The 2025 Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beer (FOBAB), was held November 7–8 at Chicago’s Credit Union 1 Arena, once again crowned the Midwest’s boldest barrel-aged creations in front of thousands of beer fans. More than 150 breweries poured over 300 rare beers, ciders, meads, and perrys across 2 sessions, while a blind panel of BJCP and Cicerone judges awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals in 13 categories. Standouts included gold-medal pours from Verboten Brewing, Third Eye Brewing, The Lost Abbey and Revolution Brewing with attendees voting for session-specific Fan Favorites. FOBAB medal continues a tradition of raising critical funds for the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild.
Born in 2003 as a modest 18-brewery gathering in a Chicago warehouse, FOBAB has grown into the world’s largest and most prestigious barrel-aged beer competition. Founded by the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild, the event pioneered blind judging for wood- and barrel-aged styles long before bourbon-barrel stouts became mainstream. Past Best in Show winners—such as Revolution Brewing’s Deep Wood Series, Side Project’s Bière du Pays, and More Brewing’s Mehndi—have shaped national trends and inspired countless limited releases. Two decades later, FOBAB remains a pilgrimage for craft enthusiasts seeking one-off rye-whiskey barleywines, wine-foeder sours, and spirit-barrel imperial stouts that simply never hit shelves.
FOBAB Medal Winners and Best in Show
Cider/Perry/Mead
Gold: Two Tickets to Pearadise – Misbeehavin’ Meads – Indiana
Silver: Right Bee Barrel Aged Semi-Dry – Right Bee Cider – Illinois
Bronze: Myrkvior Buzz – Treehive – Illinois
Wild Beer Mixed Culture/Acidic W/Fruit
Gold: Dr. Funk-In-Stein – Full Mile Beer Co. & Kitchen – Wisconsin
Silver: Fruited Spontanee – Pfriem Family Brewers – Oregon
Bronze: Fragmentary Delusion 2025 – Scribbled Lines Brewing – Minnesota
Beer Mixed Culture/Acidic
Gold: Duck Duck Gooze – The Lost Abbey – California
Silver: Funderin – Noon Whistle Brewing – Illinois
Bronze: Ruby – Imperial Oak Brewing – Illinois
Wild Brett Beer
Gold: Wild Patience – Confluence Brewing Company – Iowa
Silver: Balmy Nights – Cerebral Brewing – Congress Park – Colorado
Bronze: Cassavetes Brett Saison – Nine Giant Brewing – Ohio
Specialty & Experimental Beer
Gold: From Earth to You – Black Horizon Brewing – Illinois
Silver: La Dama Catrina – Cruz Blanca Brewpub – Illinois
Bronze: Brandy BA Imperial Pumpkin Ale – Lakefront Brewery
Fruit Beer
Gold: Fifteen Year Beer – Revolution Brewing – Illinois
Silver: BA Raspberry Ale – Shoreline Brewery – Indiana
Bronze: Caramel Apple Tripel – Sun King Brewery – Indiana
Other Dark Beer
Gold: Mountain Man – Verboten Brewpub – Colorado
Silver: Orin – Half Acre – Illinois
Bronze: Port Aged Belgian Big Fly – Midwest Coast Brewing – Illinois
Lagers
Gold: BA Doppelbock 2024 – Lupulin Brewing – Illinois
Silver: BA Mustachio – Will County Brewing Company – Illinois
Bronze: Maple Baltic Porter – Wooly Pig Farm Brewery – Ohio
Other Pale Beer
Gold: That Escalated Swiftly – Bubblehouse Brewing Company – Illinois
Silver: Vin Blanc Du Ciel(2025) – Brothership Brewing – Illinois
Bronze: Grand Cru – Goose Island Beer Company – Illinois
Blended Beer
Gold: Dows 65th Birthday Blend – Third Eye Brewing Company – Ohio
Silver: Grow In Darkness – Verboten Brewing and Barrel Project – Colorado
Bronze: 29th Anniversary XXIX – Firestone Walker – California
Barley Wine/Wheat Wine
Gold: Double Oaked Cognac Grow Old With You – Verboten Brewing and Barrel Project – Colorado
Silver: Kelly’s Private Stache – Third Eye Brewing Company – Ohio
Bronze: Damian Barleywine Ale – Firestone Walker Propagator – California
Specialty Strong Porter & Stout
Gold: Illusion of Vanilje – Taproom Beer Co. – California
Silver: Egregioius Philbin- Three Floyds Brewing – Indiana
Bronze: Coffee Champurrado Krampus Cookies – Old Irving Brewing Co – Illinois
Strong Porter & Stout
Gold: Eigengrau – Monochrome Brewing – Illinois
Silver: Controlled Chaos – Masthead Brewing – Ohio
Bronze: Tranquil 2025 – Riverlands Brewing – Illinois
Best of Show
Runner Up: Double Oaked Cognac Grow Old With You – Verboten Brewing and Barrel Project – Colorado
Winner: Duck Duck Gooze – The Lost Abbey – California
Fan Favorite
Winner: BBA Ego Death Salted Cashew Cluster – Resident Culture Brewing – North Carolina
For more information on the 2025 Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beer, Click Here.
For Fun Beer Facts, Trivia and more: Click Here