Florida residents have been in on the secret for a while now: craft beer in the Sunshine State has been improving, advancing, and expanding for a while now. This news has been pouring out of the Southernmost State and after this year’s U.S. Open Beer Championship, Florida’s craft breweries have proven their mettle once again amidst national competition.
This year’s U.S. Open Beer Championship saw over 3,000 beers competing for honors in 81 different categories.
Who took home honors?
* Florida Beer Company of Titusville took home a bronze medal in the IPA category for Devil’s Triangle IPA.
* Brew Bus Brewing of Tampa took home a bronze medal in the porter category for Double Decker Porter.
* Cigar City Brewpub of Tampa took home a gold medal in the cream stout category for Brewers Brunch.
* Motorworks Brewing of Sarasota took home a bronze medal in the cream stout category for Sweet Stout.
*Cigar City Brewing of Tampa took home a gold medal in the imperial stout category for Marshall Zhukov’s Imperial Stout.
*Brew Bus Brewing of Tampa took home a silver medal in the Irish red category for Rollin’ Dirty.
*Rapp Brewing of Seminole took home a bronze medal in the Irish red category for Irish Red.
*Brewzzi City Place of West Palm Beach took home a gold medal in the marzen category for CityFest.
*Brewzzi City Place of West Palm Beach also took home a silver medal in the schwarzbier category for Black Duke.
*Big Top Brewing of Sarasota took home a bronze medal in vegetable beer for Honey Jalapeno Blonde Ale.
*Cigar City Brewing of Tampa took home a gold medal in coffee beer for Cubano Espresso Brown Ale.
*Green Bench Brewing of Saint Petersburg won a gold medal in Wood and Barrel Aged Pale Beer for Saison de Banc Vert.
*Green Bench Brewing of Saint Petersburg won a gold medal in Wood and Barrel Aged Sour Beer for French Oak Rye Sour Brown.
*Big Bear Brewing of Coral Springs won a bronze medal in Aged Beer for their Triple Lindy.
*Green Bench Brewing of Saint Petersburg won a bronze medal in Experimental Beer for their Spring Bloom IIPA.
*Cigar City Cider & Mead of Tampa tied for a gold medal in Specialty Cider and Perry for Homemade Apple Pie Cider.
But wait, there’s more:
Green Bench Brewing of Saint Petersburg also won so many medals that they qualified for national rankings in the competition and after winning two golds and a bronze medal, tied for the 9th highest ranked brewery in the United States.
Congratulations to all the winners and all the entrants in the U.S. Open Beer Championship. For a full list, click here.