The kegs are empty, the foam has cleared, and one Cape Town brewery has emerged on top – Woodstock Brewery’s Funky Monk’s was named Best Beer in Africa at the 2026 African Beer Cup on Saturday 23 May.

The African Beer Cup is an annual competition, founded in 2019 with a singular ambition: to identify, celebrate and elevate the finest beers being brewed across Africa. It is open to licensed commercial breweries operating in any African country and beers must be brewed on the continent to qualify.

The competition was held at the Jack Black Brewery Taproom in Cape Town – a fitting home for the continent’s biggest beer celebration – and formed part of the broader BeerEx Africa trade expo and conference, which took place from Thursday 21 to Saturday 23 May at the Wicket Expo Hall at Newlands Cricket Ground.

This year saw 244 entries from 16 African countries, with 58 judges from a dozen nations participating. Panels are drawn from a hand-picked cohort of Beer Judge Certification Programme (BJCP)-qualified judges and industry experts from around the world. Rigour is at the heart of the process – every beer entered is poured over not once, but twice, by two entirely separate panels, in a process designed to remove bias, inconsistency and subjectivity from the results.

“It’s interesting to see the trends in the competition entries – a great representation of the wider African beer industry,” said Lucy Corne, competition director. “This year we saw a huge increase in the number of non-alcoholic beers entered, a trend that echoes what is happening globally. We received more entries than ever in the categories that celebrate African ingredients, which shows that African brewers are forging their own beer identity. And finally, we saw a great increase in the number of collaboration brews, celebrating the innovative and collaborative nature of the beer industry.”

Woodstock Brewery claimed the coveted title for its Funky Monk’s – a deeply complex sour ale, blended from several beers of varying ages and matured in oak barrels over a number of years.

The brewery is located in the heart of Cape Town’s creative Woodstock neighbourhood and was founded in 2014. Its beer range is themed around sex, drugs and rock and roll and includes a core range as well as regular small-batch brews.

Woodstock is no stranger to winning medals at the competition, but this is the first time in its seven-year history that it has taken the top spot. The brewery raised a glass to five medals on the evening in total, including gold for its American IPA and American Wild Ale.

“Winning Best Beer in Africa was something I started to feel was unachievable for us, purely due to how amazing the beer in South Africa and the entire continent has become,” said Tinus Lottering, Woodstock Brewery’s head brewer. “An incredibly high standard has been set and I am honoured that Woodstock has met that expectation. A lot of what I learned from others throughout the years went into this creation and I say thank you to the brewers I often interact with. Doing this takes a village and I’m damn proud of the entire Woodstock Brewery team.”

In a night brimming with competition, 89 medals were awarded across the categories, ranging from classic international styles such as lagers, IPAs and stouts, to distinctly African categories including beers featuring traditional African brewing grains, beers showcasing South African hops, and fruit-flavoured beers – a growing trend catering to a sweeter palate.

The full list of winners is available at africanbeercup.com/2026-winners.