There are many beers to choose from, whether you love a pale ale, a dark stout or a hoppy pilsner. With all the available brands and small craft breweries today, it can be hard to find the best beers to savor. Top-rated beers have won awards at major festivals, state fairs and professional association events like the American and World Beer Awards competitions.
1. Power House Porter
A medal winner at the 2018 Best of Craft Beer Awards, this delicious rich brown porter is available nationwide. Brewed by Sockeye Brewing in Boise, Idaho, the Power House Porter has also won awards at North American Beer Awards, CANFEST, Great American Beer Festival and the Western Idaho Fair for several years in a row. It's a rich beer with hints of chocolate, caramel and coffee and a medium level of hoppiness.
2. Blood Orange Wit
This Belgian-style fruit beer selection was a gold medal winner at the 2018 Great American Beer Festival. Created by Refuge Brewery, the second-fastest growing brewery in the state of California, the Blood Orange Wit is their best-selling brew. As the name implies, this light wheat beer is made using blood oranges, and the taste is a mix of sweet and tart. It can be found in California, Arizona and Colorado.
3. Samuel Adams American Kriek
Samuel Adams' American Kriek took the "World's Best Kriek" award at the 2017 World Beer Awards. A kriek, or kriek lambic, is a type of dry, sour beer that is made with whole cherries and a secondary fermentation process. More recent versions of krieks have been made with cherry juice. The kriek originates from Belgium. The Samuel Adams version gets high praise as an exceptional example of a kriek lambic with a strong, tart taste of cherries combined with malt and oak flavors.
4. Wanderlust IPA
Wanderlust IPA received the gold medal for American-Style Strong Pale Ale at the 2019 Australian International Beer Awards. It has also been honored with a silver medal at the 2018 World Beer Cup, a gold medal at the 2018 Oregon Beer Awards and the gold medal for American-style IPA at the 2017 Best of Craft Beer Awards. Brewed by Breakside Brewery, a rising star in the Pacific Northwest area, the IPA can be found in several states including Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Colorado, Arizona, New York, and more. The beer is a combination of five different hops and has a strong taste of grapefruit with dank notes.
5. San Miguel Pale Pilsen
If you're looking for an excellent choice for an Asian beer, consider San Miguel Pale Pilsen from the Philippines. This beer is very popular in its home country and is imported worldwide. It's an award-winning beer that first began production back in 1890. It has won several gold medals at the Monde Selection, Australian International Beer Awards and recognition at the U.S. World Beer Championship. A pilsen is another variation of the pale lager and the name originates from Pilsen, a city in the Bohemia region of Czechoslovakia. It's a smooth beer with a rich profile and is a perfect choice for pale beer lovers.
6. Maple Vanilla Evasion
Maple Vanilla Evasion is the winner for World's Best Flavoured Beer at the 2019 World Beer Awards. This sweet beer has strong hints of maple, vanilla, chocolate, treacle and malt. It's available throughout the state of Indiana from Taxman Brewing Company.
7. Allagash White
This Belgian-style wheat beer gets its name from the pale color produced by the brewing mix. It's a light, spicy and fruity beer with hints of Curaçao orange peel and coriander. Brewed at the Allagash Brewing Company in Portland Maine, the beer can be found throughout the northeastern and middle Atlantic states. It won a gold medal at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival and at both the 2010 and 2012 World Beer Cup.
8. Session Light
Winner of the 2019 US Open Beer Championships for Best American Light Lager is Session Light by Full Sail Brewing in Oregon. For people who are calorie-conscious, Session Light has only 100 calories and is also low carb. It's an American-style lager with a light, malt taste. The beer is distributed in 25 states, including the home state of Oregon.
9. Whole Hog Pumpkin Ale
This seasonal beer won the gold medal at the 2019 Great American Beer Festival for the Best Pumpkin/Squash Beer. It's made by the Whole Hog, part of the Stevens Point Brewing Company in Wisconsin. The ale not only has the sweet taste of pumpkin but is spicy as well with hints of cinnamon, nutmeg and pumpkin pie spice. The beer is distributed in Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
10. Aurochs Blonde Ale
Gluten-sensitive individuals used to have to forego beer, but there are now excellent gluten-free options. Auroch's Blonde Ale was the number one winner in USA Today's Top Ten Gluten-Free Beers. The beer is brewed with banana, melon and papaya and has a mild fruity taste. It's available through Aurochs Brewing Company in Emsworth, Pennsylvania and throughout the state, as well as distributed in New York.
