Premier Florida Craft Brewer takes home a Gold and Bronze Medal at Inaugural International Competition. Melbourne, FL- July 6, 2009- The Fourth of July weekend started off with a big bang for the Florida Beer Company. On July Fourth, the Florida Craft Brewer received news that it had won multiple medals in the first U.S. Open Beer Championships. Its Hurricane Reef Caribbean Style Pilsner had won a Gold Medal in the Bohemian Pilsner category and its Key West Southernmost Wheat had taken home Bronze in the  Belgian Witbier Category. Florida Beer Company was one of only 14 breweries to win multiple medals in the competition. The U.S. Open Beer Championships was open to more than 1,000 breweries from over 30 countries, as well as the 29 National Homebrewing Champions from the United States and Canada. Competing beers were judged in fifty different beer style categories. "This is quite an honor." said Jose Ayalla, Brewmaster at Florida Beer Company. " We take a lot of pride in our beers and to receive recognition for the quality of our beer makes us very proud." The Gold Medal winning Hurricane Reef Caribbean Style Pilsner is a very refreshing and crisp, light to medium bodied pilsner. While the Key West Southernmost Wheat is a Belgian Style Wheat Ale brewed with a distinct Florida Beer twist- Florida Key Limes.  For more information on Florida Beer Company go to www.Floridabeer.com.For more information and to see the complete category and winner listings go to www.usopenbeer.com ABOUT FLORIDA BEER COMPANY The Florida Beer Company, located in Melbourne, Florida, is the largest craft brewer in the state. Its many styles of craft beer are distributed by a network of distributors, not only in the state of Florida, but also in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Virginia, New York and Louisiana. The Florida Beer Company portfolio consists of its flagship brand, Key West, Hurricane Reef, Ybor Gold, Beachside, La Tropical, Indian River and Kelly's Hard Cider. Along with production of these equity brands, Florida Beer Company also produces a number of contract and private label craft beers. FLORIDA BEER COMPANY2500 South Harbor City Blvd.Melbourne, Florida 32901321-728-3412