What is the World Beer Cup?
In the world of brewing, the World Beer Cup, fondly referred to as “the beer Olympics,” stands as the premier global beer competition.
This event coincides annually with the Craft Brewers Conference® & BrewExpo America®.
Since its inception in 1996, the World Beer Cup has been instrumental in celebrating the fusion of brewing artistry and science.
The competition plays an essential role in fostering greater consumer understanding of various beer styles and flavor profiles, all while championing the cause of international brewing excellence.
Chris Williams, the World Beer Cup’s competition director, believes that when industry professionals recognize outstanding products from the global marketplace, beer enthusiasts can rest assured they are enjoying the crème de la crème of beers.
The World Beer Cup is meticulously orchestrated by the Brewers Association, a non-profit trade association devoted to the cause of small and independent American brewers.
The association is committed to promoting their exceptional beers and fostering a strong community of brewing aficionados.
How are winners determined?
The World Beer Cup, in its quest to honor brewing prowess, assesses entries across 103 distinct categories. It’s important to note, though, that gold, silver, and bronze awards for the top three beers in each category aren’t handed out by default. Only when the judges encounter three beers that are excellent representatives of a particular style do they present these awards.
Should all entries in a category significantly deviate from the style norms or exhibit substantial flaws, judges reserve the right to withhold any awards for that category. If a category attracts fewer than three entries, the Competition Director will suspend judging for that category.
Moreover, the judges can bestow an award for any one of the top three positions without necessarily acknowledging all three. To illustrate, a beer could earn recognition as a silver or bronze awardee without a gold award being granted in the same category.
So, what criteria define a beer as worthy of a gold, silver, or bronze award? Chris Williams, the Competition Director, explains, “Beer evaluation operates on several layers. From a professional standpoint, it’s a kind of peer review.
The results are made public, enabling consumers to discover which beers achieve high-quality standards and which ones exemplify certain styles, as interpreted by the judges.
When industry experts recognize the excellence of products on the market, consumers can trust they’re sampling the best available.”
Award Categories
The following are the standards for the awards:
- GOLD signifies a world-class beer that perfectly embodies the specified style, exhibiting the right balance of taste, aroma, and appearance.
- SILVER represents an exceptional beer that may slightly deviate from the style norms but maintains a close fidelity to the style, exhibiting excellent taste, aroma, and appearance.
- BRONZE denotes a commendable example of the style, which might slightly vary from the style norms and/or have minor defects in taste, aroma, or appearance.
Who are the judges?
The Competition Manager of the World Beer Cup cherry-picks judges from a roster of globally recognized figures in the beer industry. These include brewers, consultants, industry suppliers, and writers.
The selection is based on five crucial criteria:
- Formal sensory training in beer
- Regular sensory experience with beer
- Recognition within the industry and amongst peers
- Comprehensive understanding of beer styles and brewing processes, and
- Appropriate judging demeanor.
Potential judges must be fluent in both spoken and written English, possess formal sensory training, and regularly participate in flavor panels or competitions.
Each judging panel at the World Beer Cup typically includes about 10-12% new judges.
Those interested in being considered for the World Beer Cup judging panel should reach out to Competition Director Chris Williams via email.
Prospective candidates will be asked to submit an online application, which should include a brewing industry curriculum vitae or résumé emphasizing formal beer sensory training and ongoing sensory experience, plus three letters of recommendation (all in English).
New judges are appointed based on the order of their application completion and approval.
What is the judging procedure?
Judging for the World Beer Cup takes place just before the commencement of the Brewers Association Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America®.
The Competition Manager assigns judges to evaluate beers within their particular areas of expertise, and they do not judge in all categories.
A judge typically tastes no more than 30 beers in a single judging session and never assesses their own product or any product where a conflict of interest might arise (for instance, a consultant cannot judge a client’s beer).
The judging process is conducted blind, with no information regarding the brand disclosed to the judges. Beers are judged purely on their own merit.
Judges at the World Beer Cup serve several vital functions. They identify winning beer entries that satisfy the stringent award criteria mentioned previously.
Additionally, they are expected to provide concise and accurate written feedback to the breweries that entered the competition.
This feedback includes both positive aspects of the product and any defects noted during the competition.
This constructive feedback adds value to the breweries’ World Beer Cup entries and offers a sneak peek into the judging process.
What Categories are there for Non-Alcoholic Beer?
Unfortunately, there is only one category for non-alcoholic beer.
They are not separated into distinct categories based on their unique styles like the other, leaded beers.
The category is just plain old “Non-Alcohol Beer”.
This means that all the non-alcoholic stouts, lagers, IPAs, etc. are all compared against each other.
In our opinion, that doesn’t make much sense, especially given the number of non-alcoholic options that are available today in all styles and varieties.
And the winners are…
Bronze Medal Winner
Beer: Galactic Extra Dark
Brewery: Big Drop Brewing Co.
Style: Stout
About the Beer
Galactic is a Milk Stout by Big Drop Brewing Company.
Galactic is here to revolutionize your perspective on beer styles. Forget any preconceived notion that this beer style has become passé.
Instead, envision a piece of honeycomb smothered in chocolate. That’s precisely the taste experience that Galactic offers – a rich, luxurious, and indulgently delightful beer treat.
Silver Medal Winner
Beer: Just the Haze
Brewery: Samuel Adams
Style: Hazy IPA
About the Beer
After relentless endeavors to enhance each brew, Sam Adams has finally mastered a delicious non-alcoholic beer that meets the stringent standards of a true beer aficionado. Other beer enthusiasts concur.
Sam Adams’ non-alcoholic beer, Just the Haze, clinched a Gold Medal for Best Non-Alcoholic in America at the Great American Beer Fest.
While a good beer is always satisfying, the buzz isn’t always desired. Hence, Sam Adams crafted a top-notch IPA for beer lovers that just happens to be non-alcoholic.
The alcohol is removed gently and slowly, ensuring all the flavor is retained for the consumer.
Introduce this hazy, hoppy non-alcoholic IPA into your drinking routine and enhance your days, your nights, and every toast in between.
Gold Medal Winner
Beer: Superb-Owl
Brewery: Uiltje Brewery
Style: IPA
About the Beer
Introducing the gold-medal winning brew by Uiltje Brewing Company in the Netherlands: Superb-owl.
This revolutionary ale brings to the table a low-alcohol beverage that packs a mighty punch, minus the disorienting aftermath. In the lingo of American football, there’s no need for a concussion protocol here!
At only 85 calories per can, Superb-owl is a crowd-pleaser, appealing to both the on-field linebackers and the laid-back spectators who take pleasure in watching these athletes clash with their muscular adversaries.
Superb-owl is a refreshing IPA with a low alcohol content and fewer calories, designed to keep you high-spirited all through the night.
With an ABV of 0.2%, it embodies a balance of flavor and bitterness, with an International Bitterness Units (IBU) measurement of 7. The European Brewery Convention (EBC) value, indicating its color, stands at 30.
The beer’s malt backbone is made from barley, while the hop profile includes Amarillo, Citra, Mosaic, and Nelson Sauvin, contributing to its unique flavor and aroma.
These are all the medal winners. Hopefully you can get your hands on some of these brews.
If you’re looking for some more of the best non-alcoholic beers available, we have plenty of resources and lists available for you, such as some incredible NA IPAs, some superb NA stouts, lovely NA lagers, outstanding NA Oktoberfests, and stellar NA sours. Or you can consider a subscription to our NA beer-of-the-month club. It makes for the perfect non-alcoholic beer gift for you or someone else.
