Press Release: Ohio Brewers Bring Home Gold From GABF

Seven breweries earn nine medals at annual competition.

DENVER – Ohio craft brewers celebrated another year of impressive results at the 2017 Great American Beer Festival, held Oct. 5-7.  The Ohio delegation won a total of nine awards at the nation’s most prestigious brewing competition.

The Fat Head’s breweries in Middleburg Heights and North Olmsted combined for two medals, with Alpenglow winning the gold for German-Style Wheat Ale for the second straight year and Midnight Moonlight earning bronze, the third consecutive medal for American-Style Black Ale. This marks the ninth consecutive year that Fat Head’s has taken home a medal. They have won a total of 21 awards over that span.

The BottleHouse Brewery and Meadery in Cleveland won bronze medals in the Historical Beer and Aged Beer categories. This was the first year The BottleHouse entered the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) competition.

Three Cincinnati breweries won their first gold medals at the GABF this year. Fifty West Brewing Company took top honors in the Old Ale or Strong Ale category with 10&2 Barleywine. Brink Brewing’s Hold The Reins earned them their first ever GABF medal atop the English-Style Mild Ale category. Taft’s Ale House struck gold with Gustav in the Vienna-Style Lager category.

Two Ohio breweries earned their first honors at this year’s competition. BrewDog Brewing Co. in Canal Winchester earned a bronze medal in the American-Style Fruit Beer category. Cleveland’s Masthead Brewing won the Double Red Ale bronze medal.

“The results of this year’s competition prove that Ohio continues to grow in reputation as a great craft beer state,” said Mary MacDonald, executive director of the Ohio Craft Brewers Association. “Our breweries are a tremendous point of pride for Ohioans, and these nine medals show that our world-class beers can stand toe-to-toe with the best in the country.”

Since 2009, 22 Ohio craft breweries have combined to win 52 medals—17 gold—at the Great American Beer Festival.


2017 medal-winning Ohio craft beers:

Fat Head’s Brewery:
• AlpenGlow – Gold medal, German-Style Wheat Ale
• Midnight Moonlight – Bronze medal, American-Style Black Ale

The BottleHouse Brewery & Meadery:
• Spring Gruit – Bronze medal, Historical Beer
• There Is No Quad – Bronze medal, Aged Beer

Brink Brewing Co.:
• Hold The Reins – Gold medal, English-Style Mild Ale

Fifty West:
• 10&2 Barleywine – Gold medal, Old Ale or Strong Ale

Taft’s Ale House:
• Gustav – Gold medal, Vienna-Style Lager

BrewDog Brewing Co.:
• Elvis Juice – Bronze medal, American-Style Fruit Beer

Masthead Brewing Co:
• Midwest Red IPA – Bronze medal, Double Red Ale

Founded in 2007, the Ohio Craft Brewers Association is a nonprofit guild that exists to promote and preserve Ohio’s unified craft brewing industry. We aspire to be recognized as the industry leader at both state and national levels for preserving the art of making high-quality, unique craft beer; to serve as the unified voice for craft brewers across the state; to advocate on behalf of the Ohio Craft beer industry; to contribute to systemic, local community development by driving economic and job growth, while creating experiences that bring people together; and to serve as a beacon for local production and manufacturing through craft beer, resulting in diverse choices for consumers