Niagara scores three medals, Best in Show, at U.S. college brewing competition

The brewing school at Niagara College has carved out a reputation as the best in Canada; now the students and instructors at the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations program can say they’re the best on both sides of the border after earning three medals – including a Best in Show – at the U.S. Open College Beer Championships.

Final term students at the Niagara-on-the-Lake campus medalled in three of the five beers entered, including a gold for Cherry Blawesome Barrel Aged Stout and a pair of silvers for Vindobona Schrammer Vienna Lager and Blonde…James Blonde Belgian Blonde Ale.

Cherry Blawesome was also awarded Best in Show and the teaching brewery tied for third place overall.

“Our Teaching Brewery continues to shine internationally, proving once again that Niagara College’s level of teaching is exceptional,” said Steve Gill, the General Manager of Learning Enterprises. “The hands-on learning that students get at Niagara College is the reason they’re so successful, both while they’re studying and after they graduate.”

Niagara College was one of 11 schools entered in the eighth annual championship, which is the only competition of its kind that focuses on student brewers. Each school can enter up to four beers of their choosing to be judged according to the regular U.S. Open style standards as well as the declared intentions of the student brewers.

One additional beer from a specific category can also be entered to be judged head-to-head.

Nathan Melo came up with the recipe for Cherry Blawesome as an experiment to create a beer his mother would enjoy.

“The beauty of this program is that we have the facility and the freedom to take on a challenge, so I did,” Melo said. “I developed the recipe with my mother in mind and I wanted to make something she would enjoy. As a child I recall her loving the Hershey’s Cherry Blossom candy, so I formulated the recipe to have a complex chocolate profile, a gentle cherry sweetness, and a very light vanilla flavor from the barrel.”

The program also medalled at the U.S. Open Beer Championships, a highly regarded competition that judges more beer styles than any other contest in the world.

Niagara College’s Beer 101 Bitter was awarded a silver medal in the Special Bitter or Best Bitter category, while its Beer 101 Strong earned a bronze in the Old/Strong Ale category. Both beers medalled at the 2023 championship as well.

“Being recognized with an award is always a great personal reward and recognition for their class and the college,” said Brewmaster and Professor Jon Downing. “Encouraging the students to design, brew and select the entries into (these competitions) allows them as a group – and individuals – to see what it takes to take a beer from an idea to an entry in a world-class event.”

Cherry Blawesome was one of the beers featured at Project Brew, a beer festival that showcases the work of fourth-semester students, with the top beer awarded a $4,500 scholarship.

Project Beer menu. Photo Steve Palmer