The California State Fair came to a close Sunday night after its two-week run. While it will be another year until its return, several brewers local to El Dorado Hills, Folsom, Rancho Cordova, and Sacramento will proudly display the awards they earned in the fair’s 2024 Commercial Craft Beer competition.
One of the big local winners was Mraz Brewing Company of El Dorado Hills, which took home numerous awards in this year’s competition. Located at 2222 Francisco Drive in El Dorado Hills, Mraz Brewing Company is no stranger to state fair accolades. In fact, success in the state fair came before the brewery existed. Owner and Brewmaster Mike Mraz won California State Fair Homebrewing Awards in 2008 and 2009, then went on to open his commercial craft brewery in 2013.
This year, Mraz Brewing took home medals of each color at the state fair: a gold medal for its Miss Scoville brew, silver medals for its Magic Dragon and Rosé All Day labels, and a bronze for its Cardinal red ale brew.
Another brewer with a presence in El Dorado Hills that took home honors was Boring Rose Brewing. While they brew at their family farm in Shingle Springs, the family-owned and operated brewing company has a popular tasting room in El Dorado Hills Town Center. There, you can often find the husband-and-wife duo of Billy Rose and Jamie Boring-Rose, who operate the brewery along with members from both sides of their family, making brewing beer a true family affair.
Boring Rose took home gold in the fair’s British Mild and Bitters category. The winning beer, Banbury Cross, was also a big winner at the El Dorado County Fair earlier this year. Jamie Boring told Folsom Times that the beer was inspired by pub ales of England. “It is malt-forward with notes of toffee, dried fruits, and dark brown sugar. It is served on Nitro, giving it an extra smooth mouthfeel and lasting foam,” said Boring. “We brewed this beer to release just before Christmas, and we are down to the very last keg. This beer won’t be back on tap until winter, so you will need to come by in the next few weeks or it will be gone.”
Those who want to get a taste of the award-winning brew before it’s gone, or other varieties, can visit the Boring Rose tasting room at 4363 Town Center Boulevard, Suite 110 in El Dorado Hills. The tasting room is open daily with varied hours listed at www.boringrose.com.
This year’s California State Fair Commercial Craft Beer Competition featured over 160 total entries. The competition is designed to offer the commercial craft brewers of California a venue by which qualified judges and peer commercial craft brewers may evaluate their products. It aims to encourage brewing in California, improve the knowledge of the art and science of brewing, and educate the California public about beer, beer styles, and the art and science of brewing in the Golden State. According to the state fair entry guide, fair organizers look to enrich the reputation of California as a significant contributor to the resurgence of craft brewing and acknowledge the prowess of California’s commercial brewers who produce superior beers.
Other notable award winners in this year’s competition from our local area included success by two Rancho Cordova-based breweries. Fort Rock Brewing, located in the Nimbus Winery Center near Highway 50 and Hazel Avenue, took home a bronze medal in the American Amber and Brown Ales category. The winning brew is known as FRB Brown, an American Brown Ale.
Another Rancho Cordova brewer that took home a pair of medals was Shorebirds Brewing Company. Both of Shorebirds’ medals came in the Kombucha category, with its Fresh Squeeze brew taking a gold medal in the Experimental category and a bronze in the Fruit Kombucha category with its Guru Magic brew.
Touchstone Brewing in Sacramento took home a pair of silver medals this year, one of which was for its High Camp brew in the American-style Wheat Beer category and another for its Alpine Start brew in the Coffee Beer category. In nearby Roseville, The Monk’s Cellar took three medals this year, including a gold in the Belgian-Style Witbier class with its brew known as Biere Blanche, a silver for its Heavy Robes in the British Strong Ales class, and another silver for its Tavern de Belgium in the Specialty Saison class.
Up the hill, Camerado Brewing Company in Cameron Park took a gold medal in the Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout category. Ponderosa Cider Company in Auburn earned two medals: a silver in the Cider with Other Fruit category for its Imperial Strawberry and a bronze for its brew known as Cherry + Yuzu.
In Loomis, High Hand Brewery took gold for its Mexican Lager and a silver for its Dark Mexican Lager, both of which were among the International Lager entries. Geartooth Aleworks took a gold medal in the Smoked Porter division with its brew known as Burned and Blackened. The Placerville brewer also took a silver in the British-Style Imperial Stout category with its beer known as Father Cog.
Those looking to learn more about the California State Fair’s Commercial Brew competition can do so on its official website. Readers can also peruse all of the winning entries from across the state here.
