Muncaster’s Sausage Festival returned for three days of sizzling action with record numbers as the Championship went down to the wire.

With almost 4000 visitors getting involved in three days of delicious food, drink, live music, dog competitons, Cumbrian craft markets, inflatable sausage racing and more.

Muncaster Castle the ancestral home to the Pennington Family since at least 1208 when ownership of the land was confirmed through a charter from King John, hosted the festival on May 2-4.

Set in the majestic 77 acres of wild, woodland gardens with breathtaking views of the Lake District Fells, including Scafell Pike, England’s highest mountain, the weekend was packed with fun.

With many different attractions it was The Sausage Championship 2026 that provided the tastiest draw.

This saw a record-breaking 14,382 sausage samples from the six worthy contenders being tasted and voted for at the Sausage Monument.

Battling for sausage supremacy were Bewley’s Sausage Ltd, Istanbul’s Kitchen, Melville Tyson, Napier’s Butchers, The Cumberland Boerewors Co. and Yardies Jamaican Street Food.

Each hoping that their unique take on the humble sausage would win them the coveted crown.

The Championship got underway on Saturday as 2024 Sausage Champions the Cumberland Boerewors Co. took an early lead and were crowned Day Winners.  

Their traditional South African beef sausage, seasoned with a secret blend of authentic South African spices, was a hit.

However on Sunday, it was clear that defending champions, Bewley’s Sausage Ltd, were not going to go down without a fight, securing the win on day two.

The popularity of their classic Cumberland sausage proved that there’s something in the notion that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

On Monday, the third and final day of the festival, it was all still to play for, and with the largest number of visitors on a single day in Sausage Festival history ready to cast their votes, anything could happen. 

The day was one by worthy victors Yardies Jamaican Street Food, whose unique combination of Cumbrian and Caribbean flavours proved popular.  

However the overall Championship still hung in the balance.

As the final totals were tallied it became clear that one sausage maker had topped all others and The Cumberland Boerewors Co. were crowned Sausage Champions 2026.

While all of the suasage makers brought delicious offerings, The Cumberland Boerewors Co. proved to be worthy winners.

They will no doubt face stiff competiton as preparations already begin to sizzle away for Muncaster’s Sausage Festival 2027.