Winning Beers at the 2018 Montana Brewers Association’s Fall Rendezvous

Thousands of beer fans braved the crisp wind on a chilly afternoon Saturday to enjoy the Montana Brewers Association’s annual Fall Rendezvous in Missoula.

The largest festival of its kind featuring only made-in-Montana beers,  the warmly-wrapped patrons were treated to 118 beers in a wide-variety of styles from breweries stretching from Hamilton to Sidney.  (That’s 599 miles along the fastest route from Bitter Root Brewing to Meadowlark Brewing.)

Photo Credit: MAP Brewing Co.

Missoula’s homebrewing club, the Zoo City Zymurgists, judged the beers in a blind-judging format, selecting the highest scoring beers in each category to compete for best-in-show honors.  The winning beers were: 


Festbeir:  Stacktoberfest, Smelter City Brewing, Anaconda
Pilsner:  Two Ski Brewski, Kalispell Brewing Co.
Wheat:  Don’t Hassle the Hef, Beehive Basin Brewery, Big Sky
IPA:  Shady Brady, KettleHouse, Missoula
Imperial IPA:  Headwall, Tamarack Brewing, Lakeside
Pale Ale:  Pine Creek Pale Ale, Neptune’s Brewery, Livingston
Stout:  81 Chain, MAP Brewing Co., Bozeman
Porter:  Plum Street Porter, Bozeman Brewing Co.
Wood Aged Beer:  Speedy G, Tequila Barrel Gose, MAP Brewing
Fruit/Specialty:  5 Phantoms Barleywine, Philipsburg Brewing Co.
Red Ale: Irish Red Ale, Conflux Brewing Co., Missoula
Scotch Ale: Mountain Man, Jeremiah Johnson Brewing Co., Great Falls
Barrel-Aged: Sour Brett Saison, Bozeman Brewing Co.
Belgian:  Dirty Ginger, Flathead Lake Brewing Co., Bigfork
Lager: Party Mexican Lager, MAP Brewing Co., Bozeman

Best Festival Special Release:  5 Phantoms, Philipsburg Brewing Co.

Best of Show:   Party Mexican Lager, MAP Brewing Co., Bozeman


~ Follow Growler Fills on Twitter and Facebook ~