California Beer Festivals

• 2012 Beer Winners in California
• Category 2 American-Style Wheat Beer with Yeast, 29 Entries
  Bronze: Wrangler Wheat, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co., Buellton
• Category 8 Coffee Beer, 63 Entries
  Gold: Smog City Groundwork Coffee, Tustin Brewing Co., Tustin
• Category 10 Rye Beer, 62 Entries
  Gold: Gramarye, Heretic Brewing Co., Pittsburg
• Category 12 Session Beer, 67 Entries
  Gold: Twerp, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad
  Bronze: Bitter American, 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco
• Category 14 Experimental Beer, 62 Entries
  Silver: Petit Obscura, Telegraph Brewing Co., Santa Barbara
  Bronze: Track #8, The Lost Abbey, San Marcos
• Category 15 Fresh Hop Ale, 34 Entries
  Gold: Estate Homegrown Ale, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico
  Silver: HopTime Harvest Ale, Russian River Brewing Co., Santa Rosa
• Category 16 Indigenous Beer, 27 Entries
  Bronze: Hot Rocks Lager, Port Brewing Co., San Marcos
• Category 18 American-Belgo-Style Ale, 71 Entries
  Gold: Le Freak, Green Flash Brewing Co., San Diego
• Category 19 American-Style Sour Ale, 34 Entries
  Silver: Red Poppy, The Lost Abbey, San Marcos
• Category 21 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Beer, , 51 Entries
  Silver: Bourbon Barrel Aged Night Sail, Island Brewing Co., Carpinteria
• Category 22 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer, 103 Entries
  Gold: The Manhattan Project, The Beer Co., San Diego
• Category 23 Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Stout, 65 Entries
  Silver: Silva Stout, Green Flash Brewing Co., San Diego
• Category 25 Aged Beer, 24 Entries
  Silver: 2004 Triple Exultation, Eel River Brewing Co., Fortuna
• Category 28 American-Style or International-Style Pilsener, 26 Entries
  Gold: Gold Country Pilsner, Auburn Alehouse, Auburn
• Category 33 American-Style Lager, Light Lager or Premium Lager, 51 Entries
  Gold: Pabst Blue Ribbon, Pabst Brewing Co., Los Angeles
• Category 34 American-Style Specialty Lager or Cream Ale or Lager, 34 Entries
  Silver: Old Style, Pabst Brewing Co., Los Angeles
• Category 35 Vienna-Style Lager, 36 Entries
  Bronze: Danish Red Lager, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co., Buellton
• Category 44 Golden or Blonde Ale, 67 Entries
  Gold: Steelhead Extra Pale Ale, Mad River Brewing Co., Blue Lake
  Bronze: TAPS Cream Ale, TAPS Fish House & Brewery, Brea
• Category 49 International-Style Pale Ale, 29 Entries
  Silver: Southern Chaos, Hollister Brewing Co., Goleta
• Category 52 American-Style India Pale Ale, 203 Entries
  Gold: IPA, Tap It Brewing Co., San Luis Obispo
  Bronze: Duet, Alpine Beer Co., Alpine
• Category 53 Imperial India Pale Ale, 128 Entries
  Silver: Café Racer 15, Bear Republic Brewing Co. - Healdsburg, Healdsburg
  Bronze: Double Jack, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles
• Category 55 Imperial Red Ale, 60 Entries
  Bronze: 547 Haight - The Toronado San Francisco's 20th Anniversary Imperial Red Ale, Pizza Port Carlsbad, Carlsbad
• Category 56 English-Style Mild Ale, 31 Entries
• Category 57 Ordinary or Special Bitter, 37 Entries
  Gold: DBA, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles
• Category 60 Irish-Style Red Ale, 48 Entries
  Silver: TAPS Irish Red, TAPS Fish House & Brewery, Brea
• Category 67 German-Style Wheat Ale, 23 Entries
  Bronze: Weizeneisbock, Gordon Biersch Brewing Co., San Jose
• Category 68 Belgian-Style Witbier, 50 Entries
• Category 69 French- and Belgian-Style Saison, 68 Entries
  Bronze: El Verano, Beachwood BBQ & Brewing, Long Beach
• Category 70 Belgian- and French-Style Ale, 68 Entries
  Gold: Saint's Devotion, The Lost Abbey, San Marcos
• Category 71 Belgian-Style Lambic or Sour Ale, 42 Entries
  Bronze: Sans Pagaie, The Bruery, Anaheim
• Category 72 Belgian-Style Abbey Ale, 86 Entries
  Gold: Green Flash Trippel, Green Flash Brewing Co., San Diego
• Category 73 Belgian-Style Strong Specialty Ale, 51 Entries
  Silver: Rhinoceros, Telegraph Brewing Co., Santa Barbara
  Bronze: AleSmith Grand Cru, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego
• Category 74 Brown Porter, 44 Entries
  Bronze: Peter Brown Tribute Ale, Bear Republic Brewing Co. Factory Five, Cloverdale
• Category 76 Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout, 16 Entries
  Gold: Seaside Stout, Pizza Port Solana Beach, Solana Beach
• Category 77 Foreign-Style Stout, 25 Entries
  Gold: Starry Night Stout, Island Brewing Co., Carpinteria
• Category 78 American-Style Stout, 43 Entries
  Gold: Order in the Port, Pizza Port San Clemente, San Clemente
• Category 79 Sweet Stout, 32 Entries
  Gold: Udder Love, Beachwood BBQ & Brewing, Long Beach
• Category 80 Oatmeal Stout, 45 Entries
  Gold: Oats, Pizza Port Solana Beach, Solana Beach
  Bronze: Stagecoach Stout, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co., Buellton
• Category 81 Imperial Stout, 58 Entries
  Silver: Imperial Stout, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico
• Category 82 Scotch Ale, 44 Entries
  Gold: Way Heavy, Pizza Port San Clemente, San Clemente
• Category 83 Old Ale or Strong Ale, 31 Entries
  Bronze: AleSmith Decadence €˜10 Old Ale, AleSmith Brewing Co., San Diego

2012 Brewery and Brewer of the Year Awards:

Large Brewing Company and Large Brewing Company Brewer of the Year Sponsored by Beer Institute
Pabst Brewing Company, Los Angeles - Gregory Deuhs

California - 49 awards 20% of 250 awards. Competed in
20 Gold
16 Bronze
12 Silver
1 Special Best of

CITIES
6 San Diego
4 San Marcos
3 Buellton
3 Los Angeles
2 Brea
2 Chico
2 Long Beach
2 Paso Robles
2 San Clemente
2 Santa Barbara
2 Solana Beach
2 Carpinteria
2 Carlsbad

TOP BREWERY
6 Pizza Port
3 Green Flash Brewing Co.
3 The Lost Abbey
3 Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co.(Buellton)

TOP COUNTY
15 San Diego
8 Santa Barbara
6 Orange County
5 Los Angeles
3 San Luis Obispo

California did exceedingly well, bringing home more Gold than any other state in the Great American Beer Festival competition in Denver, Colorado October 11-13, 2012. The Golden State (California) won 20 Gold, 16 Bronze, 12 Silver and 1 Special Award. Competing in 84 beer categories (covering 134 different beer subcategory styles,) California winners have reason to be proud. It's the 2nd feather in their cap after the state's craft brewers brought home a total of 55 medals (more medals than any other of 54 countries,) from the World Beer Cup 2012 in May.

California honors in the Great American Beer Festival: 4,338 entries were submitted by small breweries from 48 states, Washington, D.C. and Guam. 185 beer experts from 11 countries tasted and judged beer samples in the annual three day event which also sold tickets to the public for opportunities to taste crafted brews. The public tickets sold out in 45 minutes.

Overall U.S. beer sales were approximately 199,937,239 barrels and imported beer sales were 27,238,339 barrels in 2010.
1,989 total breweries operated for some or all of 2011, the highest total since the 1880s.

The craft brewing sales share in 2011 was 5.7% by volume and 9.1% by dollars.
Craft brewer retail dollar value in 2011 was an estimated $8.7 billion, up from $7.6 billion in 2010.

In 2012 the public portion of the event sold out in 45 minutes. It was held October 11-13, 2012 at Colorado Convention Center.

Events are not guaranteed. It is your responsibility to confirm before going.