New York State Craft Brewers Shine at Great American Beer Festival

New York State's craft brewers showcased their excellence at the Great American Beer Festival in Colorado, earning a total of four medals, including one gold medal for Great South Bay Brewery's maple bacon porter specialty beer, "Hog Cabin". The festival, which took place during the annual event, saw 1,552 breweries enter 6,647 beers in 92 categories, with 242 breweries earning gold, silver, or bronze medals. The gold medal was the third medal earned by Great South Bay Brewery, which won a bronze medal two years earlier for its pumpkin beer, "Splashing Pumpkin".

Key Takeaways:

• Four New York State craft breweries earned medals at the Great American Beer Festival, including one gold medal for Great South Bay Brewery's "Hog Cabin".
• Great South Bay Brewery's "Hog Cabin" was the third medal earned by the brewery, which won a bronze medal two years earlier for its pumpkin beer, "Splashing Pumpkin".
• Prison City Pub and Brewery earned a silver medal for its Belgian-Style pale ale, "Bleek Warden", its first medal.
• Newburgh Brewing Co. earned a silver medal for its "Cream Ale", an English-style summer ale, while Crossroads Brewing Co. earned a silver medal for its foreign-style "Black Road Stout".
• Amateur brewer Brian Giebel earned a gold medal in the pro-am event for his grape Tripel beer called "Muscat Love", which was produced by Great South Bay Brewery.
• The number of microbrewery licenses in New York State has tripled since the start of Governor Cuomo's administration, while the number of restaurant brewery licenses has quadrupled.
• Governor Cuomo's Farm Brewery legislation created an entirely new segment of the industry, resulting in more than 100 licenses for farm breweries and farm brewery branches.

Statistics:

• 1,552 breweries entered 6,647 beers in 92 categories at the Great American Beer Festival.
• 242 breweries earned gold, silver, or bronze medals at the festival.
• 750 breweries offered samples of their products in the festival's great hall.
• New York beers have won 145 medals since the festival competition began in 1982.
• The number of microbrewery licenses in New York State has tripled since the start of Governor Cuomo's administration.
• The number of restaurant brewery licenses in New York State has quadrupled since the start of Governor Cuomo's administration.

Sources:

• New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets
• Great American Beer Festival
• Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
• Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Howard Zemsky
• State Liquor Authority Chairman Vincent Bradley
• New York State Brewers Association
• Fortune Magazine