For the fifth straight year, Govnr’s Park held a beer fest and the citizens of Denver showed up to drink it all in. And a tasty day it was.

The true beauty of this beer fest is the opportunity to sample beers in a more intimate setting in the humble confines of Govnr’s Park rather than some huge convention hall. The inside of the restaurant was closed to the public and some of Colorado’s best breweries competed to have a keg of their beer, voted on by the attendees, served at the pub. Over 100 different beers from 24 breweries were tasted and judged.

Breweries who participated were:  Blue Moon, Dry Dock, Avery, Boulder Beer Co., Crown Imports, Crispin, Pike’s Peak, Lagunitas, AC Golden, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Great Divide, Odell, Heineken, Breckenridge, Sam Adams, Tommyknocker, Sierra Nevada, PBR, Leinenkugel, Tivoli and Crabtree, Vermont Hard Cider, Oskar Blues, and New Belgium.

Along with the almost 300 guests, six special “celebrity” judges helped in the selection. They were Erica Cobb of Alice 105.9, Charlie Wallis, Ryan Osborne, Kelly Rushton, Drew Volker and DrinkDenver’s own Carrie Dow. And the winning beer is…Gold Rush Belgian Ale by Pike’s Peak! A keg of Gold Rush will be tapped on Tuesday to celebrate this Monument brewery’s victory. Runner up favorite beer was Boulder Beer’s Shake Chocolate Porter.

To end the festival, a raffle was held with each brewery bringing an array of prizes and swag to give away. Big ticket items included a pair of Colorado Rockies tickets, decorative pint glasses, free beer for a year and a pair of skis. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Capital Hill Neighborhood Association.