In what has become a sacred Mile High tradition, beer acolytes wander the Colorado Convention Center each fall with a hefty buzz—the direct result of communing with the country’s finest craft brewers at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF). This month, however, a different kind of beer competition descends upon Denver for the first time: the prestigious World Beer Cup. Known colloquially as the “Olympics of Beer,” the event is held every two years in a different city, and as the name suggests, judges evaluate brews from across the globe. (The event is closed to the public.) Nearly 1,500 breweries from 61 different countries have entered almost 5,000 beers for evaluation in 94 style categories. Despite the considerable competition, Colorado has fared well at past events. In 2012, Rocky Mountain beer makers took home 27 medals (Bull & Bush garnered an impressive four), second only to California’s 55 and four more than all of Germany. Next up, total world domination. worldbeercup.org

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5280 April 2014
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