The First World Beer Cup Is Held

In 1996, the first World Beer Cup was held in Vail, Colorado. Developed by the Association of Brewers, a predecessor of today’s Brewers Association, the competition invited commercial breweries from different countries to submit beers for professional evaluation within defined style categories. Judges assessed the beers through blind tasting and awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals when entries met the standards associated with each category. Initially held every two years, the World Beer Cup created a prominent international forum for comparing brewing quality across national traditions and helped connect professional beer judging with an increasingly global system of style classification.