Cider house and restaurant brand, The Stable has made the final of Imbibe Tapsters 2017. A team of five Stable Cider Masters were put through their paces in London and saw off other contestants with their expert knowledge.
The day involved half-a-day’s training from experts in beer and cider serving, storing and pouring, and aspirational food matching. Then the team demonstrated their skills and flair infront of an expert panel with the final best two teams qualifying for the Final. The Stable crew held they’re their own in the beer round and, as expected, excelled in the cider sections.
The Imbibe Tapsters is a national contest which champions the bar and brewery staff around the country who not only know their beers and ciders, but also understand how to look after them, and most importantly, how to serve and sell them.
The Stable crew compiles of comprised five Cider Masters from different Stable restaurants: Dave Rowe from Exeter, Adam Hall from Falmouth (pictured), Beth Bucknell-May from Bournemouth, Laura-Kate from Bridport and Tim Gibb, The Stable’s Head of Cider.
Tim Gibb said, “In an area dominated - by beers drinkers, we decided that we had to enter a team to represent the cider side of the population. After all in the southwest it is a part of our heritage.”
He added, “If we win, the prize includes a trip to Sharpes brewery in Cornwall, so we could develop our ale knowledge further. A win would cement ciders resurgence in the industry and the importance of our cider masters in spreading the word. Roll on the 4th.”
The hopeful cider masters will head to Olympia next week for the final test. Imbibe’s Educator of the Year, beer sommelier Annabel Smith will be mistress of ceremonies, with an expert panel including award-winning writer Pete Brown, most recently garlanded for his book, The Pub, The Ciderologist, Gabe Cook, and Ed Hughes. A quick-fire quiz will centre on general beer and cider knowledge, storing and serving, while other rounds will test food matching, fault analysis, and the teams’ perfect pour credentials.
Every Stable restaurant has an expert cider master. These highly-trained cider heads can guide drinkers to the ciders and perries they’ll love best. The Stable now offers cider tastings and the cider masters are paramount to the experience and success of these events. They undergo vigorous training and work with local suppliers to ensure their knowledge is top notch. Even turning their hand to making their own cider master blend – Rapscallion, now found in every Stable.
The Stable, which is 51%-owned by Fullers, has 17 restaurants across the UK: Bath, Bristol, Bridport, Birmingham, Cheltenham, Cardiff, Fistral Beach, Falmouth, Exeter, Kew Bridge, Whitechapel, Winchester Weymouth, Winchester, Plymouth, Southampton and Poole.