Coronado Brewing Company, North Park Beer Company and Pizza Port Brewing Company brought home the gold at the 2024 World Beer Cup in Las Vegas.
San Diego breweries won 14 medals overall at the largest international beer competition, often referred to as the Olympics for brewers.
Coronado Brewing won for “Nado” in the International Lager category. North Park Beer won for “Ice-Fu!” in the Hoppy Lager category.
Pizza Port did even better, with two golds, one for its “Junk In Da Trunkel Dunkel” from its Ocean Beach brewing location, in the South German-Style Dunkel Weizen category, and one for its “24th Annual Strong Ale Festival Blend,” from its Carlsbad brewing facility, in the Wood-and Barrel-Aged Beer category.
Gold medals are awarded to “world class beers that accurately exemplify the specified style, displaying the proper balance of taste, aroma and appearance,” according to World Beer Cup judging criteria.
“Winning never gets old, and we are proud of our hard-working craft brewers who represent the guild and our region so well on the international stage,” said San Diego Brewers Guild Executive Director Erik Fowler.
Other multiple winners include, Craft Coast Beer & Tacos in Oceanside, with a silver for “Chillzner” in the International Pilsener category, and a bronze, for “XPA” in the Australian-Style Pale Ale category, and North Park Beer, which also took a silver “Hop-Fu!” in the American-Style IPA category.
The medal ceremony took place as part of the Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America, which includes more than than 9,300 beers from 2,600 breweries in 50 countries. The Brewers Association, which is a not-for-profit trade association that promotes and protects American craft brewers, hosts the event.
San Diego breweries eclipsed last year’s World Beer Cup medal total of 12, with one more gold medal as well.
Other local medalists include (see all winners here):
- Silver – Battlemage Brewing Company in Vista) for “Summon Ifrit,” American-Style Amber/Red Ale” category; Culture Brewing Co in Solana Beach, “Kostka-busser,” Honey Beer category, and Karl Strauss Brewing Company in San Diego, “Golden Stout,” Coffee Beer category.
- Bronze – Abnormal Co. in Rancho Bernardo, “Eddie’s Redux,” West Coast-Style IPA category; Fall Brewing Company in North Park, “Tora!,” International Lager category; Julian Beer Company, “Dolphin of the Desert”, Belgian-Style Quadrupel category, and Kilowatt Brewing in Kearny Mesa, “OB Bubble Dubbel,” Belgian-Style Dubbel category.
Judges include internationally recognized brewers, consultants, industry suppliers and writers. Judging is blind, with no brand knowledge of any kind provided the panel.
The World Beer Cup was developed by the Brewers Association in 1996 to celebrate the art and science of brewing.
