Brau- und Rauchshop Beer Contest 2023

A new record number of submitted beers – a proud 492 – presented the judges at this year’s Brau- und Rauchshop Beer Contest with sensory challenges. How the judging went and who won can be read below.

Fine notes of caramel, toasted bread and coffee develop on the nose. In the mouth, there is a creamy sweetness, more roast flavours and a slightly bitter finish.

The judge makes a note of his observations and begins his evaluation. How does the colour, the foam fit? How intense does the beer smell, does it smell harmonious or are brewing mistakes noticeable?

In addition to the category in which the beer is entered, the judge only has a description written by the brewery. For example, that in the above case it is a Coffee Milk Stout. Sometimes, however, there is simply no description at all.

Double-blind procedure

The beer judge swings the glass again, looks at the colour, sniffs again, takes a small sip. Now he or she notes down his or her observations. Maybe he or she has noticed a mistake or likes something particularly well. How is the intensity, the balance, the mouthfeel? And does the beer fit into the category entered? If the beer has any faults or shortcomings, the judge notes down the reasons and how this can be prevented.

First, second and final round

After all the beers in a session have been tasted, points are distributed. In the big categories, such as Pale Ale, Hazy, IPA and Stout, where there are many entries, the best beers qualify for the main round on Saturday.

From the best category winners, the annual winner will finally be chosen in the final.

The tasting sessions are hard work for the taste buds and palates. Bread is available to neutralise the taste and roasted coffee beans for the judges’ sense of smell. But even the trained palates of the sommeliers, brewers and representatives from the beer industry or beer distribution get tired once in a while. For this reason, the record number of entries – this year there were 492 – were tasted over two days, i.e. on Friday morning, in the afternoon and on Saturday morning.

On Saturday, the following category winners were announced:

Categories and winners

The overall winner of all categories this year was a beer called “Rudolph” from Heimelig, a “Anti-Imperial Whisky Stout”. The overall winner of the Beer Contest 2023 will be allowed to offer their beers for sale at Drinks of the World throughout Switzerland.

Amber		Nr.		Belgisch Starkbier		Nr.
1	LovePainBeer	4		1	Brasserie Mundschenk	11
2	Leonhard Hebestreit	5		2	Ahoi Hill	3
3	Zipfelbier	11		3	Brasserie des 3 lacs	15

Bock & Doppelbock		Nr.		Brett/Lakto		Nr.
1	Brauerei Chällerbröi (Bock)	4		1	Kwär	2
2	Brauerei Sufers (Doppelbock)	4		1	Leonhard Hebestreit	4
3	Johannes Windisch (Bock)	1		3	Brauart Dals Bofs	3
3	Brauerei 567 “Stollo’s Best” (Doppelb.)	1		3	Brasserie des Vieux Grinches SNC	8
3	Brauerei 567 “Stollo’s Best” (Doppelb.)	2

Cider & Perry		Nr.		Double IPA		Nr.
1	INCIDER	1		1	David Theill	2
2	Arne Baucamp	6		2	Birte Andersen	4
3	Backstabber	9		3	FOXBREW	3

Frucht		Nr.		Ginger Beer & Met		Nr.
1	Drunk Beard	15		1	REIB BIER (Met)	9
2	Shrinkbrew Ales	18		2	Metsiederei Eckert (Met)	6
3	Andreas Ritter	12		3	Metsiederei Eckert (Met)	7

Holzfassgelagerte Biere		Nr.		Imperial Stout		Nr.
1	Ahoi Hill	1		1	Heimelig Bier	15
2	Shrinkbrew Ales	7		2	NewCornerBeer NCB	7
3	Hard Labor Brew GmbH	11		3	Leonhard Hebestreit	8

IPA		Nr.		Juicy & Hazy		Nr.
1	Berke Bräu	3		1	Alain Bruttin	9
2	Alistair Bremnath	22		2	Alain Bruttin	10
3	Hoptopus	34		3	Kwär	3

Kölsch		Nr.		Lager		Nr.
1	Marmot Cervisiam GmbH	1		1	Ahoi Hill	10
2	Brasserie la Source	19		2	Bättx Bier	36
3	Trostburger Brauverein	18		3	Hofstatt Bräu	15

Märzen		Nr.		Pale Ale		Nr.
1	Landskroner Bräu AG	13		1	Ahoi Hill	10
2	Guido Köppel	17		2	Berke Bräu	3
3	Botlibier	5		3	Ahoi Hill	9

Pils		Nr.		Porter		Nr.
1	Boris Wechner	7		1	Hoptopus	10
3	Brasserie Mundschenk	10		2	Leonhard Hebestreit	6
3	Malcom Bruton	13		3	Anton Oppliger	15

Rauch		Nr.		Saison		Nr.
1	Philippe Ritter	6		1	Pascal Krell	3
2	Brasserie du Manoir	1		2	Flavio Foiada	2
3	Brauerei Schluckspecht	3		3	Hobbybrauer Joe Meier	14

Schwarzbier		Nr.		Stout		Nr.
1	Burgdorfer Gasthausbrauerei AG	10		1	Guido Köppel	21
2	Brasserie La Source	12		2	BG 24	18
3	Oberhöfler’s Bier usem Neubrünnlertal	2		3	Arne Baucamp	13

Strong Ale		Nr.		Weird & Wonderful		Nr.
1	Leonhard Hebestreit	2		1	Bierwerkstatt Nordsud	18
2	Brasserie Mundschenk	3		2	David Foxton	17
3	Hoptopus	5		3	Brauerei 567 “Stollo’s Best”	5

Weizen-/Weizenbock		Nr.		Wit		Nr.
1	Hans Fankhauser	13		1	Braumanufaktur Bahnhof Aarau	3
2	Schland Bräu	22		2	Leonhard Hebestreit	8
3	MosaicBrew	7		3	Brasserie BMR	6

All first place winners per category will receive a bag of malt sponsored by Weyermann Malz. Category winners, runners-up and third place winners will also receive a voucher for the Brau- und Rauchshop sponsored by Fermentis and other sponsors.

We at bierversuche.ch congratulate all the podium finishers on their great success.

Disclaimer: Bierversuche has supported the B&R Beer Contest by organising the judges and has provided two judges itself, but has no financial interest in the company or the contest or any of the sponsors. We would like to thank the B&R team for the great organisation and their extraordinary commitment. We would also like to thank all the brewers for taking part in the contest and all the judges for their participation. We are already looking forward to next year.