Kate Bernot

Uncork the magnums, this is the winners’ circle. Through a gauntlet of judging panels and on to the editors’ table for a last round of blind tasting and spirited discussion, these are the beers that lit up our palates and our brains—or that simply had us yearning for another, and another.

• Best in Beer
• Edtors’ Picks
• Best 20 Beers

Ope! Midwest IPA is just gonna sneak right past the two coastal substyles as a unique approach all its own, rooted in modern tradition while evolving for the future.

• IPA
• Midwest IPA
• Midwest

The world’s best oak-aged beers begin with careful hot-side considerations. Here’s how some of today’s leading brewers design stouts and barleywines to maximize success inside the barrel, and beyond.

• Barrel-Aging
• Oak-Aging
• Imperial Stout

Simple yet dazzling, farmhouse-inspired beers on the lower end of the ABV spectrum present brewers—and drinkers—with an enthralling riddle.

• Table Beer
• Saison
• Farmhouse Ale

Neutrality has long been a goal of lager fermentation, but some brewers are taking steps to coax more character from their yeast. From strain selection to variable pressure and temperature, here’s how they’re adding complexity, flavor, and nuance to today’s craft lagers.

• Lager Yeast
• Lager
• Fermentation

After two days of judging for our Best 20 Beers in 2024, the team sat down to discuss their own most enjoyable beers and experiences of the past year—along the way identifying some trends that may offer hope for the next chapter of craft beer’s story.

• Podcast

Our contributing editor and one of the most accomplished chroniclers of the brewing industry shares her top beers and moments from the past year.

• Kate's Critic's List 2024

Whether through consolidation or layoffs, a brewery can lose its point of contact at a wholesaler. Here’s how to keep sales on track while strengthening your partnerships in the middle tier.

• Industry
• Distribution
• Wholesalers

Brewers share strategies for reducing costs on craft beer’s most competitive style.

• IPA
• COGS
• Costs

Now that hazy IPA is ubiquitous, brewers are working harder than ever to make novel examples that stand out in the crowd. From hopping to yeast selection, here’s how a few of the pros are leaving their unique thumbprints on the style.

• Hazy IPA
• Hops

Barleywines and wheatwines explore the boldest flavor frontiers of their respective grains. Now, daring brewers are applying that maximalist approach to wine-strength beers brewed with millet, rye-wheat hybrids, smoked malts, and more.

• Weirdwines
• Barleywine
• Triticale

Whether they’re working in farmhouses or warehouses, today’s saison brewers are united in their pursuit of rustic character. While that goal is abstract, they achieve it via concrete choices about ingredients and process—and the ways to get there are as varied as the brewers and beers themselves.

• Saison
• Rustic
• Rusticity