It\u2019s the third-straight year the fledgling brewery has picked up an award at the massive event<\/h3>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/bc.thegrowler.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/nsn-20250509-shaketown-beer-award-01.jpg\")
Kayla Nishino, Dave Varga, Gabe Lee and Ryan Scholz from North Vancouver\u2019s Shaketown Brewing toast a silver medal win at the World Beer Cup competition for their Big Banana Brown Dunkelweisen. | Paul McGrath \/ North Shore News photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBeer aficionados are going bananas for a rare brew made in North Vancouver.<\/p>\n
Shaketown Brewing Co.<\/a> has won a silver medal for its Big Banana Brown Dunkelweisen at the 2025 World Beer Cup, held in Indianapolis, Indiana on May 1.<\/p>\nBig Banana earned second place in the South German-Style Dunkel Weisen category, which refers to dark wheat beers.<\/p>\n
Over the course of a week, a panel of 265 judges from 37 countries evaluated 8,375 entries from nearly 1,800 breweries across 49 countries, according to the Brewers Association, which hosts the awards. Judges handed out 349 medals this year, one of them going to Shaketown.<\/p>\n
The North Van producer\u00a0was among just seven Canadian breweries chosen this year.<\/p>\n
Bubbling over with pride, Scholz highlighted that it\u2019s the third-straight year that the brewery has medalled at the world cup \u2013 going three-for-three since opening in 2022. Last year, Shaketown won bronze for its\u00a0Pre-Prohibition Pilsner<\/a>.<\/p>\n\u201cTo gain awareness as a new brewery is impossible. And nobody thinks that you\u2019re making good beer out of the gate,\u201d he said. \u201cHopefully now more people will know that we\u2019re making great beer.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/bc.thegrowler.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/web1_shaketown-world-beer-cup-award-big-banana.jpg\")
Shaketown\u2019s award winning Big Banana Brown Dunkelweisen is still on tap in the brewery\u2019s North Vancouver taproom. | Shaketown Brewing Co. photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBig Banana beer is banana-less<\/h3>\n
Brewmaster David Varga said the idea for the Big Banana came from suggestions that Shaketown should make a different-coloured beer.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I thought the colour of a brown beer is somewhat unpopular at this point in time, because most people just don\u2019t drink that,\u00a0they have the hazy ales, the hazy pale ales, fruit sours and pilsners,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Compared to other fruit-forward beers \u2013 like Shaketown\u2019s own Belgian Dubbel Plum, which has real plums in it \u2013 the Big Banana is banana-less.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/bc.thegrowler.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/web1_shaketown-world-beer-cup-award-big-banana-label.jpg\")
A label for the Big Banana Brown Dunkelweisen is readied to be wrapped around a can. | Shaketown Brewing Co. photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cThe banana actually comes from the yeast itself. But \u2026 the darker malts give it a bit of a brown sugar, like a caramelized banana flavour, which I thought would work well in the cooler months,\u201d Varga said.<\/p>\n
Big Banana, which released in February, is a seasonal brew. But you might still be able to find it on shelves in some liquor stores. Varga said they still have a few kegs in house for the banana-curious.<\/p>\n
And when cold weather returns next year, there\u2019s a chance Shaketown\u2019s dunkel weisen might swing back into action too.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny of these seasonals that do this well, it\u2019s definitely something for us to look at,\u201d Varga said. \u201cAnd you get those nice memory triggers going, \u2018Oh yeah, I remember this beer.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014This story originally appeared on North Shore News<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\t\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/bc.thegrowler.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/nick-laba-helicopter-profile.jpg\")
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Beer aficionados are going bananas for a rare brew made in North Vancouver.<\/p>\n
Shaketown Brewing Co.<\/a> has won a silver medal for its Big Banana Brown Dunkelweisen at the 2025 World Beer Cup, held in Indianapolis, Indiana on May 1.<\/p>\n Big Banana earned second place in the South German-Style Dunkel Weisen category, which refers to dark wheat beers.<\/p>\n Over the course of a week, a panel of 265 judges from 37 countries evaluated 8,375 entries from nearly 1,800 breweries across 49 countries, according to the Brewers Association, which hosts the awards. Judges handed out 349 medals this year, one of them going to Shaketown.<\/p>\n The North Van producer\u00a0was among just seven Canadian breweries chosen this year.<\/p>\n Bubbling over with pride, Scholz highlighted that it\u2019s the third-straight year that the brewery has medalled at the world cup \u2013 going three-for-three since opening in 2022. Last year, Shaketown won bronze for its\u00a0Pre-Prohibition Pilsner<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cTo gain awareness as a new brewery is impossible. And nobody thinks that you\u2019re making good beer out of the gate,\u201d he said. \u201cHopefully now more people will know that we\u2019re making great beer.\u201d<\/p>\n Brewmaster David Varga said the idea for the Big Banana came from suggestions that Shaketown should make a different-coloured beer.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I thought the colour of a brown beer is somewhat unpopular at this point in time, because most people just don\u2019t drink that,\u00a0they have the hazy ales, the hazy pale ales, fruit sours and pilsners,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Compared to other fruit-forward beers \u2013 like Shaketown\u2019s own Belgian Dubbel Plum, which has real plums in it \u2013 the Big Banana is banana-less.<\/p>\n \u201cThe banana actually comes from the yeast itself. But \u2026 the darker malts give it a bit of a brown sugar, like a caramelized banana flavour, which I thought would work well in the cooler months,\u201d Varga said.<\/p>\n Big Banana, which released in February, is a seasonal brew. But you might still be able to find it on shelves in some liquor stores. Varga said they still have a few kegs in house for the banana-curious.<\/p>\n And when cold weather returns next year, there\u2019s a chance Shaketown\u2019s dunkel weisen might swing back into action too.<\/p>\n \u201cAny of these seasonals that do this well, it\u2019s definitely something for us to look at,\u201d Varga said. \u201cAnd you get those nice memory triggers going, \u2018Oh yeah, I remember this beer.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014This story originally appeared on North Shore News<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nBig Banana beer is banana-less<\/h3>\n
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