Premium Bitter and Pales category for its 'Noble' brew and then picked up a bronze medal in the Premium Strong Beers section for their 'Over the Edge'.

Lye based brewery Windsor Castle also captured a silver medal in the Porters, Stouts, Old Ales, Strong Milds and Strong Brown Ales category for its Sadler's Mud City Stout.

Windsor Castle were only denied a gold medal by Brampton Brewery of Nottinghamshire who were crowned the overall champions.

There was further success with Woodsetton based Holden's Brewery winning a silver medal for their Dragon's Blood in the small pack Strong Bitters and Pale Ales section.

The awards are run by the Society of Independent Brewers and are unique in the fact that the majority of judges are brewers themselves from craft breweries across the UK.

Kinver Brewery proprietor Dave Kelly, who is also known as 'Kinver Dave' said: "It's very hard work running a brewery, but when you win awards like this, it makes it all worthwhile.

"Kinver Brewery has been running for almost 12 years and has gone from strength to strength.

"We are now a well established brewery and continually expanding. Only last week we sent a pallet of our beer to Falmouth in Cornwall.

"Apart from supplying local pubs we now sell to places in Worcester, Cheltenham and Stoke on Trent.

"We mainly stick to cask beer but we do supply a small quantity of bottled beers as well."

Tony Morgan, who is Hon Secretary for the Stourbridge and Halesowen branch of CAMRA said: "To win a medal of any description at these awards is a very commendable effort to say the least when you consider there are 275 Midland breweries listed in the 2017 Good Beer Guide.

"Some of the breweries taking part are nationally renown, so it just underlines how strong the opposition is.

"It also shows the high quality of beer local brewers are producing and indicates that this area is up with the very best and keeping with some very prestigious company.

"But there are also other brewers in our area also producing some excellent beers."