The Colorado Brewers Summit: Conversations That Matter (and a Few Medals to Celebrate)

Every year, the Colorado Brewers Summit brings together brewers, growers, suppliers, and partners to talk honestly about the future of beer in this state: what’s working, what needs to change, and how we move forward together.

The Colorado Brewers Cup, held alongside the Summit, is the celebration at the end of those conversations. It’s the icing on the cake and a chance to recognize great beer, brewed by peers, right here in Colorado.

In 2026, both delivered in a big way.

Root Shoot Malting at the Colorado Brewers Summit

The Summit: Where Ideas Turn into Action

While the Brewers Cup captures attention with its medals and celebrations, the Summit is where the real work happens. This year, Root Shoot Malting had the opportunity to present alongside Downforce Technologies and New Belgium Brewery on a topic critical to the future of brewing: reducing the carbon footprint at the supply-chain level.

The environmental impact of beer begins long before the brewing process. It starts in the fields where barley and other grains are grown. Root Shoot and Downforce focused their conversation on three key areas:

• Regenerative farming practices that reduce the need for chemical inputs while improving soil health over time

• Regional malt sourcing that cuts down transportation emissions by keeping supply chains local

• Field-level carbon modeling that provides accurate, defensible data instead of relying on estimates or carbon offsets

  
  

This approach gives brewers transparency they can use as sustainability reporting becomes a growing priority. For Root Shoot, sustainability is the foundation of our mission to prove that great beer and responsible agriculture can grow together.

Key Takeaways from the Summit

• Soil health matters: Regenerative farming builds resilience in the land, which benefits both the environment and the quality of malt.

• Local sourcing reduces emissions: Choosing regional suppliers cuts down on transportation-related carbon output, a significant factor in the beer supply chain.

• Data-driven sustainability: Using precise carbon modeling tools helps brewers make informed decisions and communicate their environmental impact clearly.

  
  

Todd Olander (Root Shoot Malting) presenting at the Colorado Brewers Summit

These insights are already influencing how breweries think about their ingredients and partnerships, encouraging a shift toward more sustainable practices across Colorado.

The Brewers Cup 2026: A Celebration of Craft and Community

The Colorado Brewers Cup is judged by professional brewers and industry experts who understand the challenges of producing clean, consistent beer.

This year’s competition was fierce, with:

• 772 beers entered

• 120 Colorado breweries participating

• 59 judges from 7 states

• 87 medals awarded

  
  

Among the winners, 20 breweries using Root Shoot malt earned medals across nearly every style category. This achievement highlights the quality and diversity of Colorado’s beer community and the strong connections between growers, maltsters, and brewers. The involvement of Root Shoot customers in the medal count also points to the growing importance of sustainable ingredients in brewing.

Medal Highlights: 20 Root Shoot customers awarded

Bruz Beers: Gold Medal, Dame Blanche (courtesy of CBG)

Gold

• Dame Blanche — Bruz Beers — Rye & Wheat Beers

• Ultimate Showdown — Cerebral Brewing — Experimental & International IPAs

• DDH Hollow Fang — Cerebral Brewing — Hazy IPAs

• Midnight Toker — Comrade Brewing — Malty North American Beers

• Everflow — Glenwood Canyon Brewing Co. — Pale Malty Lagers

• I Didn’t Hear No Bell — River North Brewery — West Coast-Style IPA

• Nightmare Fuel — River North Brewery — Coffee Beers

• Young Dukinfield — Salt Road Brewing — Classic UK Amber & Brown Ales

• Grow Old With You — Verboten Brewing — Barleywine & Strong Ale

• Gold in the Buckle — Verboten Brewing — American Pale Lager

• Others in Darkness: Coconut Vanilla — Verboten Brewing — Chocolate & Dessert Beers

• Windfall Saison — Windfall Brewing — Belgian & French Pale Ales

• JuicyFish — WeldWerks Brewing Co. — Strong & Imperial Hoppy Beers

• Grandma J’s Strawberry Rhubarb Pie — WeldWerks Brewing Co. — Sour, Brett & Wild Ales

  
  

Old 121 Brewhouse: Silver Medal, Colt 121(courtesy of CBG)

Silver

• Abbey Quadrupel — Bruz Beers — Belgian & French Strong Ales

• Hanging Lake — Glenwood Canyon Brewing Co. — International Pale Lagers

• Vapor Cave IPA — Glenwood Canyon Brewing Co. — West Coast-Style IPA

• Mexican Lager — Los Dos Potrillos Cervecería — American Pale Lager

• Colt 121 — Old 121 Brewhouse — Pale Malty Lagers

• Golden Roast — Monolith Brewing — Coffee Beers

• Inner Light — Our Mutual Friend — Session & Pale Ales

• Bärenbräu Bock — Peculier Brewing — Dark Lagers

• Mr. Sandman — River North Brewery — Stouts

• Candy Cane Imperial Porter — River North Brewery — Chocolate & Dessert Beers

• Buffalo Blond — Resolute Brewing — Belgian & French Pale Ales

• Juicy Bits — WeldWerks Brewing Co. — Hazy IPAs

• Extra Extra Juicy Bits — WeldWerks Brewing Co. — Strong & Imperial Hoppy Beers

Bent Barley Brewing Co: Bronze Medal, Festbier (courtesy of CBG)

Bronze

• Festbier — Bent Barley Brewing — Pale Malty Lagers

• Dust Up — Cerebral Brewing — Hoppy Pale Lagers

• Parallel Minds — Cerebral Brewing — Chocolate & Dessert Beers

• Agua Fresca — Los Dos Potrillos Cervecería — Fruit & Field Beers

• Isaac’s Big A Braggot — Mythmaker Brewing — Experimental & Specialty Beers

• Old Doods Stout — Odell Brewing — Stouts

• Squirrels Just Want to Have Fun — River North Brewery — Coffee Beers

• English Porter — Stodgy Brewing — Porters

• Sweater Gang — The Post Brewing Co. — Herb, Spice & Smoked Beers

• Just Logic — Verboten Brewing — Standard American-Style IPA

That’s 20 Root Shoot customers represented in a field of 120 breweries statewide!

Root Shoot was proud to sponsor the Pale Malty Ales category, a style that puts malt front and center, and New Terrain Brewing Company took Gold with Rise and Climb (Kölsch) earning 1,000 pounds of free Root Shoot malt.

Moving Forward Together

The 2026 Colorado Brewers Summit and Cup remind us that the future of beer depends on shared values and that honest conversations about sustainability, quality, and community are essential to building a stronger industry.

For us, the Summit and the Cup are two parts of the same story: conversation first, celebration second. The Summit creates space for meaningful dialogue around impact and responsibility, while the Brewers Cup celebrates not just great beer, but the people, practices, and long-term commitments behind it.

We’re proud to support Colorado brewers not just with craft malt, but with transparency, data, and a long-term commitment to doing things the right way, from the soil up.

Cheers to the brewers, the judges, and everyone pushing Colorado beer forward.