REAL ale fans will be raising a glass or two when the annual Dudley Winter Ales Fayre returns later this month.

The beer festival, organised by a committee of volunteers from the Dudley and South Staffordshire branch of the Campaign for Real Ale, will take place at Dudley Town Hall in St James’s Road from Thursday November 28 to Saturday November 30.

There will be 72 beers featured this year – a mix of ales from the West Midlands, and the north and south of England.

Beers available to try include the popular eight per cent strength Snowflake from Sedgley’s Sarah Hughes Brewery – the reigning CAMRA champion winter beer of Britain.

There will be a cask of Snowflake featured each day plus a cask of XXX from Brierley Hill's Bathams Brewery which will be launched in its pubs that week.

There will also be cider, wine and food available.

The festival opens at 1pm on the Thursday and at 11am on Friday and Saturday; and closes at 10pm or when the beer runs out, or 8pm on the final day.

This year CAMRA members can get in free by showing their membership card on Thursday and Friday. There’s a £5 admission fee for non-CAMRA members - half the price of last year.

Advance tickets cost £9 for CAMRA members and include £10 worth of tokens to spend on drinks - saving £1. Non-member advance tickets are £14, covering the entry cost and coming with £10 worth of tokens.

To pre-purchase tickets visit https://tckty.camra.org.uk/e/309/dudley-winter-ales-fayre-2024 Thursday and Friday are for over-18s only. Saturday is a family day with all ages welcome and free admission for all.

There will be live music on Friday and Saturday. Beatlesque, choir Voices Unlimited and Ian Sutherland Band perform on Friday and duo Rob Jones and Rob White and Black Country folk group The Empty Can on Saturday.