MORE beer, more cider, more cocktails, more visitors and – most importantly – more money raised for local charities made the 2017 Helensburgh Beer and Gin Festival the biggest and best yet.

More than 2,000 people attended the event, organised by the Helensburgh Round Table, at Helensburgh Sailing Club on Friday evening and all day on Saturday.

And festival convener Stewart Tacchi said visitors had come from far and wide to sample the wares on offer from almost 40 beer, lager and cider brewers and more than a dozen gin distilleries from throughout Scotland and beyond.

Stewart said: “Wow, what a weekend! What an amazing event with more than 2,100 people attending over the two days despite some indifferent weather.

“This year we had over 60 different beers and ciders, 20 different gins, great food and live music on both days. from as far away as Canada, Germany, and Spain attended, as well as closer to home, all enjoying the best of Scottish beer and gin.”

This year’s festival saw more than 4,200 pints – or 60 barrels – of foaming ale sold, along with 1,500 pints of craft lager and around 900 pints of crisp cider, while two freezers full of ice were used to serve a variety of gin, Prosecco and whisky cocktails.

And though final costs aren’t yet confirmed, both attendance and profits were up by around 50 per cent on last year, making the 2017 festival the biggest and best to date.

Stewart added: “The team at Helensburgh Sailing Club were fantastic hosts and thanks must also go to the many local businesses for their great support.

“Our hardy band of volunteers who worked solidly all weekend, whilst others partied, deserve huge thanks for their help to put on the event again this year. Over the last few years we’ve put the proceeds of the beer festival toward some great causes including the redevelopment of Hermitage Park, completion of the Three Lochs way footpath network, the Helensburgh Defibrillator Association, Helensburgh Scout Group as well as many sports clubs and community groups in the local area.”

You can find all the businesses who backed the event at www.helensburghalefest.co.uk.

If you’re involved in a local club, group or charitable organisation and would like to apply for Round Table funding for a project or initiative go to www.helensburghroundtable.co.uk.

To find out more about the Round Table’s activities, including their fireworks display in November, go to their website or search for ‘Helensburgh Round Table’ on Facebook.