2016 Washington Beer Award Winners

This past weekend the 11th Annual Washington Brewer’s Festival took place in Redmond at King County’s Marymoor Park. Along with this three-day festival the Washington Beer Commission teams up with Specialty Competitions LLC to host the 4th Annual Washington Beer Awards.

For 2016 the judging competition received 950 beers from 139 different Washington based breweries. To be considered each of the beers submitted for judging had to be both brewed and made commercially available within the state of Washington. All 950 entries were evaluated in a blind format using the Brewers Association Style Guidelines by panels of trained beer judges who awarded Gold, Silver, and Bronze placements for each 56 different category groupings.

The big awards of the day went to Ten Pin Brewing for Small Brewery of the Year, E9 Brewery for Mid-Sized Brewery of the Year, and No-Li Brewhouse for Large Brewery of the Year.

Here’s a rundown of the all of the award winners in each of the 56 categories. Congratulations to all winners!

European Pale Lagers:
Gold: Gordon Biersch-Seattle – Helles
Silver: Three Magnets Brewing Co. – Scherler Gold
Bronze: Redhook Brewery – ESL

Pilsners:
Gold: Reuben’s Brews – Small Batch Brewery – Pilsener
Silver: Fremont Brewing – Pilsner
Bronze: Chuckanut Brewery – Chuckanut Pils

European Amber & Dark Lagers:
Gold: Chuckanut Brewery – Chuckanut Dunkel
Silver: Icicle Brewing Company – Dirtyface Amber
Bronze: Ram Restaurant & Brewery – Vienna

Strong Lagers:
Gold: Chuckanut Brewery – Chuckanut Maibock
Silver: River City Brewing – Congratulator Doppelbock
Bronze: Snipes Mountain – Bandolero Rye Baltic Porter

American Lagers:
Gold: Northwest Brewing Company – Hawk One Lager
Silver: Farmstrong Brewing Company – La Raza
Bronze: Everybody’s Brewing – Local Logger Lager

German-Style Kölsch:
Gold: Heathen Brewing – Absolution
Silver: Reuben’s Brews – Production Brewery & Taproom – Kolsch
Bronze: Dru Bru – Kolsch

German-Style Altbier:
Gold: Bainbridge Brewing – Arrow Point Amber
Silver: White Bluffs Brewing – Red Alt
Bronze: Resonate Brewery + Pizzeria – Lithium

German Wheat & Rye Beers:
Gold: Stoup Brewing – Stoup Bavarian Hefeweizen
Silver: Seapine Brewing Company – Simian Saber Squabble
Bronze: 5 Rights Brewing Company – Nellie’s Nectar

Other Wheat & Rye Beers:
Gold: Loowit Brewing Company – Grimlock Rye Porter
Silver: Republic Brewing Company – Ramblin Rye Ale
Bronze: Rainy Daze Brewing Co. – Rainy Rye

Golden or Blonde Ales:
Gold: Hellbent Brewing Company – Goldfinch Golden Ale
Silver: Diamond Knot Brewing Co. – Blonde Ale
Bronze: Counterbalance Brewing Company – Abigale Blonde Ale

Cream Ales:
Gold: Puyallup River Brewing Co. – Cream Ale
Silver: Flyers Restaurant & Brewery – Penn Cove Pilsner
Bronze: Wet Coast Brewing Co. – Wet Coast Cream Ale

Session Beers:
Gold: Ten Pin Brewing Co. – Shrunken Head Pin
Silver: Sumerian Brewing Co. – Sargon IPA
Bronze: Rainy Daze Brewing Co. – Sod Slayer

Bitters:
Gold: Flycaster Brewing Company – ESB
Silver: No-Li Brewhouse – Spin Cycle Red
Bronze: Dick’s Brewing Co. – Dick’s Best Bitter

English Ales:
Gold: Flyers Restaurant & Brewery – Humbles Blonde Ale
Silver: No-Li Brewhouse – Born And Raised
Bronze: Fish Brewing Company – Organic IPA

English Dark Ales:
Gold: Walking Man Brewing – Barefoot Brown
Silver: Flyers Restaurant & Brewery – Barnstormer Brown Ale
Bronze: Puyallup River Brewing Co. – Springtime Brown Ale

British Strong Ales:
Gold: Sound To Summit Brewing – Wild Willy Wee Heavy
Silver: Silver City Brewery – Old Scrooge
Bronze: Icicle Brewing Company – The Decline

Scottish Shilling Ales:
Gold: Northern Ales, Inc. – Okanagan Highlander
Silver: Waddell’s Brewing Co. – Scottish
Bronze: River Time Brewing – Life Changer

Scotch Ales:
Gold: Old Rock Brewery – Misery Whip Scotch Ale
Silver: Heathen Brewing – Highland Charge
Bronze: Silver City Brewery – Fat Scotch Ale

Irish Red Ales:
Gold: Loowit Brewing Company – Two-Sixteen Red Ale
Silver: Heathen Brewing – Mighty Craic
Bronze: Silver City Brewery – Ridgetop Red

Robust Porters:
Gold: Der Blokken Brewery – The Black
Silver: Stoup Brewing – Stoup Robust Porter
Bronze: Reuben’s Brews – Production Brewery & Taproom – Robust Porter

Other Porters:
Gold: Kulshan Brewing Co. – Transporter
Silver: Schooner EXACT Brewing Company – King Street Brown
Bronze: Ram Restaurant & Brewery – Porter

Sweet/Cream Stouts:
Gold: Wet Coast Brewing Co. – Sneak Thief Stout
Silver: Bushnell Craft Brewing Company – Dunkadelic Milk Stout
Bronze: Triceratops Brewing Company – Hawthorne Coffee Milk Stout

Irish Stouts:
Gold: Gordon Biersch-Seattle – Irish Stout
Silver: Wander Brewing – Correspondent
Bronze: Paradise Creek Brewery – Invective Stout

American-Style Stouts:
Gold: Flying Lion Brewing – Rye Stout
Silver: Beardslee Public House – Sidewinder Stout
Bronze: Waddell’s Brewing Co. – Alligator Stout

Imperial Stouts:
Gold: Fortside Brewing Company – Cocoa-Fied
Silver: Naked City Brewery & Taphouse – Big Lebrewski
Bronze: Black Raven Brewing Co. – Grandfather Raven

American-Style Pale Ales:
Gold: No-Li Brewhouse – Poser
Silver: E9 Brewery LLC – Don Of Time
Bronze: Flying Lion Brewing – Single-Hop Pale

American-Style Strong Pale Ales:
Gold: Heathen Brewing – Vantucky
Silver: Old Schoolhouse Brewery – Epiphany Pale Ale
Bronze: Ten Pin Brewing Co. – Head Pin IPA

Belgo-American & International Ales:
Gold: Gordon Biersch-Seattle – Belgian IPA
Silver: Reuben’s Brews – Small Batch Brewery – Triumvirate
Bronze: Reuben’s Brews – Production Brewery & Taproom – Crikey IPA

American Amber Ales:
Gold: Elliott Bay Brewing Company – Organic Gateway Amber
Silver: Chainline Brewing Company – Recumbent Red Ale
Bronze: Northwest Brewing Company – Joker Amber Ale

American Brown & Black Ales:
Gold: Riverport Brewing Co. – Bambalam
Silver: No-Li Brewhouse – Crony
Bronze: Flying Bike Cooperative Brewery – Storm Cycle

American-Style India Pale Ales:
Gold: Lucky Envelope Brewing – ENIAC Mosaic IPA
Silver: Loowit Brewing Company – Flawless Victory IPA
Bronze: Ten Pin Brewing – Head Pin IPA

Imperial or Double India Pale Ales:
Gold: Northwest Brewing Company – Crazy Bitch Double India Pale Ale
Silver: Sumerian Brewing Co. – Eruption Double IPA
Bronze: Standard Brewing – Imperial IPA

Imperial or Double Red Ales:
Gold: Cloudburst Brewing – Hoodwink
Silver: Ghost Runners Brewery – Phantom Rojo Imperial Ale
Bronze: Dick’s Brewing Co. – Dick’s Wreckless Red

Barleywines:
Gold: Old Schoolhouse Brewery – Barleywine
Silver: Fish Brewing Company – Ten Squared
Bronze: TripleHorn Brewing Co – BYGG VIN 2015

Belgian Ales:
Gold: Bainbridge Brewing – Bainbridge Blonde
Silver: Northwest Brewing Company – Three Skulls Blood Orange Wit
Bronze: Reuben’s Brews – Small Batch Brewery – Lilywhite Wit

Belgian Tripels:
Gold: Silver City Brewery – Liquid Sunshine
Silver: Hellbent Brewing Company – Mossback Monk
Bronze: Slaughter County Brewing Company – Mon Petit

Abbey-Inspired Dark Ales:
Gold: Wander Brewing – Together
Silver: Valholl Brewing Company – Virgin Hammer Belgian Quad
Bronze: Mollusk – Abbot’s Private Reserve

Belgian Strong Ales:
Gold: Boundary Bay Brewery & Bistro – Wonderland Belgian Strong Golden
Silver: TripleHorn Brewing Co – Mystic
Bronze: Rainy Daze Brewing Co. – Bewildered Stout

Farmhouse Ales:
Gold: Three Magnets Brewing Co. – Karakterbier
Silver: Urban Family Brewing – Voices Underground
Bronze: Farmstrong Brewing Company – Northwest Farmhouse Ale

Brett Beers:
Gold: E9 Brewery LLC – Friendship
Silver: Standard Brewing – Brett Earl
Bronze: E9 Brewery LLC – Nectarberry

German Sour Beers:
Gold: Seapine Brewing Company – Gose
Silver: E9 Brewery LLC – Wild Tacoma Table Sour
Bronze: Aslan Brewing Co – Disco Lemonade

Sour Beers:
Gold: Elliott Bay Brewing Company – Big Pun
Silver: Stoup Brewing – Stoup American Pale Sour
Bronze: Urban Family Brewing – Lady Of The Night

American-Style Fruit Beer:
Gold: River City Brewing – Huckleberry Ale
Silver: Big Block Brewing – Raspberry Blonde
Bronze: Dick’s Brewing Co. – Dick’s Grapefruit IPA

Fruit Wheat Beers:
Gold: Ten Pin Brewing – Groove Pineapple Wheat
Silver: TripleHorn Brewing Co – Blood Orange Symbel
Bronze: Ice Harbor Brewing Co. – Tangerine ExBEERience Hefeweizen

Belgian Fruit Beers:
Gold: Propolis Brewing – Pi
Silver: Wander Brewing – Cranberry Fruit Puncheon
Bronze: Schooner EXACT Brewing Company – NW Sour Beer Framboise

Vegetable Beers:
Gold: E9 Brewery LLC – Rhubarb Wild
Silver: Resonate Brewery + Pizzeria – Paradise
Bronze: Anacortes Brewery – 2015 Pumpkin Ale

Chili Pepper Beers:
Gold: Middleton Brewing – Mierda Fuego
Silver: Big Al Brewing – Big Al Chile IPA
Bronze: Lucky Envelope Brewing – Two Pepper Pale Ale

Coffee & Chocolate Beers:
Gold: Elysian Brewing Company – The Fix
Silver: Wet Coast Brewing Co. – El Capitan Brown Ale
Bronze: Puyallup River Brewing Co. – Mud Mountain Milk Stout

Herb & Spice Beers:
Gold: Kulshan Brewing Co. – Royal Tannenbaum
Silver: Hi-Fi Brewing Co. – Pump Up The Volume 2015
Bronze: Elysian Brewing Company – Saison Poivre

Smoke Beers:
Gold: Chuckanut Brewery – Chuckanut Helles Rauchbier
Silver: Whitewall Brewing Company – Firetrail Ale
Bronze: Big Barn Brewing Co – Mountain Smoke Porter

Specialty & Historical Beers:
Gold: Pike Brewing Company – Pike Hive Five Hopped Honey Ale
Silver: Crucible Brewing Co – Crucible Kettle Sour
Bronze: No-Li Brewhouse – Oyster Stout

Experimental:
Gold: Urban Family Brewing – Clouds Of Pale Gold
Silver: Bainbridge Brewing – Windfall Grapefruit IPA
Bronze: Lucky Envelope Brewing – Peanut Butter Porter

Wood & Barrel Aged Beers:
Gold: Wander Brewing – Wild Warehouse
Silver: Fortside Brewing Company – Cocoa-Espresso Port/Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
Bronze: River City Brewing – Wine Barrel-Aged Huckleberry Ale

Wood & Barrel Aged Strong Beers:
Gold: Fremont Brewing – Bourbon Abominable (B-Bomb)
Silver: Whitewall Brewing Company – Anniversary Ale
Bronze: Black Raven Brewing Co. – La Mort Bourbon

Wood & Barrel Aged Sour Beers:
Gold: Three Magnets Brewing Co. – 2014 Tart Barrel Aged Helsing
Silver: Riverport Brewing Co. – Barrel Two Batch One
Bronze: Naked City Brewery & Taphouse – The Wild One

Washington Pro-Am:
Gold: Aslan Brewing Co & Jenn Tadder – Lucky Break
Silver: Ram Restaurant & Brewery & Phil Cammarano – Roggen
Bronze: Snipes Mountain & Stephanie Rodriguez – Hop Jelq IPA

Best Washington Agricultural Product Inspired Beer: E9 Brewery LLC – Blackberry
Best Washington Malt Beer (Sponsored by Skagit Valley Malting): Four Horsemen Brewery – Black Plague Stout

Small Brewery of the Year (Sponsored by YCH Hops, Yakima Chief – Hopunion): Ten Pin Brewing
Mid-Sized Brewery of the Year (Sponsored by Washington Hops Commission): E9 Brewery LLC
Large Brewery of the Year (Sponsored by Briess Malt and Ingredients): No-Li Brewhouse