Special beer is brewed to celebrate Wightlink's new flagship Victoria of Wight '“ and it's available on board

Named Victoria of Wight after the ship, the beer has been crafted by experts at Island Brewery on the Isle of Wight and is now available to buy on board Wightlink's ferries and at its Camber Café in Portsmouth.

The brains behind the brew described it as a 3.8% '˜light golden, easy drinking' bottled ale.

John Nicholson, the chairman of the Isle of Wight Campaign for Real Ale branch (Camra) enjoyed an official tasting at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club, Wightlink's neighbour in Fishbourne.

'˜We are fortunate to have some excellent brewers on the Isle of Wight and I am delighted with this latest creation from Island Brewery,' he said.

'˜Victoria of Wight has a refreshing taste and aroma which is enhanced by the British Cascade and Bramling Cross hops. These provide a touch of citrus which is complimented by a slightly malty and bitter feel on the palate.'

He added: '˜It's a great addition to Wightlink's Taste the Wight range and in my view a very fitting way to welcome Victoria of Wight to the fleet.' 

As previously reported, the £30m ferry sailed into Portsmouth Harbour for the first time in August '“ completing a 3,010 nautical mile journey from the Cemre shipyard in Yalova, Turkey.

Chris Mousley, sales director at Island Brewery, said: '˜We have supplied Wightlink with our locally-bottled beer for some time and were very excited when they suggested the idea of a special ale to celebrate the arrival of Victoria of Wight.

'˜We worked closely with Wightlink to create an ale to be proud of and are pleased to see it on board Victoria of Wight, being enjoyed by customers or being taken home as a gift from our beautiful island.'

The tipple's namesake, on which building work began in November, 2016, can carry up to 178 cars and more than 1,000 passengers. 

It is powered by hybrid energy from a combination of batteries and conventional engines.

Simon Lewis, head of retail at Wightlink, said: '˜The ale is a great addition to the range of local products that we offer through our Taste the Wight outlets.

'˜We thoroughly enjoyed working with the team at Island Brewery to create this special ale and hope our customers enjoy it as much as we do.

'˜As well as non-drivers wanting a refreshing drink onboard, we are finding people are buying bottles as gifts for people '“ with Christmas coming up it makes a great stocking filler for the ale lover in your life.'