Nancy Johnson, BA Event Director explained that "we do our best to ensure that GABF results are as accurate as possible. Sometimes we make mistakes. While it's uncomfortable to acknowledge this, it's our responsibility to do so, and to correct the results publicly and openly."

Sierra Nevada and brewer Steve Dressler were originally announced as winners in the category.. New Glarus previously won the Small Brewing Company category award in 2003.

Here's the official explanation:

Breweries entering the competition select up to eight of their beers as eligible for points in the brewery of the year classifications. There were three breweries in the running for the Mid-Size Brewery of the Year Award: Boston Beer Company, New Glarus Brewing Co. and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. All breweries had two gold medals each out of the eight designated beers eligible to score points for these awards, thus creating a tie.

The tiebreaker rules for determining the brewery of the year categories as stated in the registration guidelines have four levels and are as follows:
1. Most points awarded as 3 for a gold medal, 2 for a silver medal and 1 for a bronze medal.
2. Most gold medals.
3. Most medals.
4. Most entries in medalled categories.

The decision for the winner of the Mid-Size Brewery of the year came down to the fourth tiebreaker, most entries in medalled categories. New Glarus Brewing Company won gold medals in categories with a total of 126 entries. Sierra Nevada Brewing Company won their gold medals in categories totaling 79 entries, and Boston Beer won gold medals in categories totaling 32 entries.