3,300 beers were entered for the 2010 World Beer Cup. 8 to 16 bottles of each beer, depending on size, had to be sent in order for the judges to have plenty to evaluate with. That totals an insane minimum of 26,400 bottles of beer submitted, some of which was bound to be left over. There was a reception held before the Gala Dinner to announce the World Beer Cup results, and many of those leftover bottles were up for grabs. There were three “islands” of beers laid out just like the one above, and there had to have been easily over 1,000 to choose from. The majority of us in the nicely-dressed-up crowd prior to the dinner were acting like kids in a candy store. Just find a bottle you like, and then have the bartender open and pour for you. Everyone was getting in on the fun. This puts any beer tasting I’ve ever been involved with to shame.

Click on any of the photos to check out the rest of my photos from the World Beer Cup reception, dinner and awards.