Scuttlebutt’s Hoptopia double IPA golden in Canada

Scuttlbutt Brewing’s head brewer Matt Stromberg didn’t even know his beer was entered in Vancouver Magazine’s 2015 Craft Beer Awards.

But Hoptopia, the Everett brewery’s double IPA, earned the gold medal for best Imperial IPA, beating out Worthy Brewing’s Imperial IPA and Central City Brewing’s Red Racer Imperial IPA.

“From Everett, Washington, an orange-amber Northwest coast-style IPA with a passion for citrus,” the magazine wrote about Hoptopia.

Scuttlebutt’s Canadian Distributor, Untapped Craft Imports, entered Hoptopia in the competition and Stromberg got the out-of-the-blue phone call on Monday.

“It was kind of a good day,” Stromberg said.

Stromberg said Untapped Craft Imports is close to launching Scuttlebutt’s beer in Alberta, and the brewery’s first shipment to South Korea cleared customs last week.

“The importer is enthusiastic about the initial response to the products and he’s already planning a second order,” Stromberg said.

— Aaron Swaney, Herald writer