Yuengling, Allagash Brewing among seven inaugural Keg Champions

Stainless steel kegs’ reusability and 30+ year lifespan make them the ideal circular choice for breweries, bars and restaurants. To promote this fact, the Steel Keg Association launched the Keg Champion Awards this year to recognize sustainable breweries, bars and restaurants and the positive impacts of steel kegs on the beverage industry. 

“We were blown away by the response to this Keg Champion program. Over 2,000 breweries, bars and restaurants were nominated!” says Dan Vorlage, Executive Director of the Steel Keg Association and MicroStar Logistics’ VP of Global Marketing.

The 2023 Keg Champions were announced this Earth Week, in seven categories:

1. Buffalo Wild Wings – National Restaurant (locations in 30+ states)
2. Mellow Mushroom – Regional Restaurant (locations in 2 – 29 states)
3. Clyde’s Restaurant Group – Local Restaurant (located in a single state) 
4. Yuengling – Large Brewery (500,000+ bbls of production / year)
5. Allagash Brewing Company – Mid-Sized Brewery (10,000 – 500,000 bbls)
6. Barley Brown’s Beer – Small Brewery (less than 10,000 bbls)
7. The Golden Mill – Draft Innovation

“While this is really about celebrating all of the keg champions out there, we’re proud to raise a pint to our inaugural winners, each a standard bearer in their category,” Vorlage says. “They were distinguished by their commitment to sustainability and to delivering differentiated consumer experiences. Importantly, we also have a shared belief that this is not the culmination of an awards program, but just the beginning. Cheers to these winners and all of the keg champions out there.”

In addition to winning a coveted, iconic green Keg Champion Award (physically, the biggest award in the history of the food and beverage industry), the Steel Keg Association will donate $7,000 to benefit seven charitable organizations chosen by the 2023 Keg Champions.