The National Beer Scoring Scheme in Keighley and Craven

Have you ever wondered how CAMRA members select pubs for the CAMRA Good Beer Guide? The National Beer Scoring Scheme (NBSS) is a 0-5 point scale for judging beer quality in pubs. It is an easy to use system that has been designed to assist CAMRA branches in selecting pubs for the Good Beer Guide and also monitor beer quality by encouraging CAMRA members from any part of the world to report beer quality in any pub in the UK.

If you are a CAMRA member, we want you to tell us about the quality of real ale in the pubs you visit.

What do the scores mean?

• 0 No cask ale available. This can be because the pub never has it or it‘s run out.
• 0.5 Undrinkable.
• 1 Poor. From barely drinkable to drinkable with considerable resentment.
• 2 Average. Competently kept, drinkable, but uninspiring; you drink the beer without really noticing.
• 3 Good. Good beer in good form. You may cancel plans to move to the next pub. You want to stay for another pint. Good enough for the Good Beer Guide.
• 4 Very Good. Excellent beer in excellent condition.
• 5 Perfect. Probably the best you are ever likely to find. A seasoned drinker will award this score very rarely.

What do I need to record?

• Your name and membership no.
• The date you visited the pub
• The Name of the Pub
• Where the pub is located
• A score out of 5
• The name of the beer (optional)
• Notes to explain high or low scores (optional)

How do I take part?

• The easiest way is to submit your scores online. You may enter scores by finding the pub CAMRA‘s national web-site - you need to be logged-in with your CAMRA membership number and password for the Beer Score button to appear.
• Members without internet access may still hand scores in at branch meetings, or to the Pubs Officer or NBSS co-ordinator.

How often do I complete a card or submit an entry?

You may choose to score per beer (a separate score for each named beer) or per visit (averaging your score for each pub visit). In the latter case, the beer name can be left blank. A separate score for each beer is preferable as that gives a better representation of consistency. If you have the same beer twice we only count your score once unless you explain the difference in the comments such there may have been a cask change and with it a change in quality.

How is the information being collated and used in Keighley and Craven?

In February, when we are selecting our pubs for the Good Beer Guide, the percentage of NBSS scores that are 3 (i.e. Good) or better than good for each pub is the primary consideration in determining if the beer is consistently.

How is the information collated in other branches?

Branch GBG Co-ordinators can download beer scores submitted for their area via the national website. It is up to individual branches as to how they make use of the scores they receive.

(Adapted from the NBSS National CAMRA web-site page.)