Last year, more than 400 WA beers competed for 80+ medals in the inaugural Washington Beer Awards. As the event returns for a second year, competition is expected to grow. This is a great way for local WA breweries to gain some recognition; the winners will again be announced at the Washington Brewers Festival in June. Interested breweries can submit entries between February 14 and March 15. More info can be found below and at www.wabeerawards.com.

Press Release:

Seattle, WA, February 5, 2014:  Specialty Competitions LLC is proud to announce the return of the Second Annual Washington Beer Awards^®, a craft beer competition designed specifically to support Washington’s professional brewers.  This Washington-only competition provides an opportunity for all of Washington’s craft brewers to compete in a blind judging format and fosters recognition of brewing excellence in Washington.

Only Washington breweries with beers produced and sold in Washington can enter the competition.  The event is endorsed by the Washington Beer Commission as a way to help promote our excellent Washington brews and raise awareness of our rich brewing culture.

In 2013 more than 70 breweries submitted over 400 beers to the competition spanning over 90 styles from the Brewers Association Beer Style Guidelines.  Judging was conducted by dozens of trained judges who assessed the technical and stylistic accuracy of the entries.  More than 80 gold, silver, and bronze medals were presented recognizing brewing excellence in the state.

The 2014 competition is expected to grow with additional entries and award categories.  The competition will also recognize “Breweries of the Year” who receive multiple awards in various categories and also feature a “Best Washington Agricultural Product Inspired Beer” special award.  This year’s competition will also include a “Pro-Am” category recognizing beers scaled up from homebrewer recipes and produced on a commercial scale.

Breweries can register entries from February 14^th through March 15^th.  The 2014 judging will be conducted in May with the winners being announced at the Washington Brewers Festival in mid-June.  Details on the competition (including rules and registration information) as well as a list of the previous winners can be found at www.wabeerawards.com.

We look forward to recognizing another great year of Washington beers!  Cheers!