Rules
America's Finest City Homebrew Competition

Entries

• Entries must be bottled in plain green or brown 10- to 14-ounce glass bottles. Bottles must have no distinguishing markings. Caps must be plain or completely blacked out with an indelible marker. Swing top bottles are not permitted. Corked bottles meeting the above standards are permitted provided they are capped over the cork.
• Two bottles are required for each entry - one for first round judging and one for Best of Show if necessary.
• The entry fee is $6 for each entry. Teams of two or more brewers that brew one or more batches together may enter as a single entrant. All brewers who helped in the brewing must be named.
• To enter, fill out an entry form listing the names of all brewers who participated in the brewing process. Fill out a bottle label for each bottle and rubber band it to the bottle. Do not use tape to attach bottle labels. This is a disqualification! Fill out your check for the correct amount payable to Charles West . Enclose all entry forms, your check, and your entries in a well-packed box.
• 2004 BJCP Competition Style Guidelines will be followed for judging all styles. Click here for the 2004 BJCP Style Guidelines. 
• Only one entry per subcategory per entrant is allowed. (For example, you may enter a Brown Porter and a Robust Porter, but not two Brown Porters.)
• The brewer is solely responsible for entering a beer in the proper style category. Beers will be judged according to the style guidelines.
• The Special Ingredients/Varietal/Base Beer Style field in many cases must be filled out if entering beer categories 16e, 17f, 20, 21b, 22b, 22c, 23. If entering a mead or cider category (24-28), often you must specify the variety of fruit or honey, and barrel aging or fermentation. Leave this box blank if your entry is not in these categories. In almost all cases you must also use the radio buttons for sweetness, strength, and carbonation for meads and ciders. Fill in the following for these styles:
  

• Up to three medals will be awarded for each style category. However, minimum scores for medals are required as follows: 35 points for first, 30 points for second, and 25 points for third. The judges will be encouraged to avoid ties for medal winners.
• The first place winner in each category will be eligible for the Best of Show round. (A minimum score of 35 is needed to advance.)
• First place in the Best of Show round will receive an engraved glass mug.
• Other prizes to Best of Show contestants may be awarded.
• Ribbons will be awarded to the top three brewers (or brewing teams) that accumulate the most points through multiple award-winning entries. The point system shall be as follows:

• 6 points for each first place in a style
• 3 points for each second place in a style
• 1 point for each third place in a style
• 3 additional points for Best of Show winner
• 2 additional points for Best of Show first runner-up
• 1 additional point for Best of Show second runner-up

Eligibility

• This contest is open to all homebrewers. Professional brewers may enter, however, their entries must have been brewed at home.
• Beers brewed at a brew-on-premises facility or at a commercial brewery or brewpub are not eligible.
• Competition staff, judges, and stewards are eligible to enter. Judges and stewards may not participate in the judging of their entries. Safeguards will be taken to prevent judges from knowing who brewed the entries they are judging.

Other Rules and Information

• Because of the need for concentration required by the judges and limited space, the judging will not be open to spectators or competing brewers.
• The competition staff reserves the right to combine similar categories if there are less than three entries in a category. The entries will be judged according to the entered style, not the combined style.
• Refer to the Spring 1998 Zymurgy for suggestions on packing and shipping hints.
• At the discretion of the competition staff, entries not meeting these eligibility or entry requirements will be disqualified.