FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Brandon Hernández
Founder & Executive Editor, San Diego Beer News®
Phone: (858) 945-3462
Email: brandon@sandiegobeer.news
January 4 will kick off the first-ever fan-nominated, industry-voted all-San-Diego awards
competition recognizing the county’s best beers, brewing companies and staffers
SAN DIEGO, CA (December 29, 2020)—Monday, January 4 will mark the start of the nomination period for a first-of-its-kind all-San-Diego awards competition drawing on opinions from beer fans and brewery personnel to recognize standout beers, brewing companies and industry members throughout the county. Presented by online resource San Diego Beer News (SDBN) and banner sponsor Yakima Chief Hops, the first annual San Diego Beer News Awards is designed to allow professionals and enthusiasts to collaborate to present the most authentic insights into the best of the best in the nation’s craft-beer capital.
Every weekday in January, beer fans will be invited to cast nominations in different beer or brewery categories by commenting on posts presented via SDBN’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, tagging the nominated breweries in the process. The following is the order in which nominations will be sought:
- January 4-8 | IPAs & Hoppy Beers: West Coast IPA, Hazy IPA, Imperial IPA, Niche IPA, Hoppy Beer (Non-IPA)
- January 11-15 | Lagers & Assorted Ales: Pilsner, Lager (Non-Pilsner), Belgian Ale, Dark Beer (Non-Imperial Stout), Coffee Beer
- January 18-22 | Sour, Strong & Barrel-Aged Beers: Sour Ale (Non-Barrel-Aged), Barrel-Aged Sour/Wild Ale, Strong Ale (Non-Stout), Imperial Stout (Non-Barrel-Aged), Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout
- January 25-29 | Service, Décor, Collaboration & Community: Customer Service, Décor, Collaboration Beer, Charity Effort, Craft Beer Community
The entire month of February, a pair of surveys—one for brewery employees, one for fans—will be available on the SDBN website (www.sandiegobeer.news). Both will contain the nominations submitted via social media in the categories above, along with the categories of Best New Brewery and Best Brewery. The latter will be awarded to top vote-getters in five geographic regions (north, south, east, west, central).
Unique to this competition is the industry professional survey, which will require respondents to verify their identities using a company email address, allowing brewery employees to take the survey only once and prohibiting them from voting for their own brewery or the beers their company produces. This method will allow talent to recognize talent without bias and avoid a “stuffing the ballot box” situation, promoting winners that are truly representative of public and industry opinion.
Winners will be online announced at the beginning of March care of a “virtual awards ceremony” involving members of the San Diego brewing community and SDBN staff.
“2020 has been a difficult year, especially for San Diego’s brewing industry, which consists of more than 150 small, local businesses that have been forced to pivot over and over in light of the pandemic. Yet, through it all, the quality of their beers and strength of their collective will have remained intact. That is something worth celebrating,” says SDBN founder and Executive Editor Brandon Hernández. “We are elated to present a new vehicle for recognizing the San Diego brewing community’s trademark exceptionalism, one which allows everyone to participate in a meaningful way and provides something to look forward to in what will hopefully be a New Year far better than the one we are putting behind us.”
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QUICK FACTS
San Diego Beer News Awards
January 4-29: Nominations accepted online via San Diego Beer News (SDBN) Facebook and Instagram
February 1-28: Fan survey and industry survey live on SDBN website (http://sandiegobeer.news)
Early March: Winners announced in 26 categories in a virtual awards ceremony via SDBN social media
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ABOUT SAN DIEGO BEER NEWS®: Featuring daily reporting on the brewing industry, San Diego Beer News is the region’s most comprehensive resource for information on San Diego’s 150-plus breweries and their dedicated owners, brewers and staffers, countywide events and what’s tapping at local tasting rooms. In addition to articles, columns from contributors and industry insiders, and multimedia content from TV, radio and podcast partners, San Diego Beer News is equipped with an always-updated list of every brewery-owned venue in the county, which is sortable by neighborhood and linked to an interactive map built to help residents and visitors alike plan their local craft-beer experience. San Diego Beer News also sends email subscribers a free, weekly newsletter listing 40-100 beers debuting at local breweries and summarizing the news of the week gone by. To sign up for the newsletter, visit San Diego Beer News, and stay on top of all things #SDBeer by following San Diego Beer News on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
ABOUT YAKIMA CHIEF HOPS: Established in 1869, Yakima Chief Hops (YCH) is a 100% grower-owned global supplier of premium quality hops based in the Pacific Northwest. We are uniquely positioned to establish strong relationships between the growers who supply our super-premium hops and the innovative brewing customers who utilize our products in their beer. Our mission is to connect family hop farms with the world’s finest brewers, providing the highest quality hop products and uncompromising service for the ultimate benefit of our customers, employees and growers. YCH is focused on sustainably produced, innovative hop products. We strive to be an environmentally and socially responsible company devoted to continuously improving our sustainable practices. We also aim to be supportive neighbors and have launched initiatives to support numerous charities, including specialty hop blends developed to raise funds to support U.S. military veterans and women’s education and advancement in the brewing industry. For more information on YCH, visit yakimachief.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
Gaaron Varner