Jamie Bogner

From its outpost an hour outside of downtown Chicago, Art History has quietly built momentum by focusing on a range of Czech- and German-inspired lagers as well as bitters, milds, and other English styles. In this episode, head brewer Greg Browne and cofounder Tom Rau share their approach to making traditional beers cool again.

From more than 1,000 beers winnowed down via blind judging throughout the year—and then winnowed further by more blind tasting with our top writers and editors—here are 20 beers that represent the very finest in brewing today.

In this special once-per-year episode honoring the pinnacles of the craft, our editors reveal their Best 20 Beers in 2023 and the results of the annual Craft Beer in Brewing Readers’ Choice poll.

Our cofounder, editorial director, and podcast host shares his most memorable beery highlights from an eventful and far-ranging year.

Chicago’s Cruz Blanca favors beers with a story to tell. In this episode, head brewer Jacob Sembrano tells the stories behind their their red corn lager, their thick and silky barrel-aged stouts, and their grisette made from 100 percent malted corn and acidified with native bacteria from the corn itself.

Three leaders at the intersection of brewing business and tech—Patrick Tickle, CEO of Encompass Technologies, Dave Thibodeau, cofounder of Ska Brewing, and Cole Hackbarth, VP of brewing operations for Rhinegeist—discuss strategies for managing a brewery through today’s turbulent business environment.

Through fastidious technique and a clearly articulated, creative point of view, this lager-centric brewery in the southwestern suburbs of Chicago is committed to building on a family brewing history while forging its own modern lager identity.

From their South London outpost in the arches beneath a bustling elevated railway, the Kernel has embraced London brewing history with a craft ethos—respecting and referencing tradition while thoughtfully building their own identifiable, modern, hop-forward character.

For this final episode of the year, Khris Johnson of Green Bench joins Jamie to recap and listen through highlights from your 10 favorite episodes of the past 12 months.

It’s been years since we’ve highlighted any clothing, hats, pins, or other items that showcase a love of beer. So, we put out the call for items that we’d be proud to rock, even among our non-beer-drinking friends. Here’s a quick rundown of some of our favorites so far.

So far, Anthony Tallman’s quest to brew the perfect hop-forward session beer has borne two GABF silver medals for Carlsbad Crush. But this San Diego brewer isn’t done experimenting with techniques, ingredients, or timing, as he continues to squeeze big hop flavors into Burgeon’s lean, drinkable beers.

Recorded late one evening in front of a live audience at Cerveza Fauna in Mexicali, Mexico, this panel of three respected U.S. lager brewers dives into their own do’s and don’ts, approaches to ingredients, brewing with corn, the secrets of dark lager brewing ... and more.

When this San Diego transplant traded California’s West Coast for Florida’s, he also traded lean, dry IPAs for the full, fruit-forward expression of the New England style. And by focusing on the lightest possible color, controlled mashouts, and refined yeast management, he’s putting this Sarasota brewery on the map.

Flavor and aroma take on a synesthetic connection to color for the brewmaster behind one of our favorite beers last year, and in this episode she explains how—through thoughtful and intentional ingredient selection as well as process considerations—she paints colorful pictures with hops, yeast, and malt.

Since 2008, Albuquerque’s Marble Brewery has been exploring ways to make great lagers on a system built for ales, and their numerous medals are proof that the work has paid off. In this episode, master brewer Josh Trujillo details their approach—from corn and rice lagers to hop-forward pilsners and even cold IPA.

Head brewer Brad Miles and wood cellar manager Nick Pauley discuss the ways this Gilbert, Arizona, brewpub builds a regional approach to flavor in everything from saison and spontaneous beer to lager, while providing crucial support for the agricultural side of beer.

Whether it’s flipping a session-strength porter between ale and lager fermentation, or moving hops from the whirlpool to the dry hop in hazy IPAs, there’s not much that the head brewer for Phoenix’s Wren House won’t change. Just don’t ask him to alter more than one variable at a time—and don’t mess with his chocolate rye!

Unlock the secrets of successful fermentation through new and simplified approaches to yeast nutrition, enzymes, and more, with techniques outlined by Chris White, founder of White Labs, Garrison Fratoni, head brewer for Russian River, and Julian Shrago, brewmaster for Beachwood.

The brewery that got its start as a mobile draft trailer and beer bus has now won back-to-back small Brewery of the Year honors at the Great American Beer Festival—but the Quinlan brothers won’t tell you there’s anything special to their winning ways.

For years, Notch Brewing in Salem and Brighton, Massachusetts, has been spreading the lager gospel through refined yet characterful iterations of Czech- and German-inspired beers. His challenge to American brewers who want to follow that path: Ditch the 34/70, rethink your mash and fermentation schedules, decoct with intention, and embrace concise flavor over “crispness.”