Yellowstone Beer Fest 2021-is in the books!
Written By: Sarah Reish
With much anticipation and build up, the day of the Yellowstone Beer Fest finally arrived and we were not disappointed. It was a sunny and warm day only made better by the delicious beer and great food from the food trucks.
Highlight Snapshot
There were over 220 beers served up by over 50 breweries from around the world. According to volunteer staff, this year’s event was also a record-breaking year for attendees, amounting to over 3,000. Despite the size of the crowd, the event space provided ample room to libate, socialize and dance without being shoulder to shoulder. All in all, the 2021 Yellowstone Beer Fest went off without a hitch and everyone who attended was able to enjoy themselves all afternoon.
Can you really choose a favorite?
While it is impossible to try all of the beers, we did meet up with some craft brewing friends of ours at the event and chatted about the beers and the breweries who were doing some exciting things. What I have learned is that the brewing community is a pretty tight knit group of people that love to support each other. While we couldn’t determine favorites, here are three beers that were highlights for us during the event:
Raspberry Jalapeño Ale, Millstone Brewery - Cody, Wyoming. A perfect balance between sweet and heat. Not too heavy with the raspberry, but a perfect amount of jalapeño flair and heat.
2x4 IPA, Melvin Brewing - Alpine, Wyoming. This is a hop bomb for fans of imperial IPA’s, without being boozy. It’s an easy drinker and has great balance.
King Sue Double IPA - Toppling Goliath - Deborah, Iowa. A great beer for someone who doesn’t like sweet beer, but wants to try something new. It offers a distinct IPA hit to the taste buds with a subtle tropical flavor keeping it cool and light.
If you get to visit these breweries, or find them on tap somewhere, be sure to give them a try and let us know what you think!
Special Thanks
Each beer was unique and special in its own way and for all of us who attended we want to thank Trent Cole for heading up the event, the volunteers (this event is 100% volunteer organized and run), the sponsors for making this possible, and the breweries for making such delicious beers and providing the samples.
Award Winners
Here are the awards and the winners of this year’s event. Congratulations to each and every one of you!
Best Overall Brewery - Toppling Goliath
Best Pale: Gruner Brothers - North Platte Pale Ale
Best IPA: Sierra Nevanda - Dankful
Best DIPA: Toppling Goliath - King Sue
Best Fruit: Melvin - Killer Bee’s
Best Dark: Kettlehouse - Cold Smoke Scotch Ale
Best Specialty: Millstone - Jalapeno Raspberry
Best Wheat: Lewis & Clark - HALO Huckleberry HEFE
Share your experience!
If you were one of the 3,000 attendees, be sure to post your photos on social media and tag us @LiveWYldMag and @YellowstoneBeerFest and use #LiveWYld
