USA Beer Ratings Announces 2018 Winners

05/09/2018 38 Medals Awarded to Beers From All Over the World

San Francisco, California. September 5, 2018 – Beverage Trade Network today announced the results of the 2018 USA Beer Ratings competition. Overall, the panel of judges in San Francisco recognized 38 medal winners in a broad variety of categories, including Beer of the Year, Brewery of the Year, Best in Show by Country, Best in Show by Quality and Best in Show by Value.

Meet Your Maker from Monkless Belgian Ales

The highest-scoring beer in the competition was Meet Your Maker from Monkless Belgian Ales in Bend, Oregon, which received 96 out of a possible 100 points. Monkless Belgian Ales was also named 2018 Brewery of the Year. Other Gold medal winners at the USA Beer Ratings included beers from Italy, Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom.

Entries in the USA Beer Ratings competition were blind-tasted and judged by a high-profile panel of judges, who assessed the beers in competition on the basis of three primary criteria: Quality, Value and Package. All beers were scored on a 100-point scale that assigned relative weights to each of these three criteria. Beers that scored 90+ points were awarded Gold medals, beers that scored 80 to 89 points were awarded Silver medals and beers that scored 70 to 79 points were awarded Bronze medals. Overall, 8 beers received Gold medals, 20 received Silver medals and 10 received Bronze medals.

The USA Beer Ratings was launched in late 2017 by Beverage Trade Network, which organizes alcohol beverage industry events all over the world. The goal of this event was to judge beers the way consumers judge them. In contrast to other beer competitions, where brewing ability and technical expertise sometimes receive primary consideration at the expense of drinkability, the goal of the USA Beer Ratings was to award and celebrate the beers that beer drinkers actually want to buy, whether at a retail liquor store or ordering off the menu at a restaurant.

USA Beer Ratings packaging evaluation

“Our goal was to set a very high bar for the types of beers that receive Gold, Silver and Bronze medals,” said Sid Patel, CEO and Founder of Beverage Trade Network. “We worked carefully with the judges on evaluating the criteria of Quality, Value and Package in order to take a consumer-centric view of the top beers in the world. Based on initial feedback we have already received on this judging criteria, we believe that events like the USA Beer Ratings can help to change the paradigm for the global beer industry.”

At this year’s competition, U.S. Gold medal winners included Bootstrap Brewing Company (Wreak Havoc), Lead Dog Brewing Company (Citra Solo IPA), and Booze Brothers Brewing Company (Good Guy). “The fact that judges were able to recognize these craft brews for their excellence is further evidence that our mission of recognizing world-class beers from around the world is already having a real impact,” said Sid Patel of Beverage Trade Network.

USA Beer Ratings - Beer Glass for tasting

Based on the initial success of this year’s USA Beer Ratings, Beverage Trade Network plans to run the competition again in 2019 and will be opening up entries towards the end of 2018.

For more information on the USA Beer Ratings, please see: www.USABeerRatings.com

For more information on Beverage Trade Network, please see:

www.beveragetradenetwork.com

Medal Winners