2nd Annual Loudoun Beer Award Results 2026
2026 Loudoun Beer Awards Results - Updated 2/5/2026
Brewing A Revolution in honor of VA250! The results are in! The winners of the 2026 Loudoun Beer Awards were announced on February 4, 2026, at Lark Brewing Co. in Aldie, VA. Route 7 Brewing earned the prestigious Loudoun Beer Cup - Best in Show for their Cross Czech, a Czech-Style Dark Lager. This sold-out banquet brought together brewers, industry professionals, local officials, and craft beer enthusiasts for an evening of recognition, camaraderie, and award winning beer.
2026 Beer Competition
IPA Category
Gold: Cold Front IPA – Lost Rhino Brewing (6.3%)
Silver: Gilded Angel – Chilly Hollow Brewing (7.5%)
Honorable Mention: Star Party – Loudoun Brewing Co. (7.1%)
Hazy IPA Category
Gold: Lucky 7 – Route 7 Brewing (6.6%)
Silver: Juicious Malfoy – Chilly Hollow Brewing (6.8%) Honorable Mention: Notch 8 – Bluemont Station Brewing (8.0%)
Wheat Beer Category
Gold: Final Glide – Lost Rhino Brewing (5.4%)
Silver: Wheatland Crossroads Hefe – Harvest Gap Brewing (5.4%) Honorable Mention: Wit Witty – Hillsborough Brewing (4.8%)
Dark Ales Category
Gold: CocoNilla – Lost Rhino Brewing (7.1%)
Silver: One Sip Wonder – Lark Brewing Co. (6.0%)
Honorable Mention: Funky Chicken – Loudoun Brewing Co. (5.5%)
Light Ales Category
Gold: Kittocton Kolsch – Barnhouse Brewery (4.6%)
Silver: Kodiak Kolsch – Bear Chase Brewing (4.5%)
Honorable Mention: Cross-Eyed Kolsch Lite – Loco Lion Brewing (3.6%)
Light Lager Category
Gold: Chilly Light – Chilly Hollow Brewing (4.7%)
Silver: Barn Beer – Bluemont Station Brewing (4.6%)
Honorable Mention: Poacher's Pilsner – Black Hoof Brewing (5.0%)
Dark Lager Category
Gold: Cross Czech – Route 7 Brewing (5.2%) ★ BEST IN SHOW
Silver: Muzzle Loader Munich Dunkel – Black Hoof Brewing (5.5%) Honorable Mention: Black Widow – Chilly Hollow Brewing (5.4%)
Fruited Beers Category
Gold: Sour Bear Wild Berry – Bear Chase Brewing (5.2%)
Silver: Merrang! – Crooked Run Fermentation (5.0%)
Honorable Mention: Tropical Sunset – Bear Chase Brewing (8.8%)
Old World / International Category
Gold: Boho Breeze – Route 7 Brewing (5.2%)
Silver: Rhino Chasers – Lost Rhino Brewing (5.6%)
Honorable Mention: Trippin' Daisies – Chilly Hollow Brewing (9.2%)
Hard Alternatives Category
Gold: Bear Chase Chill – Bear Chase Brewing (4.7%)
Silver: Not Awarded
'Honorable Mention: Not Awarded
2026 Brewers Choice Awards
Community Service Champion
Recognizing breweries that go above and beyond in serving their community.
Winner: Lark Brewing Company
Brewer of the Year
Honoring the most innovative and dedicated brewer.
Winner: Roger Knoell – Barnhouse Brewery Roger Knoell has been homebrewing since 1995. Before Virginia had farm brewery laws, before the county had brewery zoning rules, he was brewing in his garage in Loudoun. When he brews a German beer, he uses German malt, German hops, and German yeast. No shortcuts. No compromises. What sets Roger apart isn't just his craft, it's what he gives back to the community. He brews for the craft, for the community, and for what he calls "laid back beers for laid back people."
General Manager of the Year
Celebrating outstanding leadership and management in the brewery industry. Winner: Sophia Salcido – Eleven Eleven Brewing
Best Label Design(er)
Showcasing the most creative and visually stunning label designs. Winner: Logan Martin – Lost Rhino Brewing
Event of the Year
Highlighting the brewery that hosted the most memorable event of the year.
Winner: Old Ox Brewery "Last Call". On April 5, 2025, the Loudoun craft beer community gathered to say goodbye to a brewery that had been part of the county's story for 11 years. Old Ox's Chris Burns helped found the Loudoun County Brewers Association in January 2017 and became its first Chairman. At that founding meeting, he said: "Loudoun County is DC's wine country, but there's absolutely no reason on earth we shouldn't be DC's beer country." With 44 breweries licensed in Loudoun County today, he was right.
Beertender of the Year
Recognizing exceptional customer service and craft beer knowledge. Winner: Connor Mackey – Harvest Gap Brewing
Best of Loudoun Beer
Awarded to the beer that best represents Loudoun County, showcasing local ingredients and pride. Winner: "Meet Virginia" – Bear Chase Brewing Company Meet Virginia is brewed with 100% Virginia-grown and Virginia-produced ingredients: yeast from Loudoun, hops from Virginia growers, and malt from Virginia grain. What makes the beer truly special is that it evolves with the seasons. Rather than locking into a single recipe, the brew team lets the beer change throughout the year based on what's available, creating each batch as a snapshot of Virginia's brewing supply chain at that moment in time.
2025 Loudoun Beer Awards Results
2025 Beer Competition
Light Lager Category
Gold: Eleven Eleven Brewing Company for Narcissist, Helles Lager
Silver: Honor Brewing for Classic, Light Lager
Honorable Mention: Crooked Run Fermentation for Alora, Italian Style Pilsner
Wheat Beer Category
Gold: Bear Chase Brewing Co for Dinosaur Land Dark Wheat, German Dunkelweizen
Silver: Barnhouse Brewery for Angry Buck Weizenbock
Honorable Mention: n/a
Light Ale Category
Gold: Route 7 Brewing for Algonkian Pale Ale, Pale Ale
Silver: Flying Ace Farm for Bloody Butcher Cream Ale, Light Ale Honorable Mention: Lost Barrel for No.11, Kolsch
Old World & International Category
Gold: Dynasty Brewing for El Supremo Pilsner, Dry Hopped Pilsner
Silver: Bear Chase Brewing Co for Smokehouse Lager, Grodziskie
Honorable Mention: Crooked Run Fermentation for Inverness, Wee Heavy
Fruited Beer Category
Gold: Eleven Eleven Brewing Company for Resting Peach Face, Habanero Peach IPA
Silver: Waters End Brewery for Cranberry Imperial Sour, Fruited Sour
Honorable Mention: Crooked Run Fermentation for Sticky Rice, Fruited Berliner Weisse
IPA (India Pale Ale) Category
Gold: Lost Barrel Brewing for Stratazacca, Double IPA
Silver: Harvest Gap Brewery for Scotty J Smash IPA – IPA
Honorable Mention: Bluemont Station Brewery for Gone Fishin’, Grapefruit West Coast IPA
Hazy IPA (India Pale Ale) Category
Gold: Lost Barrel Brewing for Hazy IPA, Hazy India Pale Ale
Silver: Route 7 Brewing for Lucky 7, Hazy India Pale Ale
Honorable Mention: Honor Brewing for Hazy, Hazy India Pale Ale
Dark Lager Category
Gold: Bear Chase Brewing for Honey Badger, Amber Lager
Silver: Flying Ace for Dopplebock, Dark Lager
Honorable Mention: Bluemont Station for Midnight Train, Schwartzbier
Dark Ale Category
Gold: Crooked Run Fermentation for Approaching Black, Black Porter
Silver: Barnhouse Brewing for Honey Hole, Honey Brown Ale
Honorable Mention: Old 690 Brewing Company for Outlandish, Dark ale with coffee and vanilla
Loudoun Brewers' Choice Awards
Community Service Champion
Recognizing breweries that go above and beyond in serving their community.
Winner: Honor Brewing Company – Raised over $150,000 for charity
Brewer of the Year
Honoring the most innovative and dedicated brewer.
Winner: Chris Jacques of Chilly Hollow Brewing Company formally of Quattro Goombas.
General Manager (GM) of the Year
Celebrating outstanding leadership and management in the brewery industry.
Winner: Kat Huff with Lark Brewing Company
Best Label Design
Showcasing the most creative and visually stunning label designs.
Winner: Adroit Theory
Best Event of the Year
Highlighting the brewery that hosted the most memorable event of the year.
competition judges.
Winner: Loudoun Brewing Company – Leesburg Flower and Garden Festival
Beertender of the Year
Recognizing exceptional customer service and craft beer knowledge.
Winner: Cat Greenway from Eleven Eleven Brewing Company
Best of Loudoun Beer
Awarded to the beer that best represents Loudoun County, showcasing local ingredients and pride.
Winner: “Bloody Butcher” Cream Ale – Flying Ace Farm
Best in Show 2025
Eleven Eleven Brewing Company for
Narcissist, Helles Lager
Best in Show 2026
Route 7 Brewing
for
Cross Czech, Czech-Style Dark Lager
