Penrose Brewing in Geneva wins Gold Medal for hard seltzer

GENEVA – Penrose Brewing was awarded a 2023 Gold Medal by the Beverage Testing Institute for its Lemon Seltz-Up, a crafted hard seltzer with real lemons, the company said in a news release.

The Chicago-based Beverage Testing Institute hosts the annual competition, which is open to all producers, distributors, retailers, agents, importers, ad agencies or public relations offices for beverages from any country in the world.

Submissions are judged in a blind tasting by a panel of judges and industry professionals with ratings based on a 100-point scale, according to the release. Penrose’s Lemon Seltz-Up received 94 points.

“We could not be more thrilled for our first foray into the hard seltzer category,” Tom Korder, co-founder and head brewer of Penrose Brewing, said in the release. “To come out with a score that matches how we feel about Lemon Seltz-Up, is very exciting. This highlights the spectacular lemon puree we source and showcases our efforts and craftsmanship [that] we put into all of our beverages.”

In its analysis, judges noted Lemon Seltz-Up’s “Fresh, natural tasting lemonade that is pretty dang crushable.”

Penrose Lemon originally crafted Seltz-Up in 2021 and began packaging it in cans and distributing throughout Illinois this year.

A local craft brewery, Penrose Brewing has focused on small batch beers, fresh hop flavors and oak fermented and aged wild ales since it opened in 2014, according to the release.

Beverage Testing Institute was founded in 1981 as the first international wine competition in the U.S., adding beer, spirits, cider, sake and mead in 1994.

Penrose Brewing is located at 509 Stevens St. in Geneva.