Midwest Living recently announced their 2022 Best of the Midwest award winners, and we're happy to report that four places here in Iowa were recognized!

Let's start with the Best Brewery Award. That honor goes to Toppling Goliath Brewing Co. in Decorah, Iowa. Located at 1600 Prosperity Road, Toppling Goliath is consistently rated highly by beer lovers across the country. In fact, the website BeerAdvocate says their Kentucky Brunch Brand Stout is the top-ranked craft beer in America, and they were the 2021 US Beer Open Grand National Champions! It doesn't really get more impressive than that.

Not only do we have the top brewery in the Midwest, but we also have the top cidery! The Best Cidery Award went to Wilson's Orchard in Iowa City. Wilson's has a line of handcrafted hard ciders that are created from apples grown in their very own orchard. The article reads:

"Of their 100 varieties, they chose Gold Rush apples to make the flagship cider, Goldfinch. Other varieties blend in cherries, blueberries and blackberries. Taste them all in Rapid Creek Cidery, the orchard's excellent restaurant and bar."

You can purchase Wilson's line of ciders at stores all over Eastern Iowa, but you want to visit the cidery (now known as Wilson's Ciderhouse & Venue), it's located at 4823 Dingleberry Rd NE.

The next award to be given to an Iowa location is the Best Mid-Size Town Award. The winner for that one was the city of Des Moines. The article lists all sorts of recommendations for your next trip to Iowa's capital:

"You can do all the touristy things, like gape at the Capitol's spectacular law library, visit the (free!) Des Moines Art Center or attend an Iowa Cubs game. Or you can live like a local, lining up for Salvadoran pupusas at the Downtown Farmers Market, shopping in the East Village, and dining at inventive restaurants like St. Kilda and Harbinger."

And while you're visiting Des Moines, you should consider staying in the Midwest's Best New Hotel! The final Iowa award-winner was the Surety Hotel at 206 6th Ave in Des Moines. The hotel may be new, but the building it's located in is not. It was actually constructed in 1913 and is designed to have "storied history, modern elegance." In addition to guestrooms, the hotel also has a ballroom, a boardroom, and a restaurant called Mulberry Street Tavern.

You can check out all the Midwest Living's Best of the Midwest winners on their website HERE.

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