California Craft Brewers Bring Home the Metal

California Small Brewers Association

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Tom McCormick
530-265-0422
Tom.mccormick@probrewer.com

California craft brewers bring home most awards of any state at the largest commercial beer competition in the world
Boulder, CO • September 18, 2010—California’s craft brewers brought home more medals from the famed Great American Beer Festival than any other state, solidifying California as the most vibrant brewing region in the country.

California breweries took home 52 medals, the highest total of any state. Colorado followed with 40 medals followed by Oregon with 19 medals.
The 2010 Great American Beer Festival (GABF) competition drew an impressive field of competitors, with 2010 topping last year’s entries by nine percent. GABF remains the largest commercial beer competition in the world, with 3,523 beers vying for medals (compared to 3,308 entries in 2009).

This year’s GABF competition attracted 151 beer judges from 10 countries. Award-winning brewers received prestigious gold, silver and bronze medals in 79 beer categories covering 133 beer styles, establishing the best examples of each style in the U.S.

Great American Beer Festival 2010 Statistics
•    455 breweries in the festival hall
•    2,200+ beers served at the festival
•    49,000 attendees
•    3,400 volunteers
•    516 breweries in the competition from 48 states (including Washington,    D.C.)
•    3,523 beers judged (includes 75 Pro-Am competition entries)
•    79 style categories judged, plus the Pro-Am competition
•    151 judges from 10 countries
•    Average number of competition beers entered in each category: 44
•    Category with highest number of entries: 142, American Style India Pale Ale

The following are the California brewers who brought home the metal:

2010 Brewery and Brewer of the Year Awards
Small Brewing Company and Small Brewing Company Brewer of the Year
Mad River Brewing Company Brewing Team
Mad River Brewing Company
Brewpub Group and Brewpub Group Brewer of the Year
Victor Novak
TAPS Fish House & Brewery
Small Brewpub and Small Brewpub Brewer of the Year
Noah Regnery
Pizza Port San Clemente
Large Brewpub and Large Brewpub Brewer of the Year
Pizza Port Brew Guys
Pizza Port Carlsbad

Style Categories:

English-Style Summer Ale (35 Entries)
Silver:    Pacific Daylight, Dale Bros. Brewery, Upland, CA

English-Style India Pale Ale (32 Entries)
Gold:      Beech Street Bitter, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA – Gold

Herb and Spice or Chocolate Beer (91 Entries)
Silver:     Stone Smoked Porter with Chipotle, Stone Brewing Co., Escondido, CA
Bronze:  Super Chili Pepper Madness, Mad River Brewing Co., Blue Lake, CA

American-Style Pale Ale (109 Entries)
Gold:      Mission Street Pale, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA d
Silver:     Pale 31, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
Bronze:  Puddle Jumper Pale Ale, Third Street Aleworks, Santa Rosa, CA

Coffee Flavored Beer (52 Entries)
Silver:    Coffee Monster, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

American-Style Strong Pale Ale (84 Entries)
Silver:     IPA Nectar, Firestone Walker Brewing Co. , Paso Robles, CA
Bronze:  7 – Fity, Triple Rock Brewery and Alehouse,  Berkeley, CA

American-Style India Pale Ale (142 Entries)
Gold:      “Pseudo” IPA, Pizza Port San Clemente,  San Clemente, CA

Rye Beer (32 Entries)
Gold:      BMB Rye IPA, Black Market Brewing Co. , Temecula, CA
Bronze:  Roggenbier, Bear Republic Brewing Co.,  Healdsburg, CA

Imperial India Pale Ale (97 Entries)
Gold:     Doheny Double IPA, Pizza Port San Clemente,  San Clemente, CA
Silver:    Hop Crisis!, 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco, CA

American-Style Amber/Red Ale (83 Entries)
Gold:       Red Nectar, Firestone Walker Brewing Co. , Paso Robles, CA   Red Rock
Bronze:   Red Rock, Triple Rock Brewery and Alehouse, Berkeley, CA   bronze

Other Strong Beer (48 Entries)
Gold:        Sierra 30 Jack and Ken’s Ale, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA
Silver:       Panzer Pilsner, Port Brewing Co., San Marcos, CA

English-Style Mild Ale (27 Entries)
Silver:       Skidmark Brown, Pizza Port Ocean Beach,  San Diego, CA

Experimental Beer (43 Entries)
Silver:       Estate Homegrown Ale, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA

Ordinary or Special Bitter (47 Entries)
Silver:       DBA, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA

Out of Category – Traditionally Brewed Beer (66 Entries)
Gold:         Fathom IPL, Ballast Point Brewing Co., San Diego, CA
Bronze:     Hot Rocks Lager, Port Brewing Co., San Marcos, CA

American-Belgo-Style Ale (47 Entries)
Gold:         Ryevalry, Bear Republic Factory Five, Cloverdale, CA
Bronze:     Pete’s Support Belgian IPA , FireHouse Grill & Brewery,  Sunnyvale, CA

Irish-Style Red Ale (23 Entries)
Gold:         Red Trolley Ale, Karl Strauss Brewing Co., San Diego, CA

American-Style Sour Ale (39 Entries)
Bronze:    Red Poppy, The Lost Abbey, San Marcos, CA

English-Style Brown Ale (46 Entries)
Silver:       Good Grief Brown, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

Wood- and Barrel-Aged Beer (32 Entries)
Gold:       Velvet Merkin (100% Barrel Aged), Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA

Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer (77 Entries)
Gold:      Barrel Aged Big Island,   Island Brewing Co.,  Carpinteria, CA
Silver:     HE’BREW RIPA on RYE, Shmaltz Brewing Co. , San Francisco, CA

American-Style India Black Ale (53 Entries)
Bronze:  Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale, Stone Brewing Co., Escondido, CA

Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Stout (34 Entries)
Silver:     Remy, TAPS Fish House & Brewery, Brea, CA

Wood- and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer (54 Entries)
Silver:     Temptation, Russian River Brewing Co., Santa Rosa, CA

German-Style Sour Ale (23 Entries)
Silver:    Tiny Bubbles, Hollister Brewing Co.,  Goleta, CA

Aged Beer (30 Entries)
Gold:    John Barleycorn Barleywine, Mad River Brewing Co., Blue Lake, CA

German-Style Wheat Ale (29 Entries)
Gold:    Hefelightzen, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery, Huntington Beach, CA

Belgian-Style Witbier (45 Entries)
Gold:    TAPS Belgian White, TAPS Fish House & Brewery,  Brea, CA

American-Style or International-Style Pilsener (27 Entries)
Bronze: Gold Country Pilsner,  Auburn Alehouse, Auburn, CA

Belgian-Style Lambic or Sour Ale (33 Entries)
Gold:    Oude Tart, The Bruery,  Placentia, CA

Belgian-Style Strong Specialty Ale (54 Entries)
Gold:     Revelations, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA
Silver:   Brother Davids Double, Anderson Valley Brewing Co., Boonville, CA

Robust Porter (53 Entries)
Bronze:   Blimp Hangar Porter, Tustin Brewing Co., Tustin, CA

Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout (23 Entries)
Bronze:   Port Truck Stout, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

German-Style Märzen (41 Entries)
Silver:     Oh! Fest!, Schooner’s Grille & Brewery, Antioch, CA

German-Style Schwarzbier (31 Entries)
Bronze:   TAPS Schwarzbier, TAPS Fish House & Brewery, Brea, CA

Imperial Stout (50 Entries)
Silver:    Night Rider Imperial Stout, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad, CA

Scotch Ale (34 Entries)
Gold:     Reed’s Wee Heavy, Pizza Port Carlsbad,  Carlsbad, CA

Baltic-Style Porter (21 Entries)
Silver:    Collaborative Evil – Triple Rock, Triple Rock Brewery and Alehouse, Berkeley, CA

Golden or Blonde Ale (55 Entries)
Silver:   Steelhead Extra Pale Ale, Mad River Brewing Co.,  Blue Lake, CA

Pro-Am Competition (75 Entries) –  which pairs amateur brewers with professional brewers, who scale up the award-winning homebrew recipes
Gold:    Red Velvet, Eagle Rock Brewery, Los Angeles, CA

California Small Brewers Association

*  PO Box 1202, Nevada City CA 95959  *  530-265-0422