Chippenham's popular beer festival celebrated coming of age on Friday and Saturday, with almost 2,000 visitors joining the party.

Among the events that made the weekend special was the arrival of town mayor David Powell, who arrived for the Saturday lunchtime session.

A brew made for the occasion by Moles Brewery – Crowning Glory – was made available for the first time at the event before going on general sale.

Gareth MacDonald, chairman of the festival organising committee, said spirits weren’t dampened by the rain.

“It all went really well,” he said.

“We’ve always been very, very lucky with the weather but this year our luck ran out a bit, and it was pretty wet. It’s always nice for people to go outside and enjoy the sunshine, but it is an indoor event and it didn’t stop the fun.”

The event, which started out as a small festival in the Neeld Hall, doubled its supply of ciders for this year, and also featured 100 beers and a number of perries. A panel of judges picked the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) south west champion beer of Brit-ain on Fri-day, honouring Arbour Ale’s Oyster Stout. The ale is brewed with ten different grains, including oats, wheat and specialty malts, with hops added while on the boil along with fresh oysters, shells and all.

Mr MacDonald said the ale was the top choice for the panelists.

“It was tickety boo,” he said.

“We had a very good weekend, with lots of women as well as men coming along to try out the different beverages on offer.

“We’d like to thank the Olympiad – we have a meeting to talk about how it all went this week, and the first thing we’ll be doing is booking that venue up again.

“As always, it was absolutely superb and we were very well accomodated for.”