The Poacher in Ilkeston and Stanton-by-Dale's Stanhope Arms were given Cask Marque accreditation for serving the perfect pint of cask conditioned ale.

Andrew Crawford, operations director for Pub People said: "This award is a great endorsement for us. A lot of our customers visit our pubs especially for the cask ale and it is really gratifying to know that we are getting the formula just right."

Backed by 34 of the country's leading brewers and pub companies, Cask Marque accreditation is only awarded to licensees whose ale passes a series of rigorous independent beer quality audits.

Since its foundation in 1997, Cask Marque has inspected around 100,000 pints of beer and accredited nearly 4,500 of the country's 36,500 pubs estimated to serve one or more cask conditioned ales.

Cask Marque director Paul Nunny said: "All of the licensees should feel justifiably proud of this excellent achievement, which not only recognises the effort they put into serving the perfect pint but also acts as an independent guarantee of quality for customers.

"All too often, publicans don't appreciate the care and attention cask beers require and then run the risk of losing custom by serving pints that are below par."