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The ‘Juiciest’ Beer Trends and Scenes from GABF 2018

Photos from night one of the beer fest

by Lucy Beaugard

It’s Friday morning, and already one Great American Beer Festival (GABF) session has come and gone. Heading into the weekend, there will be plenty left to taste at the Colorado Convention Center and at breweries across town. But one style in particular has our attention.

“Juicy” and “hazy” are descriptive names for New England-style ales that are less bitter than their traditional counterparts, more citrus- and fruit-forward, and unfiltered or cloudy in appearance.

These styles are the subject of three new GABF competition categories this year. Combined they received 706 beer entries, 414 of which were in the juicy or hazy IPA category. It received the most competition entries of any at the 2018 GABF Awards (take that, American IPAs). We’ll know the medal winners after the weekend. For now, here are a few examples and some general festival scenes to whet the appetite.

Want more? Check out Eater’s guide to eating and drinking during the Great American Beer Festival.

One-ounce pours are the standard at GABF, where more than 4,000 beers are being sampled over the weekend
Feeling Good, a hazy IPA with notes of mango, apricot, and orange, hails from Rhinegeist, a brewery based out of Cincinnati
A young GABF enthusiasts and her three chaperones
Armadillo Ale Works sampled Land Yacht IPA, juicy and aromatic and loaded with citrus and tropical flavors
Despite the excitement around three new hazy/juicy beer categories, there are still a few skeptics
Beans bags sit waiting for players at GABF

The lines on Thursday were still long despite lower ticket sales this year

This New England-style beer hails from Boulder, with a blend of three fruity, juicy hops with hints of citrus and tropical fruit
Destihl Brewery from Illinois pours Touch of Haze from the Deadhead IPA series
GABF continues through the weekend at the Colorado Convention Center

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