GABF circa 1876
More than 100 years before the Great American Beer Festival began judging brews out in Denver, Philadelphia hosted the Centennial Exposition, a six-month world’s fair on the grounds of Fairmount Park that attracted 10 million visitors. At Brewers Hall, scores of beer-makers brought in their brews for a summer of judging.
I wrote about the event two years ago, and mentioned some of the award winners, including Phillip Best (now Pabst; that’s how they got the name “Blue Ribbon”) and Philly’s Bergner & Engel.
What else won? Google finally got around to scanning the full report of the 1876 Exposition. I’ve copied down the beer awards and attached a .pdf below.
Unfortunately, brand names are not included - but check out the brewers who sent beer to Philly: Dreher, Pschorr, Blatz, Aass, Labatt, Anheuser, Ind Coope and more. You’ll find ale from Burton on Trent, Bohemian pilsner, even ale that was aged at least 5 years. It’s a quick, fun list to scan.