The Great American Beer Festival is dominated by craft beer, but the big dogs come to compete too. We checked out which of the macro beers took home precious metals, and the results might surprise you. Just because you’ve heard of the beer doesn’t mean it doesn’t deserve a medal.
Large Brewing Company of the Year: The Sandlot
For those unfamiliar, The Sandlot is a Blue Moon/MillerCoors owned brewery at Coors Field in Denver. It’s actually the location in which Blue Moon was invented. They makes kegs of Blue Moon in house, but also create a constant stream of one-off beers. They’re only open during baseball season though, so you’ll have to wait until next year.
American Style Light Lager
Budweiser Select, AB – GOLD
Miller High Life, Miller – SILVER
Special Export, Pabst – BRONZE
American Style Creme Ale
Natural Ice, AB – GOLD
Old Style, Pabst – SILVER
Ranier, Pabst – BRONZE
Non-craft beers also took home a few medals outside the expected categories. It just goes to show that a particular owner doesn’t necessitate a specific result.
Fruit Beer
Golden Knot – Chardonnay, Blue Moon – GOLD
Smoke Beer
Second Hand Smoke, SandLot – GOLD
Dortmunder or German-Style Oktoberfest
Move Back, SandLot – GOLD
German-Style Kölsch
Leinenkugel’s Canoe Paddler, Leinenkugel – GOLD
American-Style Dark Lager
Leinenkugel’s Creamy Dark, Leinenkugel – SILVER
Bock
Goat Rancher, SandLot – BRONZE
To see how your favorite craft breweries stacked up, check out the GABF website. You can even find all the winner based on state to figure out whose the best in your area.