BEER lovers raised a toast as a popular festival returned to a historic fort in Harwich.

The Redoubt Fort beer festival returned for a second consecutive year, after the 2020 edition was postponed due to the pandemic.

The event, hosted by the Harwich Town Brewery Company, took place from Thursday, July 28 until Sunday, July 31 and had more than 50 real ales and 30 ciders available.

Paul Mellor, of the Harwich Town Brewery Company, said: “Overall the event was successful with around 3,500 pints being sold and approximately 1,000 visitors

“Saturday was much quieter than usual due to the trains not running because of the industrial action.

“The setup took over 100 hours to complete due to the logistics of getting everything down into the bottom of the fort.”

No tickets were required for the festival this year as eager ale lovers turned up to pay at the entrance kiosk.

By Saturday afternoon there was still 30 real ales and 20 ciders available for attendees to enjoy.

The organisers are optimistic the event will return next year from July 27 to July 30.

For more information on the Redoubt Beer Festival visit bit.ly/3zQgH8f.