The New York State Brewers Association hosts the annual NYS Craft Beer Competition every Spring with the highest award being the Governor's Craft Beer Cup. Now in its 6th year, the NY competition is the fastest growing and second largest beer competition in the country.
In 2022, more than 1300 beers were judged in Rochester, NY over a 2-day period by 60+ judges. Beers are identified in one of 29 categories and blindly tasted by brewery veterans, beer journalists, cicerone certified enthusiasts and BJCP certified judges (the highest level beer judge).
The Governor's Cup is the final round of tasting at the competition and is the determination of the best-in-show beer. In this round, 7 of the highest ranking judges (who do not have a beer in contention) judge the gold medal winners of each category and select the beer that is the best overall beer and that really stands out among all beers.
Winning breweries receive a large silver trophy to be displayed in their brewery, national media attention and bragging rights of brewing the best beer in New York State, the second largest craft beer market in the US.
Recent winners of the NYS Craft Beer Competition:
- 2022 - Lunkenheimer Craft Brewing
- 2021 - Eli Fish Brewing
- 2020 - Big aLICe Brewing
Pick up some and judge for yourself.
(The competition is administered by Raise a Glass Foundation, a nonprofit organization that operates professional tasting competitions for a variety of industries including wine, cider and spirits. Proceeds from the competitions fund global charities.)
