Chuckanut Brewery in Bellingham, WA was awarded two Gold Medals for their Chuckanut beers at the 2017 Great American Beer Festival (GABF). A Gold for Kolsch German style Ale and a Gold for Chuckanut Dunkel Lager were given at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) in Denver, Colorado October 7, 2017. The GABF 2017 had 8,100 entries by 2,290 breweries and gave out 292 medals. It is the largest commercial beer competition in the world. Award-winning brewers received prestigious gold, silver, and bronze medals in 98 categories establishing the examples of each style in the U.S. A gold medal signifies the best example of each beer style. The entries were evaluated by 236 judges from 13 countries. This is the third time Chuckanut Dunkel (2010 and 2014) has been awarded a Gold medal at the GABF and the third time for Chuckanut Kolsch (2011 and 2015). Chuckanut Kolsch German-style ale has a light body with a soft malt flavor giving way to a crisp finish and a light gold crystal clear look. This award-winning ale has undergone cold conditioning resulting in a slightly fruity aroma, effervescent quality, and quenches your thirst all year round! With an ABV of only 4.6 %, Kolsch is a very sessionable beer. Chuckanut Kolsch has won Gold medals but also a Silver GABF 2012 and a World Beer Cup Silver in 2012. Kolsch is terrific with salads since its light enough not to overwhelm tasty greens and plays along with avocado, cheese, or whatever else you might want to toss on top. Chuckanut’s Dunkel is a mahogany colored lager capped by an impressively sturdy tan head. As in all lagers, the flavors in Dunkel are produced directly by the ingredients; in this case, some of the malts have been deeply roasted, giving Dunkel chocolate, coffee, and even licorice notes. There is just enough bitterness to balance out the malt creating a juicy dark lager beer. Chuckanut Brewery’s Dunkel has won not only multiple Gold GABF medals but also Silver GABF 2009 and 2012, Bronze GABF 2015, Gold World Beer Cup 2010 and Silver World Beer Cup 2014. Dunkel goes great with braised, roasted meats and is the perfect choice for bratwurst, bockwurst, and weisswurst. Fresh briny oysters are highlighted with the pairing of a pint of Dunkel Lager. Chuckanut Brewery has two locations, the original Chuckanut Brewery & Kitchen at 601 W Holly St, Bellingham with a full-service menu and European style award winning Lagers and Ales. And the new Chuckanut Brewery South Nut Taproom at 11937 Higgins Airport Way, Burlington in the heart of Skagit County. Check out Chuckanut Brewery at: www.chuckanutbreweryandkitchen.com
