02/11/2026
Meet the judges!! The Montana Beer Awards brings in highly qualified judges from across the country (and even internationally!) to provide Montana's brewers with actionable, thoughtful feedback. Over the next few weeks, we'll introduce you to some of our newest judges joining us for the 2026 Awards. Without further ado...
Lauren Lerch is a Certified Cicerone and BJCP Certified Beer Judge with nine years of professional brewing experience from Salt Lake City, Utah. She has judged commercial and homebrew competitions for a decade, including IBA (10 years), OBA (4 years), GABF (3 years) and others. When she isn't waxing poetic over beer descriptors, she can be found making pizza in the back yard or hiking with her pup Mako.
See you in March, Lauren!