Dow Scoggins

Niagara on the Lake, Ontario – Staff and students at the Niagara College Teaching Brewery are clinking beer steins this week after three student-made beers medaled at the U.S. Open Beer Championships, including winning gold.

The trio of beers that were awarded honours at the competition, which drew 6,000 entries from throughout North America, are:
Gold for Beer 101 Bock in the Bock category;
Silver for Beer 101 Strong in the Old Ale category;
Silver for Beer 101 Bitter in the Bitter category.

Both the Beer 101 Bitter and Strong have consistently medalled at the U.S. Open Beer Championships over the past eight years. This is also the third medal this year for the Beer 101 Bock, which also scored a gold at the Ontario Brewing Awards and silver at the Canadian Brewing Awards earlier this fall.

“This is a significant accomplishment for students and staff at the Niagara College Teaching Brewery,” said Steve Gill, general manager of NC’s Learning Enterprises. “Our beers have performed well at competitions this year attesting to the quality of the applied education we offer at the college and to our students’ abilities to make some of the best beers in North America year after year.”

College Brewmaster Jon Downing noted that students in the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations program mastered the key characteristics judges seek when choosing winning beers in a competition.

“Students are learning how to make consistent, high-quality beer and they’re knocking it out of the park,” Downing said. “Quality and consistency are what the judges look for, and these beers have it. And with the Bock, we just nailed the recipe this year.”

The U.S. Open Beer Championships is the second-largest competition in North America and the only one to include suds from both professional and home brewers. Judges from the U.S. and Canada select winners in blind tastings, knowing only the categories, not the names or locations of beers competing.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, judging was held in both the U.S. and Canada.

Competition Director Dow Scoggins said Niagara students don’t just perform well at the competition while enrolled in school. They continue to do so after graduation.

He noted NC alumnus Jared Lewinski, who’s now the head brewer at Listermann Brewing Company in Cincinnati, produced four beers that medalled this year, including a gold in the nut beer category.

Another alumnus, Henriques Soares, who came from Brazil to study in the program, saw two of his beers for Tire Shack Brewing Co. in Moncton, N.B., medal, including a gold in the Gose category.

“One of the important things about Niagara College is the students do well there, but they also medal outside the College,” Scoggins said. “The No. 1 thing is we’re very big on clean beers with no alcohol taste. That speaks to the quality of brewing and the brewery at Niagara College.”

The award-winning beers are sold in 473-millilitre cans, which are available for purchase at the Wine Visitor + Education Centre, located at the College’s Daniel J. Patterson Campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Sales of the brews support student education.

Fun Beer Facts, Breweries and More: Click Here

At the 2020 New York International Beer Competition, the judges were delighted with the quality of beer submissions that they received in their 9th year.   The competition had over 600+ beer submissions from 14 different countries.

Double Gold Medal
Belgian-Style Flanders Oud Bruin or Oud Red Ale
Rust Buffalo – Bhramari Brewing – Asheville, NC

Wood And Barrel-Aged Strong Beer
Utopias 2019 – Boston Beer Company – Boston, MA

Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Stout
Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout – Double Wing Brewing – Cleveland, OH

Gold Medal
American-Style Brown Ale
Beckley Furnace Brown Ale – Norbrook Farm Brewery – Colebrook, CT

American-Style Cream Ale or Lager $10 – Less
Outboard Cream Ale – MKE Brewing Co  – Milwaukee, WI

American-Style Cream Ale or Lager, $11 – $15
Fulling Mill IPA – Mill River Brewing – Mills River, NC

American-Style India Pale Ale, $10 – Less
BAA Brewhouse Snog – BAA
The Zephyros Hazy IPA – HomeGrown Brewing –  Oxford, MI
Breaking Bud – Knee Deep Brewing – Auburn, CA
Stevens Point Brewery

American-Style India Pale Ale, $11 – $15
Neon Ghosts – Bhramari Brewing – Asheville, NC

American-Style Imperial Stout, $11 – $15
Mallow Joe – Eight & Sand Beer Co. –  Woodbury, NJ

American-Style Lager or Light Lager, $10 – Less
Utica Club Pilsener – Saranac Brewery/FX Matt Brewing – Utica, NY
Samuel Adams Sam ’76 – Boston Beer Company – Boston, MA

American-Style Pale Ale, $10 – Less
Zed’s in the Universe–Pale42 – Zed’s Beer –  Marlton, NJ

American-Style Premium Lager or Specialty Lager, $10 – Less
Session Premium Lager – Full Sail Brewing Co. – Hood River, OR

Barley Wine-Style Ale, $10 – Less
Faux Year Anniversary Barleywine – Municipal Brew Works – Hamilton, OH

Belgian-Style Flanders Oud Bruin or Oud Red Ale, $10 – Less
La Roja – Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales – Michigan

Belgian-Style Pale Strong Ale, $10 – Less
Brouwerij Van Steenberge Piraat

Belgian-Style Tripel, $10 – Less
Three Sisters – Port O’Pints Brewing Co. – Crescent City, CA

Belgian-Style Witbier, $10 – Less
Birrai Umbri SS Cotta 21 Italian Blonde Ale – Italy

Brewed Hard Seltzer
Superbrew Ginger & Lemon- Farmer Willie’s Inc – Charlestown, MA

Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout, $10 – Less
Zed’s in Ireland–Dry Stout – Zed’s Beer – Marlton, NJ

English-Style India Pale Ale, $11 – $15
Ichthyosaur Icky” IPA” –  Great Basin Brewing – Reno, NV

French- & French- and Belgian-Style Saison, $10 – Less
Million Reasons – IBEER – Italy

Fruit Beer, $10 – Less
Mangolandia – Veza Sur Brewing Co. – Miami, FL

German-Style Marzen, $10 – Less
Oktoberfest – River Rat Brewery – Columbia, SC
Proast German Style Marzen – Twin Oast Brewing – Port Clinton, OH

German-Style Schwarzbier, $11 – $15
Black Betty – Olde Salem Brewing – Salem, VA

Irish-Style Red Ale, $10 – Less
Irish Setter Red – Thirsty Dog Brewing Co – Akron, OH

Imperial India Pale Ale, $11 – $15
Coastal Evacuation – Cape May Brewing – Rio Grande, NJ

South German-Style Weizenbock/Weissbock
Aventinus  Schneider Weisse – Germany

For Complete Medal Listing – Click Here

For Brewing fun fact, trivia, movies and more, Click Here.

The Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beer(FOBAB), the world’s largest and most prestigious barrel-aged beer festival and competition, returned to Chicago this past weekend at UIC Forum (725 W. Roosevelt Rd.). More than 200 craft breweries from across the United States will showcase their rarest, most innovative wood and barrel-aged brews, competing for top honors in The National Barrel Aged Beer Competition. Here are the winners!

FOBAB – BEST OF SHOW
Bottle Logic Brewing, Anaheim, CA – Arcane Rituals (Barleywine/Wheatwine)

FOBAB – BEST OF SHOW – Runner Up
The Lost Abbey, San Marcos, CA – Peach Afternoon

FOBAB Medal Winners

Strong Porter Stout
Gold – Wolf’s Ridge Brewing, Columbus, OH – 3-2-1 Double Barrel Dire Wolf
Silver – Crystal Lake Brewing, Crystal Lake, IL – Boathouse Reserve Rye Whiskey Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout
Bronze – More Brewing Co., Villa Park, IL – Mehndi 2019

Specialty Strong/Porter Stout
Gold – Cerebral Brewing, Denver, CO – Vanilla Rye Here Be Monsters
Silver – Hidden Springs Ale Works, Tampa, FL – After Dinner Decadence
Bronze – Half Acre Beer Company, Chicago (Balmoral) – Vanilla Benthic

Barleywine/Wheatwine
Gold – Bottle Logic Brewing, Anaheim, CA – Arcane Rituals
Silver – Haymarket Pub & Brewery, Chicago & Bridgman, MI – Barrel Aged Bollocks
Bronze – Kros Strain Brewing Company, LaVista, NE – Barrel Aged Barrellywine Vol. 2

Classic Beer Style
Gold – Kros Strain Brewing Company, LaVista, NE – 53 Magnum
Silver – Derive Brewing Company, Columbus, OH – It’s only dirty paper!
Bronze – Church Street Brewing Company, Itasca, IL – Holy Moly

Strong Pale Beer
Gold – Pollyanna Brewing Company, Lemont, IL – Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Orenda Volume 03
Bronze – Great Lakes Brewing Company, Cleveland, OH – Barrel Aged Tripel Dog Dare

Strong Dark Beer
Gold – Revolution Brewing, Chicago – V.S.O.R. (Very Special Old Ryeway)
Silver – Pollyanna Brewing Company, Lemont, IL – Orenda Volume 02
Bronze – Taxman Brewing Company, Bargersville, IN – Bourbon Barrel Qualified

Fruit Beer
Gold – Werk Force Brewing, Plainfield, IL – Farmhouse Vultures with Blackberries and Raspberries
Silver – Revolution Brewing, Chicago – Strawberry Jacket
Bronze – MyGrain Brewing Co., Joliet, IL – I Have Time

Specialty/Experimental
Gold – 5 Rabbit Cervecería, Bedford Park, IL – El Pirata
Silver – MadTree Brewing Cincinnati, OH – Joon – Chamomile & Elderflower
Bronze – Monday Night Brewing Atlanta, GA – Tie 8 On

Wild Beer/Brett (non-acidic)
Gold – Afterthought Brewing Company, Lombard, IL – Afterthought Ale: Wine Barrel Fermented (Yuzu & Key Lime Juice)
Silver – Hacienda Beer Co., – Baileys Harbor, WI L’hiver
Bronze – Branch & Bone Artisan Ales, Dayton, OH – Silence Mill

Wild Beer (Acidic) Sours
Gold – MobCraft Beer, Milwaukee, WI – Sour Golden Ale
Silver – Off Color Brewing – Mousetrap, Chicago – Procatsination
Bronze – Upstream Brewing Company, Omaha, NE – Things!

Wild Beer (Acidic) w/ Fruit
Gold – The Lost Abbey, San Marcos, CA – Peach Afternoon
Silver – Forager Brewery, Rochester, MN – Dollar Menu Pie
Bronze – Coppertail Brewing Co., Tampa, FL – Creature de mer Rouge

Cider/Perry/Mead
Gold – Misbeehavin’ Meads, Valparaiso, IN – BBA Caramel Apple Cider
Silver – Garagiste Meadery, Tampa, FL – Cognac Barrel Aged Black Widow
Bronze – Superstition Meadery, Prescott, AZ – Grand Cru Berry

History of FoBAB
Picture this: Back in the early 2000s, Chicago’s craft beer scene was fizzing with wild ideas, thanks to trailblazers like Goose Island’s Greg Hall who kicked off the barrel-aging revolution in the mid-’90s by stuffing stouts into bourbon barrels for that oaky, boozy magic. Fast-forward to a casual night at Rock Bottom Brewery in 2003, where three beer-loving masterminds—Pete Crowley (the venue wizard), Todd Ashman (beer hunter extraordinaire), and Jeff Sparrow (competition czar)—sipped a rare barrel-aged stout and thought, “Why not throw a party just for these wooden wonders?” Whipping it up in a whirlwind month, they launched the inaugural Festival of Barrel-Aged Beer (FOBAB) that November on Rock Bottom’s cozy second floor, featuring a modest 36 pours from 22 breweries. What started as a quirky nod to experimental brews exploded into North America’s barrel-aging bonanza, now packing the UIC Credit Union 1 Arena with over 300 mind-bending beers from 150+ spots worldwide—think bourbon-kissed porters, wine-barrel wild sours, and mead that’s aged to perfection. It’s not just a festival; it’s a boozy time machine celebrating 20+ years of brewers pushing flavor boundaries, all while raising dough for the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild. Grab your ticket for November 2025—your taste buds will thank you with a tipsy high-five!

For Fun Beer Facts, Trivia and more: Click Here