Here are my favorite beers of 2024

It was a fun year, one filled with delicious beers (and beverages) that were enjoyed in memorable spaces.

This is always one of the toughest and most rewarding exercises — setting the criteria and then selecting your favorite beers from that year.

This past year was pretty crazy in the Cleveland household. Cass and I celebrated five years of marriage. Audie turned three and then started school. And in September, Eliza joined the party. (That’s not even getting into the monumental changes, challenges, and triumphs I’ve experienced in my professional career.)

So in selecting my favorite beers of 2024, I set the filter on my Untappd account to beers I gave a five-star rating and then culled from there.

(If you follow me on Untappd, you know I don’t rate any beers — or at least don’t do so often — and haven’t for a very long time. Instead, I usually just add some notes and sometimes offer a bit of pithy commentary. The whole not rating thing goes back to a compromise I reached with my D&C editor when I first took up the beer beat in 2014. It’s too much to explain here. And though I no longer work in the newsroom, I have maintained the “no-rating” practice on the app. It makes for a fun story in person. If we cross paths at a brewery, make sure to ask and I’ll happily provide the background.)

More than anything, this exercise is a wonderful reminder of how lucky I am to have this platform and the support of a community that continues to consume this work.

So to commemorate a wild 2024, here are my favorite beers from the last year. Let me know what you think. I’d love to hear more about your favorites, too. And again, thanks for the continued support. I couldn’t continue this coverage without it.

Strangebird Cathedral Windows pale lager

Note: special shoutout/honorable mention to Strangebird’s Framboise

This past year was the one where Strangebird really cemented itself on the national stage. It earned medals at GABF and the World Beer Cup, as well as receiving recognition from publications like VinePair and Wine Enthusiast. Co-owners Jeff Ching, Micah Krichinsky, and Eric Salazar even earned a cover story from Kate Bernot at Craft Beer and Brewing magazine. The brewery’s Cathedral Windows is a testament to both the brewery’s inventiveness and patience. It is a Czech-inspired pale lager fermented in neutral oak barrels.

10 a.m. Hayburner

A movement started by the fine folks at Buffalo Eats has turned into one of my Bills game day rituals. Sometimes you just gotta say, “Fuck it, 10 a.m. Hayburner.” A stovepipe of Big Ditch’s flagship IPA has become my Bills beverage of choice, at least hours before game time. And the beauty of Hayburner is that whenever and wherever you encounter it, it’s almost always guaranteed to be fresh.

Brewery Ardennes Belgian Stout

This Geneva brewery is unquestionably one of the coolest in this region. With a focus on Belgian styles and a home in a refurbished, historic sheep barn, Ardennes transports visitors to the Belgian countryside. The Belgian-style stout stands as my favorite from Ardennes, and it’s one I enjoyed on a few special occasions in 2024.

Grow Bourbon Barrel-Aged Dormancy

2024 was the year this itinerant upstate brewery found a home. Grow, which produces beer at a number of different spots across the state, opened a taproom in New Hartford, Oneida County. It also continued to put out some of the best hazy IPAs in this market. I was most impressed with this rich barrel-aged barleywine and am excited to see how it ages in my cellar.

Counterpart All the Stars IPA

This past year, I really focused on enjoying the beers I could grab directly from a brewery, especially those obtained after a short drive. I spent quite a bit of time in Ontario, Canada, this year. (But you already knew that after you read my Taylor Swift review/remembrance.) Just across the border in Niagara Falls, Counterpart has become one of my favorite breweries on the planet over the last six years (the brewery turns six in March). The brewery has exceptional food and really nails every beer style. I am especially fond of its barrel-aged offerings and will make the trip there every time new ones drop. I also love the hazy IPAs. And All the Stars, a hazy featuring Nelson and Simcoe hops, is one that I’ve thought about a lot since I drank it in early 2024. I hope to see it return soon.

Autark Czechy

The small spot in Buffalo is barely ever open and feels more like a living room when you do get to enjoy a beer there. With that being said, you should really rearrange your schedule so you can visit. And when you get there, I recommend you order a pint of the brewery’s wonderful Czech Pilsner.

Wayland Ember

Located in Orchard Park, Wayland is overwhelmingly beautiful. It’s almost too pretty to hang out at, especially for a no-cultured jabroni like me. (I type this with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek btw.) Like Autark, if you haven’t been to Wayland, make sure you remedy that ASAP. The space, the food, the beer, it’s a pretty unbeatable combo. I really love the brewery’s hearty Czech amber lager.

Trophy Velvet Cloak

Cass and I were lucky enough to visit this Raleigh, North Carolina, brewery for my 40th birthday last March. I’ve long been enamored with Chris Powers, a Henrietta native, and his burgeoning southern beverage empire. (Seriously, Trophy produces pretty much every style or type of alcohol except wine.) Twice, Chris has poured at the Expo now. For this latest edition, he brought cans of Trophy’s decadent peach brandy barrel-aged wheat wine. So, so good.

Burial One of Us Will Have to Bury the Other

Burial was one of the memorable spots we visited during our March trip to Raleigh. The brewery is known for its hazy IPAs and long beer names (they almost sound like the titles for emo songs). One of Us Will Have to Bury the Other is an incredible refreshing wood-aged Mexican lager. It was particularly good when enjoyed with a fresh lime wedge. If necessary, I coulda enjoyed an irresponsible amount of this beer.

Genesee Beer

It’s a regional classic for a reason.

Godspeed Fukami

If you’ve followed this space for any length of time, you know how much I adore this Toronto brewery. I was lucky enough to visit Godspeed twice in 2024. It’s nearly impossible to pick just one favorite. But when I take a second to think about it, I really enjoyed the brewery’s Munich Dunkel. It’s an under-appreciated style and one I wish we saw more of.

Brew Gentlemen Monongalator

Note: And its barrel-aged brother.

My 2024 was filled with a lot of delicious Pittsburgh beer thanks to the eternally lovely Deron Weet. Deron is the regional sales rep for Fiddlehead and often makes trips down to Pittsburgh to check on accounts. And lucky for me, he always brings back a ton of western Pennsylvania beers from the best spots in and around Pittsburgh like Old Thunder, Cinderlands, Dancing Gnome, and Brew Gentlemen. Force me to single out an all-time favorite style, I might just say doppelbock. And Brew Gentlemen, based in Braddock, makes a spectacular one. Rich, dark, malty. What’s not to love?!

Smoldered Society Strike Anywhere

This Buffalo side project is an offshoot of Thin Man Brewery, which itself had a remarkable and eventful 2024 (with the closure of one taproom and then the sale to Buffalo neighbor Community Beer Works. I love the aesthetic and nostalgia presented by Smoldered Society beers. I found myself most reaching (and then restocking) the brewery’s Czech-influenced Pilsner. (I am sensing a theme here — this list is basically nothing but hazy IPAs and Pilsners.)

A final note: It’s pretty wild to think I’ve been working on this independent publication for nearly three years now. In that time, I’ve published 250 newsletters, highlighted some of my favorite people in the industry, curated two beers festivals (that featured 150 participants and 4,600 attendees), and continued to break all the biggest news in the region (closures, consolidations, openings, etc.).

The Cleveland Prost remains the preeminent source for regional beer news. If you own a brewery, bar, or beer-adjacent business, this is the best place to reach the nerds you wanna be in front of. So I remain open to sponsorships, advertisements, and sponsored content. Feel free to reach out to me at clevelandprost@gmail.com for more. And more than anything, thanks for all the support. None of this would be possible without the devoted (and thirsty) audience.