6 VA Breweries Compete For Awards in Great American Beer Festival

VIRGINIA — Six Virginia breweries will be competing in the Great American Beer Festival to be held Oct. 10-12 in Denver.

The festival is the nation’s largest for professional brewers and hands out some of the industry’s most sought-after accolades. Bronze, silver and gold medals will be awarded for dozens of styles of beer and ciders in more than 100 categories.

Beer is still the star of the competition, but organizers are casting a wider net with the addition of categories for ciders, canned cocktails, hard seltzer, hard soda, hard tea, hard kombucha, other malt-based beverages, and all non-alcoholic beverages.

The event also features competition in ciders, hard seltzers and, new this year, canned cocktails and hard teas.

In Virginia, breweries competing for medals include:

Great American Restaurants/Sweetwater Tavern, Centreville, VA: Great American Restaurants Pale Ale, Wit's End Ale, Great American Restaurants Octoberfest, S'more Stout, Aces High IPA

Port City Brewing Company, Alexandria, VA: Optimal Wit (2024 World Beer Cup gold winner), Downright Pilsner (2022 World Beer Cup silver), Oktoberfest (2023 Great American Beer Festival gold), Port City Porter, Monumental IPA, Hopwell (including non-alcoholic)

BrewHaHa Brewing Company, Elkton, VA: BrewHaHa Brown Ale, Panama Peter Mojito Lime Kolsch, Frosty's Cup Imperial Hot Chocolate Stout, SnowBlower Coconut Cream Ale

Cova Brewing Co, Norfolk, VA: Aloha State of Mind, Invert

Devils Backbone Brewing Company, Roseland, VA: Gold Leaf Lager, Rhinelager, Dogwood Saison, Vienna Lager, Juicy Magic, O"Fest

The Virginia Beer Company, Williamsburg, VA: Gorgeous, Borrowed Time, Slingin' Ink, One Night in Berlin, House Blend