2025 GABF judging sessions will take place over 3 to 4 day blocks of time called “Phases”:
| PHASE I | September 24 – 27, Louisville, CO |
| PHASE II | October 6 – 9 Denver, CO (Colorado Convention Center) |
| Great American Beer Festival® | October 9 – 11, Denver, CO (Colorado Convention Center) |
| GABF Awards Ceremony | October 11 |
All judging sessions and lunch will be held at the Brewers Association warehouse at 587 S Taylor Ave, Louisville, CO.
Hotel & Travel
The closest hotel for judges is the Courtyard Marriott Louisville (from which a daily shuttle is provided to/from judging). Discounted Hotel Reservation Link Here
Shuttle Times:
Morning: 7:30am first shuttle will load up and drop off then will loop 3 times (ride is roughly 10 minutes and – we have roughly 60 people in waves)
Afternoon: 3:30 to 5:30 pm Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday (4pm – 6pm FRIDAY due to Afternoon social)
Courtyard Marriott Louisville
948 West Dillon Road
Louisville, CO 80027
Ph: +(303) 604-0007
Tuesday, September 23
Most Phase I judges will arrive on this day
Wednesday, September 24
Daily theme: Coming Soon
| 8:00 am – 8:30 am | Judge Check In – 587 S Taylor Ave, Louisville, CO: Judges receive their judge packets & daily judging schedule |
| 8:30 am | Judges gather at assigned judging tables – brief 15-30 minute on-site judge orientation |
| 9:00 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 1 |
| 11:30 – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 2 |
| 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm | Judge Evening Happy Hour @ Prost Brewing Northglenn Biergarten 351 West 104th Avenue, Unit A Northglenn, CO 80234 A couple of beers and food provided *Bus transportation provided from Hotel – Bus leaves hotel 5:30pm. Last bus leaves Prost to return to hotel at 8:00pm |
Thursday, September 25
Daily theme: Coming Soon
| 8:15 am – 8:30 am | Judge Check In – 587 S Taylor Ave, Louisville, CO. Judges arrive with their judge packets and pick up their daily judging schedule |
| 8:30 am | Judges gather at assigned judging tables |
| 8:45 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 3 |
| 11:30 – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 4 |
| Thursday Night | Dinner on your own; (Suppliers or brewers, interested in hosting a judge event? Let us know!) |
Friday, September 26
Daily theme: Coming Soon
| 8:15 am – 8:30 am | Judge Check In – 587 S Taylor Ave, Louisville, CO. Judges arrive with their judge packets and pick up their daily judging schedule |
| 8:15 AM | Phase I Judges & Competition Team PHOTO! |
| 8:45 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 5 |
| 11:30 – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 6 |
| 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm | Competition Social @ Taylor Warehouse (Theme for event TBD – announced prior to judging) |
Saturday, September 27
Daily theme: Coming Soon
| 8:15 am – 8:30 am | Judge Check In – 587 S Taylor Ave, Louisville, CO. Judges arrive with their judge packets and pick up their daily judging schedule |
| 8:45 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 7 |
| 11:30 – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 8 |
| Saturday evening | Dinner on your own; many Phase I judges depart |
All judging sessions, breakfast, lunch and Judge Orientation will be held at the Hyatt Regency Denver Convention Center Hotel (NOT the Convention Center, as in the past few years).
To make hotel reservations at, you may visit the event Hotel & Travel page here
Sunday, October 5
Many overseas judges will arrive on this day
Monday, October 6
All remaining Phase II judges will arrive on this day
| 3:30 pm – 4:59 p.m. | Judge Check In – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel: Judges will receive judge badge, judge gift, and judge packet |
| 4:59 pm – 6:00 pm | Judge Orientation – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel: Welcome, brief tour of Judge packet, what to expect for the week |
| 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm | Judge Reception – Odell Brewing Sloan’s Lake Brewhouse 1625 Perry St., Denver, CO 80204 |
Tuesday, October 7
| 7:15 am – 8:15 am | Judge Breakfast – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 8:30 am | Judges gather in judging rooms after picking up daily judging schedule at judge concierge desk – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 8:45 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 9 |
| 11:30 pm – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 10 |
Wednesday, October 8
| 7:15 am – 8:15 am | Judge Breakfast @ Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 8:30 am | Judges gather in judging rooms after picking up daily judging schedule at judge concierge desk – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 8:45 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 11 |
| 11:30 am – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 12 |
| 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm | GABF Brewers Happy Hour |
Thursday, October 9
| 7:15 am – 8:15 am | Judge Breakfast at Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 8:30 am | Judges gather in judging rooms after picking up daily judging schedule at judge concierge desk – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 8:45 am – 12:00 pm | Judging Session 13 |
| 11:30 am – 1:00 pm | Judge and Competition Staff Lunch – Hyatt Regency Denver hotel |
| 1:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Judging Session 14 |
| 5:30 pm – 9:30 pm | Great American Beer Festival – Session 1 |
2025 Great American Beer Festival® will be held at the Colorado Convention Center (“CCC”), 700 14th St. Denver, CO 80202.
| Thursday, October 9 | 5:30 pm – 9:30pm: GABF Thursday Evening Session |
| Friday, October 10 | 5:30 pm – 9:30pm: GABF Friday Evening Session |
| Saturday, October 11 | 10:00 am – Awards Ceremony |
| Saturday, October 11 | 12:00 pm – 4:30pm: GABF Members-Only Session |
Locations and times are subject to change – this page is a work in progress.