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| Photo courtesy of Brewers Association. |
They say change is inevitable, and after walking in for the 15th time, it didn't take long to notice the first of a series of changes instituted for the 2024 Great American Beer Festival, presented by the Brewers Association. Why, you ask? Well, the lights were off over the section of the festival floor closest to brewer/media entry door.
This year, the tradition of organizing breweries primarily by region was scrapped. Instead, themed areas were introduced, with brewers given the option of picking where to pitch their proverbial tent. In addition to where the darkness fell upon the Fright (Halloween) and Blast Off (outer space, far out flavors) sections, there were more luminous areas to Chill (live music and games), to check the Score! (televised sports), and to Prost! (German biergarten).
As for other attractions, some we've seen before, like karaoke, silent disco, and the "History of Craft Beer" exhibit. But then, there was live Lucha Libre (a Mexican style of wrestling) and a mechanical bull, new additions that brought a bit of spectacle to the proceedings.
The bull was well-ridden, the wrestling seemed well-received, and while the question of "Who turned out the lights?" was posed a time or ten, most agreed some type of change in presentation was needed to breathe new life into the event. At least during the Thursday night session, the attendance and energy quotients certainly seemed higher compared to last year.
And, the liquid lineup? Beverage options had already expanded in response to the industry trend of diversifying to reach other types of drinkers, though it felt like beer alternatives were even more present this time around. With a plethora of ciders, seltzers, kombucha, hard sodas and teas, and now canned cocktails, one could argue the Great American Beer Festival of the past is more like a Great American Beverage Festival at present.
That said, naturally there was beer and plenty of it. Like last year, IPAs and various types of lagers dominated menus, with specialty styles fewer and far between. For example, there weren't more than two or three options for beer drinkers hoping to sample Belgian dubbels, German dopplebocks and dunkleweizens, English milds, Flanders beers, or old ales.
Locals from North Texas primarily poured standards from their portfolios as well, those in attendance being 903 Brewers of Sherman, False Idol Brewing of North Richland Hills, Martin House Brewing Co. of Fort Worth, Odd Muse Brewing Co. of Farmers Branch, Peticolas Brewing Co. of Dallas, and Union Bear Brewing Co. of Denton/Plano.
Among national breweries, the longest lines and some of the most sought-after beers were associated with the likeliest suspects: Russian River Brewing Co. and The Lost Abbey of California, WeldWerks Brewing Co. of Colorado, Dogfish Head Brewery of Delaware, 3 Floyds Brewing of Indiana, and Toppling Goliath Brewing Co. of Iowa.
One single-ounce standout was sourced from those above, thanks to Russian River rolling two lines to offset the craft beer electorate looking to cast a vote for Pliny for President 2024, a triple dry-hopped IPA. I didn't vote myself, choosing instead for the quicker path to the brewery's quadrupel, Mortification.
That beer and other festival favorites are shared here based on the idea readers might be traveling and seeking refreshment in the vicinity of a particular purveyor. This also applies to the taproom trip summaries that follow the requisite coverage of local award winners (both pro and amateur) below.
- Brew 8000 Barrel-Aged Barleywine from Fremont Brewing of Washington.
- Charles' Kvass from Burns Family Artisan Ales of Colorado.
- Chocolate Rye Farm Porter from The Colorado Farm Brewery of Colorado.
- Decorah Nordic Gruit from Pivo Brewery of Iowa.
- Double Dunkel from Wibby Brewing of Colorado.
- Mortification Quadrupel from Russian River Brewing Co. of California.
- Rip This Joint Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout from Firestone Walker Brewing Co. of California and Side Project Brewing of Missouri.
- Rode Vogel Flanders Red from Strangebird Beer of New York.
Cheers!
Professional competition results
Changes also extended to the GABF competition. New categories included one for Italian-Style Pilsner, while cider judging took place for the first time with five categories added covering different varieties.
Most-entered categories again favored IPAs, with Juicy/Hazy IPA, West Coast IPA and American-Style IPA securing the top three spots. Then, in perhaps a bit of a surprise, the Dortmunder or German-Style Oktoberfest and German-Style Maerzen categories supplanted Light Lager and German-Style Pilsner (#3 and #5 in 2023) to round out the top five.
Statistics:
- 8,836 beers judged based on entries sent in from 1,869 breweries and cideries residing in all 50 U.S. states, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico.
- 326 total medals awarded across 109 style categories.
As for local winners, four North Texas breweries were honored. Among them, Bankhead Brewing Co. of Rowlett landed its second medal in a row for Hootenanny Bock. The brewpub has now acquired four GABF medals all time (three in the last two years alone), third-most among active brewing operations since 2012.
First time GABF medalists include On Rotation Brewery & Kitchen of Dallas, Odd Muse Brewing Co. of Farmers Branch, and Three Wide Brewing Co. of Fort Worth. Though, it's notable that Three Wide's win for Heart of Glass is a repeat of sorts, since it's based on the recipe and brewed by the same crew behind Rapture Fusion Brown Ale, which won a silver for Rabbit Hole Brewing Co. of Justin in 2015.
Silver
- On Rotation Brewery & Kitchen for Jalapeño Saison - Chile Beer.
- Odd Muse Brewing Co. for 500 Pesos - International-Style Pilsner.
- Three Wide Brewing Co. for Heart of Glass - American-Style Brown Ale.
- Bankhead Brewing Co. for Hootenanny - Bock.
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| Representatives from Odd Muse (top left), Bankhead (top right) and Three Wide (bottom) accept their awards at the 2024 Great American Beer Festival (Photos: Brewers Association). |
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| Source: Individual research. |
Statistics:
- 3,593 beers judged based on entries sent in from 1,179 homebrewers in 47 U.S. states, Washington D.C., and 7 international countries.
- 150 total medals awarded across 50 style categories.
Five locally-made brews garnered recognition, with Jarrett Long and John Bates of the Fort Worth-based club, Horsemen of the Hopocalypse, further winning the Ninkasi Award, a prize given to the homebrewer (or team) accumulating the most points during the final round of competition.
- Jarrett Long with John Bates of Horsemen of the Hopocalypse, Fort Worth - Brown British Beer.
- Ian Heger of North Texas Homebrewers Association, Dallas - American Wheat & Blond.
- Jarrett Long with John Bates of Horsemen of the Hopocalypse, Fort Worth - American Porter & Stout.
- Jarrett Long with John Bates of Horsemen of the Hopocalypse, Fort Worth - Semi-Sweet Mead.
- Fritz Schanz of Denton County Homebrewers Guild, Aubrey - Specialty Beer.
- This year, destinations visited in hopes of enjoying brews with a view included Broken Compass Brewing Co. of Breckenridge (the outlet outside of town) and Outer Range Brewing Co. of Frisco. Both delivered on liquids and the lookout point, especially Outer Range with its upstairs patio. The two spots are eight miles apart, with other breweries around if you're looking to make a day of it up in the mountains. Also highly recommended - a lunch of exotic links at Ein Prosit Fine Beer & Sausages in Downtown Frisco.
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| Tasty beers pair well with mountain views at Outer Range Brewing Co. of Frisco and Broken Compass Brewing Co. of Breckenridge (© Brian Brown/Beer in Big D). |
- In recent times, a number of Denver-area breweries have expanded their reach by opening supplemental sites out in the suburbs. One is Prost Brewing Co., now serving its brand of traditional German beer in Denver (the original), Fort Collins, Highlands Ranch and Northglenn. The new HQ in Northglenn is, in a word...huge. The facility combines a 10,000 square foot taproom, with a 60,000 square foot production space, an outdoor biergarten, full kitchen and more. Again...huge.
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| Prost now operates four locations, including the above HQ in Northglenn, Colorado (© Brian Brown/Beer in Big D). |
For more on the 2023 GABF and the historical performance of breweries from North Texas, click the links below:
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