THE Pilot in Penarth has announced an American Beer Festival in collaboration with Hang Fire Smokehouse to be held over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

The weekend festivities will be kick off today (August 21) t with a Meet the Brewers event at The Pilot in collaboration with Pontypridd based brewers, Otley.

The master brewers from Otley will be on hand to speak to ale lovers, giving them the opportunity to find out how their brilliant Welsh ales are made and treat customers to a few special samples of their much loved beers.

Following the Meet the Brewers event, the festival itself will start on Friday, August 22 and will feature 14 different festival ales, including offerings from Newport’s Tiny Rebel, Pontypridd’s Otley and The Kite Brewery, as well as some interesting and unusual bourbons.

But the star of the show will be the launch of the first in a series of exclusive new Otley ales, the result of a collaboration between Knife & Fork Food and Otley Brewing Co. The new ale is to be called Phil’s Beardy Brew, a 4.3% American Pale Ale, in honour of the American theme of the weekend.

Phil’s Beardy Brew has been named after the hirsute manager of The Pilot, Phil Newbould, who has been heavily involved in the brewing process of his namesake brew, spending a number of days at Otley HQ in Pontypridd to learn more about the brewing process, and tweak the recipe to perfection.

At the festival cult foodie favourite, Hang Fire Smokehouse, will also be serving up their unique brand of Southern BBQ goodness on the Friday night and all day Saturday. Diners can expect to enjoy classic BBQ dishes including pulled pork, beef brisket, ribs and chicken, as well as some new speciality dishes that should delight Hang Fire fans both new and old.

Hang Fire Smokehouse will then be taking over the kitchens at The Pilot every Thursday night from September 4 to November 27, in a new and exclusive pop up residency at the Penarth pub.

Phil Newbould, manager at The Pilot said: “We’re really excited about our Bank Holiday weekend plans. The Otley Meet the Brewers event will kick things off in style on the Thursday night and then the Beer Festival will commence on the Friday and run until the Monday. And to have my own namesake brew launched is a dream come true!

“This year our now annual American Beer Festival will be all the more authentic thanks to the involvement of the amazing Hang Fire Smokehouse who will be on hand to serve up delicious US BBQ dishes to our customers. It’s going to be a great weekend!”

The Pilot, which opened in 2012, has attracted a number of plaudits, including a spot in the Michelin Eating Out in Pubs Guide 2014, which recommends 570 pubs across the UK based primarily on the quality of their food. The Pilot’s sister pub, The Conway in Pontcanna, is also included in the guide, and together they were the only pubs in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan to be selected for inclusion.

The Pilot was also awarded the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence for 2014, which is given to the top 10 per cent of businesses on TripAdvisor which ‘consistently achieve outstanding’ reviews on the website. One of The Pilot’s much loved dishes is Pilot Poulet, a whole rotisserie chicken served on a wood block which customers carve themselves; a twist on the classic Sunday lunch.

During the August Bank Holiday weekend American Beer Festival no Hang Fire Smokehouse table bookings will be taken.

The Pilot can be found at 67 Queens Road, Penarth. Tel: 02920 710 615.