The 2016 NHC - Results/Speculation Thread

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Ugh. I had written my entry numbers on the caps to avoid myself putting the comp labels on the wrong bottles. Mine were submitted to Chicago, so I guess I'll wait and see. If they are indeed rejected, it's totally my fault, so no expectation of a refund. 1st timer. Only entered 2 as a dip of the toes into competitions.

They'll "usually" just black them out for you.
 
That's awesome. Now I get to wait for my scores to see what happened and if I get to nag people that tried the same beers after judging and said they were great. lol
 
2nd place APA in Austin woohoo

Nice job!

It kind of blows my mind that there were *only* 22 entries in APA but there were 21 entries in dark lager, a category that is usually one of the lowest entered. I guess dark lagers must be really popular in Texas, or maybe the quick lagering methods are making lager entries more popular.
 
Nice job!

It kind of blows my mind that there were *only* 22 entries in APA but there were 21 entries in dark lager, a category that is usually one of the lowest entered. I guess dark lagers must be really popular in Texas, or maybe the quick lagering methods are making lager entries more popular.

If I had known how the bluebonnet brew off was going to go for me I would have made that 22 entries in dark lager as well.

For a while I worked at a homebrew shop part time. Maybe 3/4 of the new brewers coming in trying to get started would say they wanted to make something like shiner bock.
 
I do this as well, but always remove the writing on the cap with nail polish remover after I put the comp labels on.

I did the same thing, but with rubbing alcohol and a q-tip, if you don't have nail polish remover laying around.
 
I did the same thing, but with rubbing alcohol and a q-tip, if you don't have nail polish remover laying around.

I usually write a letter code on the caps, label them, then just scribble on the cap some more with the same black marker. The fresh ink from the marker usually dissolves the old marking and just smears it around.
So far no DQ's
 
I usually write a letter code on the caps, label them, then just scribble on the cap some more with the same black marker. The fresh ink from the marker usually dissolves the old marking and just smears it around.
So far no DQ's

Same here. "obliterate cap markings with black marker" is usually listed as allowed in the rules, NHC being no exception.
 
I don't think so. I'm under the impression they exported their ciders and meads. On the bright side, if that impression is correct, the judging should be in good hands.
 
For all of you who entered, was there any reason you picked the judging center you did, other than geographic proximity?
 
I don't think so. I'm under the impression they exported their ciders and meads. On the bright side, if that impression is correct, the judging should be in good hands.
Are you referring to the judging center or the judges when you say they will be in better hands?
 
I only considered proximity as well. I figured the shorter amount of time the beers spent with FedEx, the better off I'd be. Looks like I will have to reconsider next year.
 
For all of you who entered, was there any reason you picked the judging center you did, other than geographic proximity?

Proximity for me. Denver is about 5 hours away and there were some people making a trip up there who were going to take and drop off NHC entries.

I'm guessing Denver is probably one of the bigger locations as far as entries go though.
 
For all of you who entered, was there any reason you picked the judging center you did, other than geographic proximity?

I've always done well in the midwest with other competitions (KCBM,Mashout, Midwinter), so I decided to send them to STL. Being one of the first regions judged doesn't hurt either.
 
Same here. "obliterate cap markings with black marker" is usually listed as allowed in the rules, NHC being no exception.

Thankfully this is the case. One Sunday night when I was bottling all my entries for NHC (including bottles in caserany got thru to the finals), I realized I only had Northern Brewer caps...the ones with the pint glass on them. I blacked them out with a magic marker and had no issues with them in the 1st round.
 
I've always done well in the midwest with other competitions (KCBM,Mashout, Midwinter), so I decided to send them to STL. Being one of the first regions judged doesn't hurt either.

I always get great feedback from those sites. 3 of the best run competitions around imho.
 
For all of you who entered, was there any reason you picked the judging center you did, other than geographic proximity?

Twofold. Geographic proximity and I know the crew running the site. I even made the 7 hour drive to judge (well normally 7, but it was more like 8.5 due to some construction and accident delays). But limiting the time spent in the hands of the shipping company was my goal. I would have preferred to be able to drop off, but that wasn't an option.

Are you referring to the judging center or the judges when you say they will be in better hands?

Both, in a way. It appears that the Indianapolis crew is involved in helping them out.
 
I've always done well in the midwest with other competitions (KCBM,Mashout, Midwinter), so I decided to send them to STL. Being one of the first regions judged doesn't hurt either.

Yep - same reason I chose St. Louis. Plus, it coincided when I thought my beers would be close to their best based on my brewing schedule and when I had the time to brew the things I wanted to enter.
 
Other than proximity for me, I like to enter in St Paul for NHC first round because there is a high concentration of Master and Grand Master judges in the twin cities. They can be tough on entries, so I figure if I can place in St Paul, I just may have a better chance of placing in the final round.

I am currently BJCP certified rank, trying to work my way to National. Judging alongside these uber experienced judges up here in MN has been a great learning experience. I will be judging in the first round, so more points!
 
For those of you who had entries go to second round how long did you work on your recipe to get it to this point? Anyone get lucky and have a first brew go through?
 
For those of you who had entries go to second round how long did you work on your recipe to get it to this point? Anyone get lucky and have a first brew go through?

For the three I got through:

Dortmunder - 20+ batches?? One that does well on a regular basis for me in comps. 3rd time it has advanced to Finals..... no medal yet though.

Blonde - My go-to "house beer" 20-30+ batches. First time I have entered it in NHC..... but, it was 4 for 4 in good sized comps I had entered it in over the last year or two.

Czech Dark Lager - 1st batch ever.... New 2015 style, looked interesting. Kind of blended a successful Bo-Pils I had brewed with a very tasty "black lager" I had brewed a couple times.

The two that did not make it through for me:

Helles (scored 34)---Brewed it 20+ times. To be honest, this one was getting a little old. Hindsight, should have sent my Brittish Ordinary Bitter in its place.

Scottish Heavy (Mini BOS, Scored 39, but did not advance) - Brewed this 10+ times probably...... It has advanced to finals in the past one year.

*For competition beers, I generally start with recipe's from Brewing Classic Styles of from NHC winning recipes. I brew it "as is" once, and then start changing it and tweaking it to my system, my taste, my water, etc.
 
For those of you who had entries go to second round how long did you work on your recipe to get it to this point? Anyone get lucky and have a first brew go through?

Last year's Tripel was the 4th time I brewed it (1st time with WLP500!) and I didn't even sample it before sending. I was working in Florida and my wife bottled it the night before the 1st round due date and drove it to the drop off location...it moved on to the final round and got a gold medal! This year my Old Ale is moving on and it's the only time I've brewed it but it has been hanging around for 2 years. My English Brown is moving on too but I've brewed that one twice before changing it each time...this one I really like!
 

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