Participants from across the state put their best bottles to the test in the Iowa Beer Competition, judged prior to the start of the 2023 Iowa State Fair. In the Pale Malty Euro Lager, Fruit Beer, and Mead categories John Tebockhorst from Washington placed second. In Spiced and Specialty Beer, Tebockhorst placed first, while Bill Zywiec from Riverside placed third. The Iowa State Fair is one of the oldest and largest agricultural and industrial expositions in the country and the single largest event in the state. The Fair began over 160 years ago and is now considered one of the best events in the nation, attracting more than one million Fairgoers every year from all over the world.