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Member Only: Brewers Cup & Awards
November 18, 2021 @ 6:00 pm–10:00 pm
Celebrating the Art and Passion of Minnesota Craft Beer!
The Minnesota Brewers Cup is a state-wide competition for breweries and brewpubs to showcase their innovation and mastery of craft. Winners will be announced during the private Awards Ceremony on Thursday, November 18 and receive special promotional opportunities.
Please use this website to learn more about the competition and awards. Registration is closed.
- Registration
- Entry Requirements
- Results and Awards
- Event Partners
- 2019 Winners
Competition Registration
Registration is CLOSED.
Registration website: brewedinmn.com
Drop off period: November 1, 2, 3, 2077 Ellis Ave, St. Paul
- This competition is judged using the BJCP category guidelines by certified BJCP judges.
- All entries must be received at the drop-off location by the deadline. Drop-off information will be sent privately to all registered participants. No refunds will be given for entries not received. The competition organizers are not responsible for miscategorized entries, entries that are not received by the entry deadline, or entries that arrived damaged. Packaging will not be returned to entrants.
- The competition organizers reserve the right to combine styles for judging and to restructure awards as needed depending upon the quantity and quality of entries.
- Qualified judging of all entries is the primary goal of our event. Judges will evaluate and score each entry. The average of the scores will rank each entry in its category. Each flight will have at least one BJCP judge.
- The Best of Show judging will be determined by a Best of Show panel based on a second judging of the top winners.
Entry and Drop-off Requirements
View full Entry and Drop-off Requirements on the registration website.
Each entrant is limited to 6 entries, and 6 entries per subcategory.
We will require the following number of vessels per container type:
- 12/16oz cans or bottles: Submit 3 per entry
- 750 ml bottle: Submit 2 per entry
- Crowlers/Howlers/Growlettes (750ml): Submit 2 per entry
- Growlers: Submit 1 per entry. Please note that we suggest you do not enter growlers as it will be used for each round of judging and will lose carbonation/quality over time.
Additional vessels will not be accepted.
Results and Awards
Competition results will be announced during the Awards Ceremony.
- This is a private event for MNCBG members only.
- Tickets on sale now. Please see MNCBG newsletters or private FB group posts for your access code.
- COVID-19 vaccination required to attend.
Award Categories:
First-place awards will be given at the ceremony, second and third place beers will also be acknowledged. Additional awards will be voted on by membership and/or the Board of Directors, including:
- Best Art/Design
- Best Collaboration
- Best Member Volunteer
- Best Nonmember Volunteer
- Outstanding Allied Trade Member
Voting for these awards will take place prior to the Awards Ceremony; member main contacts will be provided more information on voting in October.
Promotion of Winners
The winners will be announced in a press release, on the MNCBG website, and promoted at the Minnesota State Fair. Up to 10 awardees may be asked to participate in the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild GABF space in Denver, Colorado. Requirements to participate are based on the BA’s rules for exhibiting in the Guilds Pavilion and some breweries may not qualify.
Winners will receive graphics for marketing their awards.
2019 Winners
See the winners of the 2019 MN Brewers Cup, the Guild’s first state-wide professional brewers competition! (The 2020 competition was canceled due to COVID-19.)
More than 500 beers from 80 Minnesota breweries were submitted to 24 beer categories. Beers were judged blindly by 30 BJCP certified beer judges.
Best in Show
1st Place: Utepils Brewing Company, Ewald the Golden
2nd Place: Canal Park Brewing Company’s Hank and Dabs Pale Ale
3rd Place: Three Twenty Brewing Co’s Happy Wife Porter
Light Lagers
1st Place: Unmapped, Purgatory Pils Czech Pilsner
2nd Place: Back Channel Brewing, Horny Sidekick
3rd Place: 56 Brewing, Pacifica Helles
Amber & Dark Lagers
1st Place: Beaver Island Brewing Company, Maibock
2nd Place: The Freehouse, No. 53 Honey Dunkel
3rd Place: Bauhaus Brew Labs, Stargrazer Black Lager
Wheat Beers
1st Place: Utepils Brewing Co., Ewald the Golden – Bavarian Style Hefeweizen
2nd Place: August Schell Brewing Company, Hefeweizen
3rd Place: Enki Brewing, Hootenanny Hefe Weiss
Golden/Blond Ales
1st Place: Utepils Brewing Co., Copacetic – Kolsch Style
2nd Place: Canal Park Brewing Company, Click Drag
3rd Place: 10K Brewing, Hummingbee
Amber/Red Ales
1st Place: Able Seedhouse & Brewery, Propers
2nd Place: Talking Waters Brewing Co., Zoomer Red (American Red)
3rd Place: Bent Paddle Brewing Co., 14° ESB
Pale Ales
1st Place: Canal Park Brewing Company, Hank and Dabs Pale Ale
2nd Place: Surly Brewing Co., Xtra Citra
3rd Place: Summit Brewing Company, Summit Extra Pale Ale
American IPAs
1st Place: Fulton Brewing, 300
2nd Place: Wooden Hill Brewing Company, Code 3 Juicy IPA
3rd Place: Bad Weather Brewing Company, Hopcromancer
Hazy IPAs
1st Place: Modist Brewing, Dreamyard IPA
2nd Place: Pryes Brewing Company, Mass Haze-Teria
3rd Place: Spilled Grain Brewhouse, Hipster Haze
American IPA Variations
1st Place: Voyageur Brewing, Sled Hound Session IPA
2nd Place: Spilled Grain Brewhouse, Grapefruit Highest Point IPA
3rd Place: Wild Mind Artisan Ales, Menacing Vibrations
American Double IPAs
1st Place: Lupulin Brewing Co., Blissful Ignorance
2nd Place: Venn Brewing Company, West Coast DIPA
3rd Place: Lupulin Brewing Co, Straight Hash Homie
Sour Barrel Aged Beers
1st Place: Fair State Brewing Cooperative, BFDP
2nd Place: Birch’s Lowertown, Oud Bruin
3rd Place: August Schell Brewing Company, 2019 Funk Junction
Non-Sour Barrel Aged Beers
1st Place: Bent Paddle Brewing Co., Double Shot Double Black
2nd Place: 10K Brewing, Wendigo (#Batch500)
3rd Place: Lupulin Brewing Co., Night Witch
Belgian Farmhouse
1st Place: 612Brew, Shoreline Saison
2nd Place: Unmapped Brewing CO., Saison Amelie – Petite Saison
3rd Place: Wooden Hill Brewing Company, French River Saison
Belgian Other
1st Place: Lakes and Legends Brewing Company, Barncat
2nd Place: Canal Park Brewing Company, Lone Trekker-Trappist Single
3rd Place: Bad Weather Brewing, Company, Sun Pillar
Experimental
1st Place: Sociable Cider Werks, Mead for Speed Mead Graff
2nd Place: Modist Brewing, First Call Cold Press Coffee Lager
3rd Place: 56 Brewing, Solarama Crush Honey IPA
Non-Sour Fruit & Spice Beers
1st Place: Venn Brewing Company, Breakfast Stout
2nd Place: Jack Pine Brewery, Vengeance Jalapeno Cream Ale
3rd Place: Talking Waters Brewing Co., Mango Wheat
Sour Fruit & Spice Beers
1st Place: August Schell Brewing Company, Binary Storm
2nd Place: Wild Mind Artisan Ales, Spontané Framboise
3rd Place: Venn Brewing Company, Triple Berry Kettle Sour
Brown Ales
1st Place: Revelation Ale Works, Double Brown Ale
2nd Place: The Freehouse, No. 3 English-Style Brown Ale
3rd Place: Three Twenty Brewing Co., Broken Timber American Brown Ale
Porters
1st Place: Three Twenty Brewing Co., Happy Wife Porter
2nd Place: Voyageur Brewing, Palisade Robust Porter
3rd Place: Urban Growler Brewing Company, De-Lovely Porter
Stouts
1st Place: Pryes Brewing Company, Dublin Dry Stout
2nd Place: Birch’s Lowertown, Vanilla Milk Stout
3rd Place: Pantown Brewing, Drop Forge Milk Stout
Imperial Stouts and Porters
1st Place: Back Channel Brewing, King of the Wring
2nd Place: Enki Brewing, Raven Russian Imperial Stout
3rd Place: Wayzata Brew Works, Puppies, Rainbows & Kitten Kisses
Non-Belgian Strong Ales
1st Place: Canal Park Brewing Company, Old Avalanche Barley Wine
2nd Place: Spilled Grain Brewhouse, False Hop American Wheatwine
3rd Place: Spilled Grain Brewhouse, Bearded Man Old Ale
Kettle & Simple Sours
1st Place: 56 Brewing, Raspberry Berliner
2nd Place: Revelation Ale Works, Smoothie Sour
*3rd Place removed due to miscategorization
Wild & Sour Ales
1st Place: Wild Mind Artisan Ales, Spontané
2nd Place: August Schell Brewing Company, Solar Evolution
3rd Place: Fair State Brewing Cooperative, LÄCTOBÄC
Member-Voted Awards
Most Innovative Brewery – Modist Brewing
Best Collaboration – Lupulin Brewing Co. and Mankato Brewing Company
Best Beer Art – Lupulin Brewing Company