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The Best Beers of 2018 by Style Category

January 7, 2019

Craft beer is replete with fascinating styles to explore. This year, brewers around the globe continued to create rich tapestries of aromas, flavors and colors that intrigued our panel of judges in the Official Review. Each year, we acknowledge the highest-rated beers of the year in the most well-represented style categories.

In 2018, many popular styles are represented, such as American IPAs, Double IPAs, Hazy IPAs, a variety of sours and a wide range of dark beers, including Porters, Stouts, Strong Belgian and European Beers and Amber and Brown American Beers.

Specialty categories include Vienna Lagers, Wild Specialty Beers, Oatmeal Stouts, Saisons, Wheat Beers and more.

Specialty Wood-Aged Beers, such as beers aged in bourbon, rum, whiskey, gin and wine barrels, were among the highest-rated by our judges.

Beers with added ingredients are also present, including a wide range of Fruit Beers and Spice, Herb & Vegetable beers – including beers brewed with mint leaves, spruce tips, coffee beans and cocoa nibs.

Not unexpectedly, our best breweries of the year are well-represented in this list, as they produced some of the finest examples of different style categories.

We hope you enjoy reading about these delicious brews, as each of these beers are the among the best examples of their respective styles.

Top 10 IPAs (all styles)
Top 10 American IPAs
Top 5 Hazy IPAs
Top 10 Double IPAs
Top 3 Specialty IPAs
Top 10 American Pale Ales
Top 5 Pilsners
Top 5 Wheat Beers
Top 5 Saisons
Top 10 Fruit Beers
Top 5 Spice, Herb & Vegetable Beers
Top 5 Porters & Stouts
Top 5 Oatmeal Stouts
Top 3 Amber & Brown American Beers
Top 3 Vienna Lagers
Top 5 Pale Malty European Lagers
Top 5 Strong Belgian & European Beers
Top 15 Specialty Wood-Aged Beers
Top 3 Mixed-Fermentation Sour Beers
Top 10 Wild Specialty Beers