No-Li Brewery Wins First Gold

No-Li Ales rake in not one, but two medals, in their very first international competition, with a gold to Crystal Bitter and a silver for Born & Raised IPA from the 2012 International Beer Competition held in Yokohama, Japan.

The International Beer Competition (IBC) is the most prestigious beer competition held in Japan and has been running annually since 1996. It is open to beers brewed anywhere in the world and provides the opportunity for international beers to compete against some of Japan’s finest craft and commercial brews.

“We are proud to share this international recognition and hardware with our hometown of Spokane, and every hometown in the good ‘ol USA,” said No-Li co-founder John Bryant. “Our brewer, Mark Irvin, is a very gifted brewer, person and community leader. The team at No-Li works each day to earn these types of accolades.”

More than 18 countries were represented from 85 breweries, and of those, 33 were international breweries. Judges came from 13 countries to sample 248 different brews.

Judges for the event are selected from Japanese brewers and members of the public who have successfully completed the Beer Judge certification program, run in Japan by the Beer Taster Organization, as well as overseas industry professionals. They hailed from Brazil, United States, Holland, New Zealand, Germany, Korea, Norway, England, Australia, Singapore, India, France.

The judging for IBC 2012 took place in Tokyo’s scenic Yebisu Garden Place, a re-developed cultural and office complex that was the home of Yebisu Beer for almost 100 years.

No-Li produces 22-ounce bottles as well as draft brands in four styles: Silent Treatment Pale, Born & Raised IPA, Crystal Bitter and Jet Star Imperial IPA. For more information, visit www.nolibrewhouse.com.