The Craft Brewers Association of Japan hosted its annual international beer competition, The International Beer Cup (IBC), in Ota City, Tokyo, Japan on October 8-10, 2022. American craft brewer participation was a success, with U.S. breweries winning 35 awards in total, including five gold, 14 silver, and 16 bronze.

This year’s competition saw 1,111 entries from 268 breweries in 16 countries including Australia, China, Colombia, Denmark, Spain, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, The Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States of America, Vietnam, and Japan.

Despite uncertainties around travel and in-person events in Japan, 69 judges gathered to award a gold, silver, and bronze medal in 118 beer categories.

Yusuke Yamamoto, Craft Brewers Association director, says, “The mission of the IBC is to create greater consumer awareness about the quality and diversity of the various beers of the world. Traditionally, most beers in the competition have been registered by Japanese breweries. As we’ve seen the expansion of Asian and global craft beer markets in recent years, we started to open our doors to beers and breweries outside Japan.”

The Brewers Association (BA) Export Development Program (EDP) facilitated member brewery participation in the 2022 International Beer Cup. Success at international beer competitions helps raise awareness for American craft beer abroad and assists EDP member breweries with generating publicity for their brands in overseas markets. As part of its programming, the EDP helps facilitate U.S. brewery participation and performance in select competitions by covering entry fees and consolidated airfreight shipment to judging sites.

Congrats to all the winners! 2022 Japan International Beer Cup EDP member awards are as follows: