15th annual Sacramento Beer Week kicks off with Brewers Cup of California
SACRAMENTO — The 15th annual Sacramento Beer Week kicked off Friday.
The festivities started with a stout competition at Crest Theater with more than 200 breweries vying for the title of California's best beer.
The annual Brewers Cup of California is the largest event of its kind in the state, honoring craft beers in 64 categories.
"California is one of the top beer states in the country, so why wouldn't we have a competition?" said David Weiss, president of the Sacramento Area Brewers Guild.
And brewing beer has been a part of Sacramento's history dating back to the Gold Rush days.
Many raw ingredients are still grown in the Central Valley.
"We've got barley that's growing in this region. We've got heirloom varieties that have been here forever," Weiss said. "This whole region was a hop-growing region; 100 years ago, we were the largest producers of hops in the nation."
Craft breweries are now in nearly every urban neighborhood.
"A lot of breweries are very kid-friendly and dog-friendly, and so it just creates a very welcoming space," Weiss said.
But there have been recent contractions in the industry, with some local spots going out of business.
But brewers say that even in tough times, going out for a beer can be an economical extravagance.
"Even if you can't afford some super nice things, you can go have a decent beer once or twice a week," Weiss said.
"Times are tough, things are expensive but beer has always stood the test of time," said Chris Keeton of Alaro Craft Brewery.
And the competition's top prize, the Best of Show, was won by Geisthaus Brewing, a Sacramento business that's only been open for 11 months. So what's their secret?
"Just experience, understanding ingredients, and making the best beer we can," said Ben Allgood of Geisthaus Brewing.
Sacramento Beer Week continues for the next nine days, with various tasting opportunities and events across the region.
