How did you get into competitions and what competitions would you suggest?

[NewJersey]

After being at the hobby for 8 years now I've finally decided I'd like to enter some of my beer in some competitions. Where/how do I go about this? I exclusively keg, but just bought a tapcooler brand counter pressure filler to bottle from my kegerator. I assume people mail beers in? I have no idea really. I live in northern NJ if it matters. Thanks all.

 

[jdauria]

Are you looking to enter for winning medals or for feedback? If feedback, ignore big one that have over 400 entries (in a normal year) like the National Homebrew Comp, feedback is minimal and it costs too much, especially for 2021. Covid has kind of put a crimp in a lot of comps in 2020 and probably in '21 also, but here's were to find them... Competition Schedule Shipping has to be done via Fedex or UPS, it's illegal via USPS. But even with Fedex/UPS, you cannot tell them it's beer..."glassware" and "hot sauce" get used a lot by comp goers. I submit beers to comps around the country, but to start, your best bet is to look for local or regional ones. If a comp is in your area, they will have drop off locations that save you on shipping. Make sure you pack beers inside a garbage bag inside the box to contain spills, use lots of newspaper/bubble wrap, do not use packing shells. Write fragile all over the book. And lastly...take feedback with a grain of salt...I have had beers score horrible in one comp, but take 1st or 2nd in 3-4 others...judges experience, etc all comes into play. And most importantly...read the rules and instructions on comp site and enter your beers in the right category...enter based on what it tastes like, not what you intended to made. If you made a coffee blonde ale and cannot taste coffee at all, it's a Blonde ale not a spice, herb, vegetable beer. Read the style guidelines while tasting your beer.

 

[Sammy86]

After being at the hobby for 8 years now I've finally decided I'd like to enter some of my beer in some competitions. Where/how do I go about this? I exclusively keg, but just bought a tapcooler brand counter pressure filler to bottle from my kegerator. I assume people mail beers in? I have no idea really. I live in northern NJ if it matters. Thanks all.

First visit here: AHA/BJCP Sanctioned Competitions | American Homebrewers Association

Then go and visit websites and see what sparks your interest. I generally stay in my geographic region (I'm in CT) but I do occasionally send some down South (VA and TX).

Then like @jdauria said package them up and send them UPS...never had a problem...I do admit I have a good relationship with my local UPS store guy...he just stopped asking what's in the box and says brewing gear returns.

I have sent beer though to an airforce base in Japan once to my brewing buddy when he was stationed there...sent it usps and it took a month but no problems wrapping the bottles in tons of bubble wrap and lining the box with newspaper and that foam moving stuff. The mail person shook the box and it didnt make a peep.

 

[NewJersey]

I like the idea of competition (I think my beer is good) and I would like honest feedback from someone who knows beer and has no clue who made it. I brew and drink a variety of styles.
Do you guys pack anything to help keep it cold or is that not a factor?

 

[Sammy86]

I like the idea of competition (I think my beer is good) and I would like honest feedback from someone who knows beer and has no clue who made it. I brew and drink a variety of styles.
Do you guys pack anything to help keep it cold or is that not a factor?

No, many comps will keep the entries cold upon arrival...some won't but the majority that i've entered say somewhere on the registration site about how they keep the beer until judging.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

If you want feedback, join a club and serve samples at meetings. The local club I joined has multiple BJCP certified judges and a lot of experienced homebrewers. I get great feedback from them and I don't have to ship bottles or deal with odd timing. I don't usually even bottle, I just pour some from my tap into an insulated growler using a growler filler hose.

I got real exicted winning best of show with a score of 42 at my first comp, then entered the national comp. That was interesting. My Blonde Ale that my budweiser drinking buddies thought was awesome was "not the mild, easy drinking beer expected for the style". It was the centennial blonde recipe from here.
The other beer was an IPA that had serious diacetyl issues and not one comment about that. I would have scored it low 20's tops and it got a 34.

I haven't done a comp since, but I'd consider local ones. The national one is just too big. I worked one of the judging sites as a steward and they served spicy food to the judges who were seriously over-worked. On one flight, a judge said "geez, how many more to go?". I told him there were 5 more and he groaned. Not what you want judging your beer.

 

[NewJersey]

That doesn't sound good. I suppose I'll look for more local stuff.

 

[undergroundbrewer]

The national comp is great, but really tough for hop-forward beers. I've managed to advance to the final round in a few categories (still chasing the big hardware!), but again these are humans judging beer and after awhile taste buds burn out. Sample before yours an absolute hop bomb? Good luck getting a good analysis on your beer. With that said, I have gotten good feedback and I do enjoy the anticipation of the big stage. Since that's only once a year, your local comps are a great way to go. Fewer entries, cheaper shipping / delivery, plus some local pride if you do well (and maybe even a gift card or other cool swag!)

+1 for HB clubs, as they understand your goals and probably give you better feedback.

 

[jdauria]

I like the idea of competition (I think my beer is good) and I would like honest feedback from someone who knows beer and has no clue who made it. I brew and drink a variety of styles.
Do you guys pack anything to help keep it cold or is that not a factor?

No I don't cold pack it either. Beer will stay somewhat cold during transit in back of unheated tractor trailers/delivery trucks. In fact a few years ago I shipped to a comp in Midwest and that "bomb cyclone" hit the Midwest dropping temps way below zero and my entries froze and broke. No recourse for that since UPS technically "prohibits" shipping beer...so just had to take the loss.
As for shipping in summer heat, there are very few comps in the summer, but I have seen people put a styrofoam cooler inside a box and pack entries in the cooler with ice packs.

 

[jdauria]

After being at the hobby for 8 years now I've finally decided I'd like to enter some of my beer in some competitions. Where/how do I go about this? I exclusively keg, but just bought a tapcooler brand counter pressure filler to bottle from my kegerator. I assume people mail beers in? I have no idea really. I live in northern NJ if it matters. Thanks all.

Just an idea of scoresheets for you, the first one I attached is the newer "checkmark" score sheet for a 1st place Schwarzbier at a comp in Kansas recently. These newer sheets are what National Comp uses also...less space for feedback. Neither of these judges were BJCP ranked judges, so very few comments on the sheets, BJCP judges would put a little more information on them. The Second is for a 3rd place Pale Ale at a local comp here in Mass, again neither are ranked judges, but you can see much more room for feedback...though their scans came out so light the 2nd page is impossible to read...most likely that judge used a pencil.

 

[NewJersey]

Just an idea of scoresheets for you, the first one I attached is the newer "checkmark" score sheet for a 1st place Schwarzbier at a comp in Kansas recently. These newer sheets are what National Comp uses also...less space for feedback. Neither of these judges were BJCP ranked judges, so very few comments on the sheets, BJCP judges would put a little more information on them. The Second is for a 3rd place Pale Ale at a local comp here in Mass, again neither are ranked judges, but you can see much more room for feedback...though their scans came out so light the 2nd page is impossible to read...most likely that judge used a pencil.

Thanks for posting those.
I'm going to follow the largest homebrew club in my area first and see when they're gonna have a competition and also mail a few in to national comps. Why not, right?

 

[jdauria]

Thanks for posting those.
I'm going to follow the largest homebrew club in my area first and see when they're gonna have a competition and also mail a few in to national comps. Why not, right?

Is that Garden State Homebrewers? Have a friend on Facebook who is a member, they had a comp in February this year, I can reach out and see if they have one planned for '21.

Go for it...though it's like $29 per entry for Nationals this year. In past year's Nationals involved 12-13 regional locations with 700-800 entries per regional over 33 styles of beer/mead/cider...then the top 3 entries per style advanced to the finals at Homebrew Con a few months later. Last year it was canceled and everyone was refunded and all the entries were used to make hand sanitizer for front line workers. However, this year, it's one location, in Denver and "limited " to 5,000 entries. So personally, I won't enter unless I have a beer I consider world class, since I am more about the white whale of a NHC medal then feedback. Have been lucky in the past, had an entry advance to finals in 2017 and two advance in 2019, and then both of those ones made their style final table in finals, so were in medal running, but just fell short. So instead of say my Czech Dark going up against 30-40 other "European Dark Lagers" in a regional this year and then 32 other finalists in finals, it could be going up against hundreds of entries for that style. Just makes odds of medaling very very slim, and a lot of 40 point plus beers will get shut out.

 

[NewJersey]

I will look at garden state homebrewers, I meant Morris area society of homebrewers (MASH)
It's a more local to me club, but I'll definitely look at both