When it comes to beer, there are many levels of fame. Anheuser Busch InBev and MillerCoors earned theirs by the size of their market domination. Brewers like Lagunitas and Samuel Adams helped spark a revolution. And names like Russian River (creator of Pliny the Elder), The Alchemist (Hedy Topper) and Trillium (who jump started the New England IPA style) have earned national reputations from the word-of-mouth acclaim of beer drinkers.

This last measure of fame is a particular favorite of craft brewers. It’s authentic and not something that can be achieved with clever marketing or distribution tricks. And at the Great American Beer Festival, currently taking place in Denver, brewers are hoping to capture or stoke that spark to take them to the next level.

Read more at Fortune.com: Great American Beer Festival: 5 Brewers on the Cusp of Craft Beer Fame