Author: Harry Kirkham

As Covid restrictions have lifted we are delighted to announce we will be holding an in-person event for the results of the Scottish National Homebrew Competition 2022.

We will be hosted by Campervan Brewery at the Lost In Leith bar in Edinburgh on Sunday 20th February. The event will start at 2pm and will be streamed live over Facebook. All are welcome to attend and we are very excited to have two talks on the day:

Richie Walsh – Seed Sovereignty, Coordinator for Scotland

Heritage Malts & Human-Scale Malting

Amy Rankine – Hipster and Hobos

Foraging For Homebrewing

Following the talks we will announce the results of the competition at 4pm. Look forward to seeing you all there!

As part of the Scottish National Homebrew Competition Results Week – Scottish Craft Brewers are honoured to host a talk on American IPAs from Mitch Steele. Mitch literally wrote the book on IPAs – and it’s available here!

Since graduating from UC Davis in 1984 with a fermentation science degree, he has brewed at some of the largest and smallest breweries in the world. After starting on a 14 bbl system at the San Andreas Brewing Co., Mitch joined Anheuser-Busch in 1992, managing brewhouse and fermenting operations in three breweries, and managing new beer development as part of the Anheuser-Busch Specialty Brewing group in the mid-1990s. Mitch joined Stone Brewing Co. in 2006 as Brewmaster and now serves as Brewmaster and COO at New Realm Brewing Company in Atlanta.

The session will be held on Thursday 17th February at 8pm on Facebook Live and Zoom; sign up on our Facebook page or email competition@scottishcraftbrewers.org for details.

As part of the 2022 Scottish National Homebrew Competition results week Scottish Craft Brewers are honoured to host a question and answer session with brewing academic Dr Charlie Bamforth, presently senior Quality Adviser with Sierra Nevada Brewing. Professor of over 20 years at UC Davis, California along with a prodigious CV in the UK Brewing industry.

The session will be held on Tuesday 15th February at 8pm on Facebook Live and Zoom; sign up on our Facebook page or email competition@scottishcraftbrewers.org for details.

In order to make the event run smoothly we are asking that people submit questions ahead of the event. This will allow us to consolidate the questions and optimise the format of the session. Please submit any questions you have by email to: competition@scottishcraftbrewers.org

Scottish Craft Brewers are pleased to announce the first Scottish National Homebrew Competition to be held in January 2021.
Having organised successful BJCP judged club competitions for many years, we are now looking to expand the scope and scale of the competition.

There are 100 entries available, and participants will initially be limited to two entries. The first entry will be £6, with subsequent entries £4. General entry registration will at the end of August, keep an eye on the site and our Facebook group for further details.

There will be a 24 hour presale for paid up members of Scottish Craft Brewers, who will be contacted by email.

Entries, including the membership pre-sale, will be allocated on a first come, first served basis on receipt of payment via Paypal. If you have not paid for your entries, your place in the competition is not reserved.

Categories
All BJCP 2015 categories will be eligible for entry; beers will be grouped in tables of complementary styles for judging. The groupings will be decided based on entries received. Although you will be able to edit your entries in the lead up to the competition, the sooner the final styles are confirmed, the easier it will be for us to organise.

The winner of each table will go forward to the Best in Show competition.

Scores and written feedback will be provided to all entrants after the competition.

Entry requirements
We require three unmarked bottles, minimum of 330ml each, in either brown glass or brown PET with plain caps. The competition organisers may disqualify entries that do not meet these requirements.

Postal entries will be accepted 1 week before the competition date. There will also be drop off locations within Edinburgh confirmed in due course.

Judging
Judging will take place at the end of January 2021 in Edinburgh, provisionally the weekend of 30th / 31st. Judging will take place on the Saturday and there will be a results event open to the public at an Edinburgh venue on the Sunday.

Registration will also be open for judging and stewarding. As we are keen to get BJCP qualified judges in attendance, a contribution towards expenses will be available for those travelling from outside the central belt. Lunch will be provided on the judging day.

People’s Choice 2021
The People’s Choice 2021 will be a separate free-to-enter competition, judged by attendees at the results event. You do not need to register via the competition site, just bring three unmarked bottles of your beer along to the results day where they will be processed to be judged by other attendees.

The category for People’s Choice 2021 is 20C Imperial Stout, as voted for by members of the Scottish Craft Brewers Facebook page.
(Imperial Stout is also eligible as a category in the main competition, however this must be registered as an entry via the competition site.)

Covid 19
We are acutely aware of the ongoing Covid 19 situation and potential restrictions that may still be in place in early 2021. We will endeavour to ensure that any changes to the competition format as a result of these restrictions is communicated to participants at the earliest opportunity.