We have been saying that San Diego has the best beer in the world for some time now, and apparently judges from around the world think so too. This past weekend, the ceremony to announce winners of the World Beer Cup was held in Philadelphia. 1907 breweries from 55 different countries entered 6596 beers into competition hoping to win gold, silver or bronze. San Diego breweries continued to live up to the name of “Craft Beer Capital” by bringing home 14 medals, including 5 gold medals. Although there are a plethora of beer competitions now, ranging from regional to worldwide, the World Beer Cup stands with the Great American Beer Festival as one of the premier craft beer competitions.
With all of these world class entries, the competition is fierce.”It’s so competitive these days.” Mike Sardina, the San Diego Brewer’s Guild President told the Reader recently, “Fourteen medals is impressive.”
The West Coaster summed up the big winners for San Diego breweries nicely in a recent blog. Here was how they broke it down:
GOLD
- Amplified Ale Works – Whammy Bar Wheat – Category 1 (American-Style Wheat Beer)
- Breakwater – Rye Dawn – Category 13 (Rye Beer)
- Fall – Bourbon Barrel Aged Jinx Remover – Category 26 (Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer)
- Monkey Paw – Ashes from the Grave – Category 31 (Smoke Beer)
- Mike Hess – Claritas – Category 49 (German-Style Koelsch)
SILVER
- Mother Earth – End of Summer Beer – Category 70 (Extra Special Bitter)
- AleSmith – Wee Heavy – Category 78 (Scotch Ale)
- Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits – Piper Down – Category 82 (Irish-Style Red Ale)
- Thorn Street – December Nights (aka Alpenglow) – Category 92 (Imperial Red Ale)
BRONZE
- Legacy – That Guava Beer – Category 3 (Fruit Beer)
- Ballast Point Scripps Ranch – Pumpkin Down – Category 6 (Pumpkin Beer)
- Toolbox – Bramble on Rose – Category 28 (Wood- and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer)
- New English – Brewers Special Brown Ale – Category 73 (English-Style Brown Ale)
- NOVO Brazil – Corvo Negro – Category 79 (British-Style Imperial Stout)
We want to give a special shout out to our North Park neighbors (and South) for their big wins, including Fall, Mike Hess and Monkey Paw.
So what makes San Diego beer so amazing? It does help to have some big hitters in our midst, including Ballast Point and Alesmith both of which have been around for decades. They were brewing craft beer before craft beer was cool and their beers taste like it. In fact, Ballast Point gets the honor of the only San Diego brewery that won more than one medal. San Diego breweries also know international beer, as evidenced by Mike Hess Brewing winning gold with their Claritas Kolsch against 265 German breweries. Sure, the U.S. entered more beers than any other country, but only 25% of the judges came from the U.S., so the international judges appreciate SD beer too, it seems.
But it’s especially exciting when smaller places, like Amplified Ale Works, Fall, Monkey Paw and TSB, get their beers recognized on this world stage. We love our beers and think they taste great, but it’s hard to not be biased. A win at the World Beer Cup is validation for the blood, sweat and tears that our brewers put into each and every beer brewed.
These World Beer Cup wins highlight how San Diego breweries are on the cutting edge of craft beer. The United States craft beer industry is second to none and after being the butt of international beer jokes for so many years (we like to call them the Budweiser Years), this success is oh-so-sweet.
Thorn Street Brewery entered our Winter Warmer (at the time called December Nights) Alpenglow Imperial Red Ale and feel incredibly honored that it won a silver medal. Alpenglow is big, bold, malty and hopped with Citra, Mosaic and Cascade hops. It’s definitely a fan favorite in the tasting room and won’t be around much longer since it’s a seasonal winter brew, so get it while you can!
Anna Brigham