Roger Worthington holds his Craft Beer Marketing Award at Worthy Brewing in Bend on Wednesday.

Many Bend breweries are well decorated for their artful brews. Now, their marketing teams are being applauded as well.

Three Bend breweries won awards at this year’s Craft Beer Marketing Awards, a global competition that recognizes the artwork, design and retail marketing efforts behind craft beer.

A total of 196 awards—ranked platinum, gold and silver—were presented to brewers, designers and marketing agencies around the globe. Entries were judged by a panel of over 300 industry professionals.

Crux Fermentation Project won the platinum for “Best Bottle Design,” 10 Barrel Brewing the platinum for “Best Merchandise Design,” and Worthy Brewing the gold for “Coolest Taproom.”

The wins underscore Bend’s reputation as a craft beer hub, especially as the craft beer industry continues to grow more competitive worldwide.

“A wide range of entries were received from every region of the world,” said Craft Beer Marketing Awards spokesperson Chris Collora. “Creative artwork and branding in retail marketing is becoming increasingly critical for business success and competition with the rapid increase in craft breweries around the world.”

Crux Fermentation Project: Best Label

Crux’s winning label was for their “Gypsy Coolship,” a “spontaneously fermented” beer brewed outside at various Central Oregon sites such as the Metolius Preserve and near Smith Rock in a portable “coolship,” a type of brewing vessel.

The label depicts landlocked sailors and the coolship itself, with a cartoon portrait of Crux founder Larry Sidel manning the ship. It was designed by local artist Sweet Pea Cole and design agency Flask.

Depending on the bottle’s brewing location, the label varies slightly. On one, Smith Rock looms in the background. In another, the Deschutes River roars beside the ship.

The beer comes in a 750 milliliter bottle, and the larger size allowed for lots of artwork and explanation, said Crux Fermentation Project Marketing Manager Jason Randles.

“The beer itself requires a story,” Randles said. “We take pride in coming up with the labels. We want them to be a visual representation of what’s inside. That visual representation is a part of the overall experience.”

Randles, who also helped judge this year’s awards, said it was awesome seeing Bend breweries recognized at the event.

“This is one of the few awards for the marketing of craft beer, and it was pretty cool to be a part of it,” he said. “The marketing director over at Worthy gave me a call after he found out about their win and we congratulated each other. It’s great to see Central Oregon breweries well represented.”

10 Barrel Brewing: Best Merchandise Design

Bellingham, Washington, graphic designer Brooklyn Bell designed 10 Barrel’s winning design, a psychedelic canyon scene composed of simple lines and vibrant colors.

According to 10 Barrel Merchandise Manager Emily Koziel, the brewery collaborated with Bell — an artist who specializes in depictions of the great outdoors — for National Public Lands Day.

Bell’s design was printed on 240 shirts. They sold out in a day.

Koziel said the brewery won’t be reprinting the design, but she hopes to work with Bell again in the future.

“I’m glad it was that design that won,” Koziel said. “Brooklyn is such a unique and wonderful artist.”

According to Koziel, 10 Barrel is well decorated for their brews. Having the marketing team recognized was a nice change, she said.

“We have a whole wall of awards at 10 Barrel for our brewers,” she said. “Now we’re starting our own marketing wall, with a lot of room to grow.

“There were a lot of breweries from this region at the CBMAs,” Koziel continued. “It’s awesome to be represented.”

Worthy Brewing: Coolest Taproom

Worthy’s “Hopservatory” features include: a large dome that houses a telescope, a stage, gardens, artwork and abundant hops growing along the building’s exterior.

“There are three layers to our taproom: the cosmos, the earth and the subterranean,” said Worthy founder Roger Worthington. “We’re working with the observatory, gardens and regenerative soil.”

Worthington said the taproom was constructed to be warm and inviting, but also didactic and educational.

“In addition to great beer and food, we want to stimulate thought,” he said. “Our message is to leave the Earth better than we found it.”

The taproom is also partially constructed from recycled wood from Salem’s abandoned mental hospital, the famed filming location for “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” Worthington said.

Like other Bend brewery representatives, Worthington said it was cool to have the marketing team recognized instead of the brewers for a change.

“It was great to have validation for all the hard work for our team’s designers and workers,” he said.

“I think it shows that Bend breweries are trying to blaze new trails, which is typical of Oregonians. We don’t want to sit back. We want to get on point and provide great beer, great food and great tap rooms that are stimulating and exciting. It’s an amazing thing to be a part of.”