Next year I hope to write this story from Denver on the floor of the Great American Beer Festival.
On Saturday the 2017 Great American Beer Festival (GABF) competition awarded 293 medals to some of the best commercial breweries in the United States, plus three GABF Pro-Am medals to teams of homebrewers paired with professionals. Presented by the Brewers Association (BA), GABF is the largest commercial beer competition in the world and the premier symbol of brewing excellence.
Winners were chosen out of 7,923 competition entries from 2,217 breweries in 50 states plus Washington, D.C. (a 15 percent and 24 percent increase respectively from the 7,301 entries and 1,783 breweries in 2016).
The competition took place in six sessions over a period of three days and was judged by 276 beer experts from 13 countries, including the U.S. In addition to commercial brewery entries, the judging panel also evaluated 118 Pro-Am entries.
Among the winners, St. Louis and Missouri breweries made their names known once again.
Gold Medal
| Bull Creek Brown Ale | Springfield Brewing Co. | Springfield | MO | American-Style Brown Ale | 2017 |
Silver Medal
| Blended 2017 | Side Project Brewing | Maplewood | MO | Belgian-Style Lambic or Sour Ale | 2017 |
| Mamoot English Mild | Logboat Brewing Co. | Columbia | MO | English-Style Mild Ale | 2017 |
| Pumpkin Ale | Schlafly Beer/The Saint Louis Brewery | Saint Louis | MO | Pumpkin/Squash Beer or Pumpkin Spice Beer | 2017 |
| Maman 2017 | Perennial Artisan Ales | Saint Louis | MO | Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Stout | 2017 |
Bronze Medal
| Working Title | Perennial Artisan Ales | Saint Louis | MO | Belgian- and French-Style Ale | 2017 |
| Northtown Native | Cinder Block Brewery | North Kansas City | MO | Dortmunder or German-Style Oktoberfest | 2017 |
| Barrel Aged Barleywine | Charleville Vineyard & Microbrewery | Sainte Genevieve | MO | Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer | 2017 |
