234 breweries celebrate medals at 2014 Great American Beer Festival®

The 2014 Great American Beer Festival (GABF) competition awarded 268 medals to some of the best commercial breweries in the United States, plus three GABF Pro-Am medals. Presented by the Brewers Association, GABF is one of the largest commercial beer competitions in the world and a symbol of brewing excellence. In its 28th year, the 2014 competition surpassed all previous participation records.

To accommodate growth, this year’s GABF competition saw its biggest panel of judges ever, with 222 beer experts from 10 countries evaluating 5507 commercial entries, plus 89 Pro-Am entries, with assistance from some 150 competition volunteers. Award-winning brewers received prestigious gold, silver and bronze medals in 90 beer categories covering 145 different beer styles (encompassing subcategories), establishing the best examples of each style in the U.S. Winners were chosen from 5507 competition entries (16 percent more than in 2013) from 1309 breweries, hailing from 50 states plus Washington, D.C.

The top five entered categories were American-Style India Pale Ale (279 entries), followed by Herb and Spice Beer (150 entries), American-Style Pale Ale (145 entries), American-Style Amber/Red Ale (140 entries) and Imperial India Pale Ale (135 entries).

The 2014 GABF competition also featured three new categories: Belgian-Style Fruit Beer, Historical Beer and Kuyt Beer.

A list of the winners can be found at www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/the-competition/winners/.