AIBA 2014 Winners

May 23, 2014, by Crafty Pint

https://craftypint.s3.amazonaws.com/crafty/learn/Awards-icon-230620-122848-230706-154520.png
AIBA 2014 Winners

The state that kickstarted Australia’s craft beer revival and the one that’s doing most to drive it forward are both celebrating following the results of the 2014 Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA). Together, Western Australia and Victoria claimed nine awards, including the Champion Australian Beer which went to WA’s Mash Brewing and their “stoked” head brewer Charlie Hodgson for their AIPA, on a night when many of the more established Australian micros had cause to celebrate.

The annual AIBA competition is one of the largest of its kind in the world and is judged by a panel of almost 40 local and international brewers. Three weeks ago, they gathered in Melbourne to judge more than 1,500 beers – the largest ever set of entries – and it threw up a diverse range of recipients.

The three Champion Breweries of Australia saw a clean sweep for Melbourne breweries; Thornbury’s 3 Ravens, which was only given a fresh lease on life when Mash took the brewery over last year, took the trophy for small breweries, Brunswick East’s Thunder Road Brewing took out the gong for medium sized breweries and CUB retained the title in the large breweries category.

In one of the more amusing moments of the night, 3 Ravens head brewer gave a thank you speech in which he warned he wasn’t sure how long he could talk without swearing, promptly did, then concluded: “We’ve never won a gold before so we’ve earned this. Fuck yeah!”

Meanwhile, Thunder Road’s success, complete with a large number of medals, came in its first ever entry to an awards competition.

Elsewhere there was cause to celebrate for Victorian brewers old and new. Kaiju! has been operating for less than a year (having first started under the name Monster Mash) but they’ve clearly hit the ground running by taking out the Best Amber/Dark Ale with their Hopped Out Red. Meanwhile, having brewed the beer for well over two decades, Grand Ridge won the Best Scotch Ale & Barley Wine category for their Moonshine beer, a category in which their Supershine came second.

Other Australian winners included the Sydney Brewery’s Lovedale Lager as the Best European Style Lager, 3 Ravens' English Ale winning Best British Style Ale, Nail’s Hughe Dunn Brown taking out Best Porter and Moo Brew’s Hefeweizen in the Best Wheat Beer category. Across the Tasman, Marlborough’s Renaissance Brewing continued an impressive run by securing the Champion Small International Brewery trophy for the second consecutive year.

 

Mash-AIBA-2014
Mash brewers collect their Champion Australian Beer trophy

 

Also announced on the night was the inaugural Media Award. Sponsored and co-created by The Crafty Pint with the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria with the aim of raising the profile of beer coverage in the media, the trophy went to Matt Kirkegaard, editor of Australian Brews News.

Brewers from the USA did nothing to dissuade the view that the States is at the forefront of the modern beer movement as their brewers grabbed seven titles. Ultimate honours went to Deschutes with their Obsidian Stout being named Champion International Beer. Other awards went to Black Tooth, Rogue, Hopworks Urban Brewery, Boulevard Brewing and Red Rock. Fittingly, brewers from Deschutes and Rogue were in Melbourne for Good Beer Week so will have some nice shiny additions to their luggage for the journey home. Two trophies are also headed for South Korea thanks to the success of the Oriental Brewing Company, while the brewery behind the Schlenkerla rauchbiers took out the Medium International Brewery title.


The full list of winners is…

CHAMPION TROPHIES

Champion Australian Beer
Mash AIPA – Mash Brewing (WA)

Champion International Beer
Obsidian Stout – Deschutes Brewery (USA)

Champion Large Australian Brewery
Carlton & United Breweries (VIC)

Champion Medium Australian Brewery
Thunder Road Brewing Company (VIC)

Champion Small Australian Brewery
3 Ravens (VIC)

Champion Large International Brewery
Oriental Brewing Company (South Korea)

Champion Medium International Brewery
Heller-Bräu Trum KG (Germany)

Champion Small International Brewery
Renaissance Brewing Ltd (NZ)

Best New Exhibitor
Black Tooth Brewing Company (USA)

 

AIBA-2014-1

 

MAJOR TROPHIES

Best Australian-Style Lager
James Boag’s Draught – J. Boag & Son Pty Ltd (TAS)

Best European-Style Lager
Lovedale Lager – Sydney Brewery (NSW)

Best International Lager
Cass Fresh – Oriental Brewing Co. (South Korea)

Best Amber/Dark Lager
Rogue Farms Roguenbier Rye – Rogue Ales (USA)

Best International Pale Ale
Organic IPX Single Hop Ale: Chinook – Hopworks Urban Brewery (USA)

Best British Style Ale (excluding IPA & Pale Ale)
English – 3 Ravens (VIC)

Best IPA
Mash AIPA – Mash Brewing (WA)

Best Amber/Dark Ale
Kaiju! Hopped Out Red – Kaiju Beer (VIC)

Best Porter
Nail Hughe Dunn Brown – Nail Brewing (WA)

Best Stout
Obsidian Stout – Deschutes Brewery (USA)

Best Wheat Beer
Hefeweizen – Moo Brew (TAS)

Best Belgian & French Style Ale
Long Strange Tripel – Boulevard Brewing Co (USA)

Best Scotch Ale & Barley Wine
Moonshine – Grand Ridge Brewery (VIC)

Best Specialty Beer
Paardebloem Belgian Ale – Red Rock Brewery (USA)

Best Packaging
Beer School Hop Pack – Bridge Road Brewers (VIC)

Media Award
Matt Kirkegaard

No trophies were awarded in the Australian Pale Ale, Pilsner, European Style Ale and Reduced/Low Alcohol categories


Guests at Saturday night’s Good Beer Week Closing Party at the Terminus Hotel can sample many of the beers entered in the awards in a special AIBA tasting room. Limited tickets available here.

https://craftypint.s3.amazonaws.com/crafty/learn/Awards-icon-230620-122848-230706-154520.png

Discover more Awards & Achievements articles

If you enjoy The Crafty Pint, you can become a supporter of our independent journalism.

You can make a donation or sign up for our beer club, The Crafty Cabal, and gain access to exclusive events, giveaways and special deals.

Pickled OnMarket
CBCo Goldy
Lallemand 1
Cryer E