Going for the gold

Turns out, blondes do have more fun, or at least they get more awards. Last week, Ska Brewing won the gold medal for its True Blonde Ale in the English-Style Pale Ale category at the 2026 World Beer Cup. This is the third win for the Blonde at the World Beer Cup, held in Philadelphia on April 22 and pegged as one of the world’s most prestigious beer competitions.

For Ska, this win is especially meaningful. True Blonde has been one of the brewery’s flagship beers since day one, with the first two kegs ever brewed poured at the second annual Telluride Brewer’s Festival in September 1995. “This one means a lot,” Ska co-founder Dave Thibodeau said in a news release. “True Blonde was where it all started for us. It was the first beer we ever brewed, and to see it win World Beer Cup gold 31 years later is incredibly rewarding.”

Ska’s True Blonde was one of 77 beers entered in the English-Style Pale Ale category and among 8,166 entries across 118 categories with 1,644 breweries from 50 nations. Organized by the Brewers Association, this marked the competition’s 30th year recognizing the best of the wrold’s beer and cider.  Entries were evaluated by an international panel of 255 judges in a blind taste test. 

True Blonde has a slew of other medals in the Ska trophy case, including five Great American Beer Festival medals, a European Beer Star and multiple recognitions from the Good Food Awards.  

Ska wasn’t the only Colorado brewery that judges tipped their glasses to. In all, Colorado brewers amassed 26 medals this year, including four gold, up from 21 medals in 2025. 

The winningest Colorado outfit was Denver’s River North Brewery, which won gold in the coffee beer category and silver in the coffee stout and pumpkin spice categories.

Also of note, Colorado dominated the competition’s most competitive category, West Coast-style IPA. Out of 293 entries, gold was awarded to  Golden’s Cannon Ball Creek Brewing, and silver went to Crystal Springs Brewing, in Louisville. Telluride Brewing Co. also won silver in the American brown ale category for its Face Down Brown.