Good Nature Brewing, Seneca Street Brew Pub bring home medals
Two Central New York breweries last week brought home medals from the first-ever New York State Craft Beer Competition and Governor’s Excelsior Cup. Good Nature Brewing, of Hamilton, and Seneca Street Brew Pub, of Manlius, each brought home one gold medal, while Good Nature also received a silver medal.
The inaugural New York Craft Brewers Competition — sponsored by the New York State Brewers Association with support from Taste NY and the Great New York State Fair — was held Saturday, July 29, in Rochester. Fifty expert beer judges from across the state came together to judge 707 beers from 143 New York State breweries to award gold, silver and bronze medals to 45 breweries with the Governor’s Excelsior Cup being awarded to the Best Beer in the state, which was awarded to Threes Brewing in Brooklyn for their Vliet Pilsner.
This competition is the largest craft beer competition in the state, and the second largest state competition in the country behind California.
“With over 700 entries, this not only is the largest craft beer competition in New York State, but the largest in the state’s history” said Paul Leone, executive director, New York State Brewers Association. “With the brewing industry growing at a steady rate, the breweries were looking for a state beer competition that would be judged at the highest level possible, and a competition of this quality would be the best way to show off the extraordinary beer being made here every day.”
Good Nature Brewing won a gold medal in the American IPA category for its Blight Buster beer, and a silver medal in the American IPA variations category for its Non-Stop Hop Onslaught beer.
“So proud of Good Nature Farm Brewery and our incredible brewing team for taking home gold for our Blight Buster in the most competitive category (American IPA) in the biggest competition in New York state and the second largest in the country,” said Carrie Blackmore, GNB co-founder.
“It is such an honor to have our beer recognized in such a highly competitive category,” said Matthew Whalen, GNB co-founder. “This speaks volumes of the incredible job our brewers do and the quality of ingredients New York State farmers are growing. We are looking forward to being competitive in this competition year after year in what has proven to be one of the friendliest industries there is.”
Another nearby medal winner was Seneca Street Brew Pub in Manlius, which won a gold medal in the Amber/Red Ale category for its Irish Red Ale beer.
In the competition’s first year, brewers were allowed to enter as many beers in 20 categories, with the American IPA category receiving the highest number of entries at 88. War Horse Brewing in Geneva received the most wins with three (1 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze), and 16 other breweries were multiple medal winners with two each.
The Governor’s Excelsior Cup and other awardees will be on display in the Horticulture Building at the Fair, which runs from Aug. 23 until Sept. 4. Several of the award-winning beers will also be available to buy at this year’s Fair as well.
For a complete list of winners and additional information, visit the competition website at newyorkcraftbeer.com/news/new-york-craft-beer-competition-and-governors-excelsior-cup-results.
