Beer Scoring

The National Beer Scoring Scheme (NBSS) is a 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 on any pub in the UK. If you are a CAMRA member, we want you to tell us about the quality of beer in the pubs you visit.

How do I score my beer?

Many people prefer to score their beer using a handwritten tasting card. You can give or send the Tasting Cards to the branch Pubs Officer. Cards can also be submitted online at home at your leisure. Download and print some cards here: Download TastingCard

Can I do it Online?

If you have a smart phone you can submit scores from the Pub!

To submit your scores electronically, just visit our region on the CAMRA Website.
Log into the site using your CAMRA membership number and password.
Once you have found the pub, look for the “Beer Score” button and start scoring.

What do I need to record?

The location and name of the pub (which you have just chosen)
The date you visited the pub.
The name of the beer.
A score out of 5
Optionally, the price and a comment.

What do the scores mean?

Please use the scale below as a rough guide about what score to give to a beer:

0. No cask ale available.

1. Poor. Beer that is anything from barely drinkable to drinkable with considerable resentment.

2. Average. Competently kept, drinkable pint but doesn’t inspire in any way, not worth moving to another pub but 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 and may seek out the beer again.

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.