Get hoppy, drink...

Beer

Breweries making Good Beer are pioneers of local manufacturing, using traditional and creative brewing and fermenting methods to redefine consumer expectations for craftsmanship with their beers. These brewers aim to reshape supply chains and promote responsibility by sourcing ingredients locally and grown without synthetic inputs when possible, practicing resource conservation and supporting local communities.

About

The Good Food Awards rely on the expertise of the beer community to create the tasting, determine judges and set standards for the category. Read on to learn who has been integral to building the category, as well as what the beer standard are and who will be judging this year.

Committee

Co-Chairs

Carly Hackbarth

Founder, Carly Hackbarth Marketing & Photography

Carly Hackbarth is a food and beverage photographer and marketer located in San Francisco. She first explored the Bay Area through beer – wandering from neighborhood to neighborhood, brewery to brewery. This curiosity lead her to start her freelance career with the San Francisco (now Bay Area) Brewers Guild and SF Beer Week. She eventually quit her full time job in the music industry to form her own business helping small and independent breweries, wineries, restaurants, cafes and food brands stand out online.

Carly is multi-passionate and ever curious. Ask her about the best places to tide pool or whale watch in the Bay Area, the newest restaurant opening, the best spots in wine country or about her favorite episode of The Office.

Kelly Larson

Account Director at af&co

Kelly has been working with food & beverage her whole career, beginning with advertising agencies in New York to now opening new breweries in San Francisco just this spring. She is an Account Director at the hospitality boutique agency, af&co, leading Marketing and Digital Strategy for all types of clients. Outside the office, you can find her hosting a dinner party and beer tasting at her apartment or trekking around Bay Area hikes to enjoy a beer with a view from the top. She’s always in the pursuit of drinking anything new – to greater enjoy and understand all types of beers, from favorites to ones you’d rather boil a brat in.

Grace Weitz

Managing Editor, Hop Culture 

Kelly has been working with food & beverage her whole career, beginning with advertising agencies in New York to now opening new breweries in San Francisco just this spring. She is an Account Director at the hospitality boutique agency, af&co, leading Marketing and Digital Strategy for all types of clients. Outside the office, you can find her hosting a dinner party and beer tasting at her apartment or trekking around Bay Area hikes to enjoy a beer with a view from the top. She’s always in the pursuit of drinking anything new – to greater enjoy and understand all types of beers, from favorites to ones you’d rather boil a brat in.

2023 Judges

Jon Feldman

Marketing/Events, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Gail Ann Williams

Journalist, Freelance Beer Writer

Dave McLean

Co-Founder, Admiral Maltings

Alyssa Pereira

Journalist, Freelance

David Burkhart

Brewery Historian, Anchor Brewing Co.

Brian Chan

Founder, Tigers Taproom

Standards

In order to be eligible for a Good Food Award, beer entries must meet the following standards:

  • Certified organic, or meet at least four of the following eligibility criteria:
    • Made with at least one ingredient (besides water and yeast) sourced within 150 miles. Malt will be considered “local” if sourced from a local malter.
    • Made with at least one ingredient (besides water) that is grown without the use of synthetic inputs, including herbicides, pesticides, fungicides or fertilizers.
    • Made by a brewery that has made concrete water recycling or other resource efficiency improvements in the production or delivery process in the last three years.
    • Made by a brewery that engages deeply with its community by participating in a sustainably-minded guild; offering paid time off for employees to volunteer for causes they believe in; or otherwise offers substantial support to its community.
    • Made by a brewery that prioritizes resource or consumer packing waste reduction through programs, such as mash repurposing, growler programs and container-related sustainability measures.
    • Made by a brewery that proudly maintains one or more third-party accreditations embodying social responsibility and transparency.*
  • In addition, all Beer entries must meet the following criteria:
    • Made in the USA or US territories.
    • Made by a crafter that is an upstanding member of the good food community, committed to equity and inclusion in all levels of their business,** as exemplified through integrating these practices:
      • Creating a safe and healthy work environment where employees receive a fair wage, are safe and respected at work and have access to the resources they need to keep themselves healthy.
      • Offering a diversity, equity, and inclusion training to staff members and/or leadership annually.
      • Thoughtfully acknowledging the heritage of culturally-specific food on websites, packaging and/or marketing materials.
      • For the small percentage of Good Food community that operates on a significantly larger scale, meeting additional criteria related to board diversity, maternity leave and employment practices.**

*Such as 1% for the Planet, B Corp, GMO-Free Project, Fair Trade or other local organizations focused on environmental and social responsibility.
**Check if you are in the 2% of companies meeting the Good Food Foundation definition of large scale, and review the addition criteria on the Rules & Regulations page.