Bend, Oregon’s Monkless Belgian Ales is gearing up to celebrate its second anniversary on September 28. Technically Monkless has been brewing beer for four years, but this anniversary observes the date at which the company began brewing at the current 10 barrel facility it occupies in northeast Bend.

There is good reason to celebrate, too: the brewery won big at the inaugural USA Beer Ratings competition, held recently in San Francisco. The judging for this competition takes a different approach, judging beers not only to style and quality, but also in pricing and packaging. In other words, judging beers as a consumer would, taken as a whole. Monkless scored two big awards: Beer of the Year for Meet Your Maker (a 9% ABV Belgian dark strong ale) and Brewery of the Year.

Here is the press release covering that:

After two days of judging beers from around the world, the inaugural USA Beer Ratings competition has revealed its 2018 “Beer of the Year” – Meet Your Maker, a Belgian Dark Strong Ale from Monkless Belgian Ales in Bend, Oregon. This beer was a huge hit with competition judges, who gave it the highest points on the scoreboard of 2018 (96 out of a possible 100) for quality, value and packaging, the three judging criteria used to rank and evaluate the beers at the San Francisco event. In addition, Monkless Belgian Ales won “Brewery of the Year” and was awarded a silver medal for their Dry Hop Belgian Tripel, Capitulation.

The USA Beer Ratings competition was launched in late 2017 by Beverage Trade Network, which organizes beer industry events all over the world. The goal of this event was to judge beers the way consumers judge them. This competition is unique, in contrast to other beer competitions, in that it includes brewing ability and technical experience as a primary measure, but also includes evaluation of packaging and value. The goal of the USA Beer Ratings competition was to award and celebrate the beers that consumers actually want to buy, whether at a retail liquor store or ordering off the menu at a restaurant.

Chief executive of Beverage Trade Network Sid Patel said, “At all the major competitions, beers are judged solely on the quality of what’s in the bottle. We wanted to take a different approach, by asking our judges to look at beers the way beer drinkers do, adding appearance and value for money into the mix.”

“The judges were impressed by every aspect of the entry from Monkless Belgian Ales, and especially the overall quality of the beer itself,” said Patel.

The USA Beer Ratings Competition was the first of several events that Beverage Trade Network will be hosting over the next 18 months as part of a global drinks initiative to introduce beer drinkers to innovative and value-oriented beers from all over the world.

So Monkless has extra reason to celebrate for its second anniversary. Taking place on Friday, September 28 from 4 to 9pm, beyond just two strong years of brewing Belgian-style beers at its current facility. Here are the details:

During their 2-Year celebration the parking lot will transform into a live music and beer garden venue, complete with a draft trailer, hay bales, fire pits, food truck, and a live t-shirt printing station. Brewery tours from the founder/head brewer, Todd Clement, will commence at the top of every hour. This event marks the steady growth of Monkless’ operation from 430 bbl in 2017 to a projected 700 bbl in 2018 and celebrates Oregon’s thirst for traditional and unique Belgians.

Monkless Belgian Ales 2nd Anniversary Celebration
At the Brewery
20750 High Desert Lane — Bend, OR
September 28th 4pm-8pm

Event Schedule

• Head Brewer Tours at the top of every hour
• Food Truck cuisine from We’re the Wurst
• Live Music from Circle of Willis from 5pm-8pm
• Live T-Shirt Printing from Threadbare Printhouse
• Case deals on packaged beer

If you’ve never visited Monkless, there’s no better opportunity than at this party! It would also be a good time to check out the brewery’s fall seasonal, Four Devils, a Belgian strong golden ale inspired by the classic Duvel.