The Golden State Dominates: Inside the 2026 World Beer Cup

The Pennsylvania Convention Center roared to life Wednesday evening as the 2026 World Beer Cup crowned its champions, marking 30 years of what the industry calls "The Olympics of Beer Competitions." An international panel of 255 judges from 50 countries blind-tasted 8,166 entries from 1,644 breweries across 50 nations, handing out 353 medals across 118 categories. The results tell a fascinating story about where the best beer in the world is being made right now.

The State Race

California ran away with it.... literally. The Golden State claimed a staggering 68 total medals. including 25 golds, lapping the field by a margin that wasn't even close. Oregon (30 medals), Colorado (27), and Washington (25) filled out the top four in what amounted to a West Coast sweep of the leaderboard. I guess the age old saying rings true today, "West Coast, Best Coast."

San Diego was the single most decorated city in the country with 13 medals. North Park Beer Co. took home two golds, "Friends & Neighbors" (Vienna-Style Lager) and "Lupulin Collider Batch 6" (Juicy or Hazy Imperial IPA), plus a silver for "Hop-Fu!" in Classic IPA. Stone Brewing earned gold for "Cimmerian Portal," Karl Strauss for "Windansea Wheat," and AleSmith Brewing Companies "Handgepluckte Kriek." East Village Brewing Company added a Robust Porter gold for the memorably named "Oaty McOatface." Sacramento's Urban Roots Brewing doubled up with golds for "Kaffe Americano" (Coffee Stout) and "Demons Run 2025 Reserve" (barrel-aged strong stout). And across the Bay Area, Cellarmaker, Fieldwork, Danville Brewing, and Alvarado Street all struck gold as well.

Oregon's headline belonged to Breakside Brewery, arguably the most impressive brewery at the entire competition. The Milwaukie outfit hauled in five medals, three of them gold, winning Italian-Style Pilsener (the cheekily named "It's A Me Mario!"), Australian-Style Pale Ale ("Hello My Alien"), and International Pale Ale ("Bayside"), plus a silver and a bronze. The range on display was staggering to say the least.

Utah might be the most surprising story of the night. Five golds from just seven total medals gives the Beehive State a gold rate that even California can't touch. Silver Reef Brewing Co. (St. George) won Chili Beer with "Ay Dios Mio!" Helper Beer, from the tiny town of Helper, took Tea Beer with "Archaic Forrest." Uinta's (Salt Lake City)"801 Pilsner" earned gold in the most-entered lager category (German-Style Pilsener, a massive 201 entries). Ogden Beer Co.'s (Ogden) "Cultura Cerveza" won the brand-new Mexican-Style Light Lager. And Templin Family Brewing's "Albion Tripple" claimed Belgian-Style Tripel. Proper Brewing (Salt Lake City) added a silver for "Steamy Wonder" in Rye Beer. I'm genuine baffled at how well Utah performed. For a state often overlooked in national beer conversations, this is a pretty strong showing of what they have to offer.

Rounding out notable state performances: Ohio collected 14 medals with the Cincinnati-Hamilton corridor doing most of the heavy lifting. Third Eye Brewing Co. earned four medals, Brink Brewing took gold in Sweet Stout for "Moozie," and Wandering Monsters won Chocolate Beer with "Viator Obscura: Triple Chocolate." Up in Cleveland, Market Garden Craft Brewery took Fruit Beer gold for its "Yuzu" Lager! Indiana grabbed 4 golds, including Moontown Brewing's (Whitestown) "Cecilia" and 3 Floyds' (Munster) "Floyds Deluxe." which again, makes a ton of sense. If you've been around me enough, you know I've had a healthy amount of this beer, and to say it rules is an understatement. It is the ultimate lawnmower beer. Minnesota's Northbound Smokehouse & Brewpub (Minneapolis) pulled off a rare feat, taking both gold and silver in the Doppelbock/Eisbock category with two different beers. Virginia quietly notched 4 golds of its own, led by Devils Backbone's (Roseland) "Foxfield Saison" and 2 Silos Brewing's (Manassas) Pumpkin Ale.

Chicago corner: Goose Island took gold for its 2025 Bourbon County Brand Proprietor's Stout. Piece Brewery won South German-Style Dunkel Weizen with "Dark N' Curvy." Cruz Blanca, Adams Street Brewery, and Industry Ales also medaled six medals total for the metro area. The host city had its own moment: Philadelphia's Attic Brewing Co. won International Dark Lager gold with "Common Nightjar," and New Ridge Brewing Co. added a gold for "Just Like Himmel" in American-Style Amber Lager.

The Global Game

Japan led all international nations with 12 medals and 4 golds, reinforcing its emergence as a genuine craft beer powerhouse. Nara Brewing Co. was the standout, doubling up with golds for "Lighthouse" (Session Beer) and "Function" (American-Belgo-Style Ale). Spring Valley Brewery's "Silk Ale White" (Shibuya), Craftrock Brewing's "Sansho Lager" (Hachioji), and Bighand Bros. Brewery's "Flint" (Kyoto) each added golds of their own, and Japanese breweries medaled in everything from German-Style Pilsener to Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout, a level of versatility no other international country matched.

China was the other Asian country standout with 6 medals and 3 golds. Peiping Machine Brewing (Beijing) won Field Beer with "Green Bean Paste Wheat Beer," Fresh Beer 30 Kilometres (Shanghai) took Classic Non-Alcohol Ale or Lager for its "Non-Alcohol Weissbier," and JING-A (Beijing) claimed Classic Saison with "Summer Wild Saison." Brazil earned 5 medals including golds for Cervejaria UNIKA's "Catharina Sour Caju Pytang" (Experimental Beer) and Daoravida Brewpub's "Terminus 2026" (Wood- and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer). New Zealand's Garage Project continued its WBC pedigree with a gold for "Engeltjes Pis" in American-Style Sour Beer.

Canada contributed 11 medals, with Unibroue out of Guelph earning three, including gold for the legendary Trois Pistoles. Germany picked up 4, with Weihenstephan predictably winning South German-Style Weizenbock with "Vitus." And in a sign of the times, Belgium's Brouwerij Bosteels took gold in Specialty Non-Alcohol Beer for Tripel Karmeliet Alcohol Free, one of the world's most iconic tripels going NA and winning gold on its biggest stage.

Who Else Got the Hardware?

Beyond Breakside's five-medal haul, a handful of programs stood out for racking up hardware across multiple categories:

Photo Courtesy of Tavour

Gowan's Heirloom Cider (Philo, CA) was utterly dominant in only the second year of WBC cider categories, 3 golds and a silver across five possible categories. Schilling Cider's "Moon Berries" (Auburn, WA) and 2 Towns Ciderhouse's "The Bad Apple" (Corvallis, OR) also each earned a gold, but nobody touched Gowan's.

BKS Artisan Ales (Kansas City) doubled up with golds for "Which Way" (Session IPA) and "Westland" (New Zealand-Style IPA). Cloudburst Brewing (Seattle) grabbed two golds for "Exquisite Taste" (Rice Lager) and "Long Time Sunshine" (West Coast-Style Pilsener).

What the Categories Tell Us

The three largest fields reveal where brewer energy is flowing. West Coast-Style IPA drew 293 entries, the biggest category in the competition, with Cannonball Creek Brewing Co. (Golden, CO) taking gold for "Project Alpha 81." Juicy or Hazy IPA wasn't far behind at 274 entries, won by Bend Brewing Co.'s "Because Science" in Oregon. Classic IPA drew 205, with ISM Brewing's "Immutable Dawn" (Long Beach, CA) on top. The West Coast style continues to attract the most competition even as hazy beers dominate tap lists nationwide.

The non-alcohol categories, still relatively young, drew a combined 186 entries across three styles. Which is a sign that the NA segment is earning its place at the table. And the cider categories (143 total entries in year two) are already producing dynasties.

By the Numbers

Metric	Figure
Total medals awarded	353
Countries represented	50
Breweries competing	1,644
Total entries judged	8,166
Beer + cider categories	118
Most-entered category	West Coast-Style IPA (293)
Top state	California (68 medals, 25 gold)
Top international country	Japan (12 medals, 4 gold)

The Takeaway

Thirty years in, the 2026 World Beer Cup reaffirmed some truths and revealed a few new ones. California's grip on American brewing remains ironclad. The Pacific Northwest is still essential. Japan is no longer an emerging curiosity rather a full-blown contender. Utah is quietly building something you should be keeping your eyes on. And the competition's expansion into cider and non-alcohol beer is already producing compelling storylines of its own.

The best snapshot we have of where brewing excellence lives, and this year, it lives just about everywhere.

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The 2026 World Beer Cup was held in conjunction with the Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. Full results are available at WorldBeerCup.org.