THOUSANDS of pints of beer and cider were sold at the busiest ever Hitchin Beer Festival.

The event, which was held at the town hall, attracted nearly 2,300 people over the course of the weekend.

Around 5,700 pints of beers were sold, as well as 1,200 pints of perry and cider, 765 bottles of foreign beer and 150 litres of draft foreign beers.

It could be the last year that the festival, which is organised by CAMRA North Herts and Hitchin Round Table, is held at the venue due to the hall’s closure for refurbishment later this year.

Brian Mason, from CAMRA North Herts, said: “It was a great weekend, a success.

“On the opening day, the queue was extended halfway down Brand Street, almost as far as the Argos. People were queuing to get in.

“The staff should be applauded, there were over 60 different volunteers and no problems covering the bars at all. It went very well.”

The beer of the festival, as voted by members of the public, was Treetops, produced by Windsor and Eton Brewery.

“They have only been going a couple of years, and were over the moon when we told them,” added Brian.

“We are looking forward to making the trip down to present them with their award, while having a tour of the brewery.”

• Click on the link in the top-right hand corner to view our gallery. If you took any pictures, send them to laura.burge@thecomet.net to be included.

You can also view a video of the festival set up, produced by CAMRA North Herts.