Enter the 2025 Competition
The National Homebrew Competition gives amateur brewers the opportunity to receive invaluable feedback, win prizes, and recognizes outstanding, world-class homebrewed beer, mead, and cider.
Important Dates
January 20: Club Registration Deadline
Homebrew clubs must be registered with the AHA.
January 28 – February 19: Entry Registration & Payment
Eligible entrants register for the competition and pay for their entries. Entries may be edited after payment until their individual judging site’s edit deadline (typically about one week prior to the receiving date. Please refer to your individual site for details).
February 28: Deadline for Cancelation & Refunds
Changes to categories and specialty info are accepted through March 20, contingent on category availability. Refunds will not be issued for cancelations after this date.
Deadline for Category/Entry Changes – Varies by First Round Site
Changes to categories and specialty info are accepted. The deadline for changes varies based on your individual first round site, and are based on category availability. Please reference your First Round competition registration site for this information (Last bullet on homepage of the Beer Awards Platform registration site for the competition).
March – April: First Round Shipping/Drop-off Window (Dates vary by location)
All competition entries must be received at the entrant’s respective shipping/drop-off location (see your registration site for shipping information)
Mid-March – June: First Round Judging
First Round judging takes place at seven locations across the country.
Early to Mid-June: Final Round Shipping/Drop-off Window (Kansas City, Mo.)
All competition entries must be received at the shipping/drop-off location for the Final Round (different from the First Round locations).
Late June: Final Round Judging
Final Round competition judging will take place in Kansas City, Mo.
TBD: Award Ceremony
Date and timing of the Final Round awards ceremony is still in the works, but we’re reviewing all options in hopes that we can host it once Final Round judging finishes in Kansas City in June. If we’re unable to host on-site in Kansas City after judging, the awards will instead be live-streamed within two weeks of judging. Please stay tuned to the website and email newsletter for updates.
The NHC Tables are determined using the Beer Judge Certification Program’s 2021 Style Guidelines and previous years’ data. The following is a list of NHC Tables and the BJCP subcategories (listed in parentheses to the left of each style category).
“ * ” Indicates additional judging information (base style, special Ingredients, etc) required.
Table 1: Pale American Beer
- American Light Lager (1A)
- American Lager (1B)
- Cream Ale (1C)
Table 2: Pale European Beer
- International Pale Lager (2A)*
- German Leichtbier (5A)
- Kolsch (5B)
- German Helles Exportbier (5C)
- Historical: Kellerbier (27A1)*
Table 3: Pale Lager
- Czech Pale Lager (3A)
- Czech Premium Pale Lager (3B)
- Historical: Pre-Prohibition Lager (27A6)
- New Zealand Pilsner (X5)
Table 4: German Pilsner (5D)
Table 5: Pale Malty European Beer
- Munich Helles (4A)
- Festbier (4B)
- Helles Bock (4C)
Table 6: Amber European Beer
- International Amber Lager (2B)
- Czech Amber Lager (3C)
- Marzen (6A)
- Vienna Lager (7A)
- Altbier (7B)
Table 7: Dark European Lager
- International Dark Lager (2C)
- Czech Dark Lager (3D)
- Munich Dunkel (8A)
- Schwarzbier (8B)
Table 8: American Wheat & Blonde
- American Wheat Beer (1D)
- Blonde Ale (18A)
- Dorada Pampeana (X1)
Table 9: German Wheat & Rye Beer
- Weissbier (10A)
- Dunkles Weissbier (10B)
- Weizenbock (10C)*
- Historical: Roggenbier (27A8)
- Historical: Sahti (27A9)
Table 10: British Pale Ale
- Ordinary Bitter (11A)
- Best Bitter (11B)
- Strong Bitter (11C)
- British Golden Ale (12A)
- Australian Sparkling Ale (12B)
- English IPA (12C)
Table 11: Scottish & Irish Ale
- Scottish Light (14A)
- Scottish Heavy (14B)
- Scottish Export (14C)
- Irish Red Ale (15A)
Table 12: American Pale Ale (18B)
Table 13: Amber & Brown American Ale
- American Amber Ale (19A)
- California Common (19B)
- American Brown Ale (19C)
- Historical: Kentucky Common (27A2)
Table 14: Brown British Beer
- Dark Mild (13A)
- British Brown Ale (13B)
- English Porter (13C)
- Historical: London Brown Ale (27A4)
Table 15: Irish & British Stout
- Irish Stout (15B)
- Irish Extra Stout (15C)
- Sweet Stout (16A)
- Oatmeal Stout (16B)
- Tropical Stout (16C)
- Foreign Extra Stout (16D)
Table 16: American Porter & Stout
- American Porter (20A)
- American Stout (20B)
- Historical: Pre-Prohibition Porter (27A7)
Table 17: American IPA (21A)
Table 18: Specialty IPA
- Specialty IPA (21B)*
- Belgian IPA (21B1)*
- Black IPA (21B2)
- Brown IPA (21B3)
- Brut IPA (21B7)
- Red IPA (21B4)
- Rye IPA (21B5)
- White IPA (21B6)*
- IPA Argenta (X2)
Table 19: Hazy IPA (21C)
Table 20: Strong American Ale
- Double IPA (22A)
- American Strong Ale (22B)
- American Barleywine (22C)
- Wheatwine (22D)
Table 21: Strong European Lager
- Dunkles Bock (6C)
- Doppelbock (9A)*
- Eisbock (9B)
Table 22: Strong British Ale
- British Strong Ale (17A)*
- Old Ale (17B)
- Wee Heavy (17C)
- English Barleywine (17D)
Table 23: Imperial Porter & Stout
- Baltic Porter (9C)
- Imperial Stout (20C)
Table 24: Saison (25B)*
Table 25: Belgian Ale
- Witbier (24A)
- Belgian Pale Ale (24B)
- Biere de Garde (24C)*
- Belgian Blond Ale (25A)
- Belgian Single (26A)
Table 26: Strong Belgian Ale
- Belgian Golden Strong Ale (25C)
- Belgian Dubbel (26B)
- Belgian Tripel (26C)
- Belgian Dark Strong Ale (26D)
Table 27: European Sour Ale
- Berliner Weisse (23A)
- Flanders Red Ale (23B)
- Oud Bruin (23C)
- Lambic (23D)
- Gueuze (23E)
- Fruit Lambic (23F)*
- Gose (23G)
Table 28: Fruit Beer*
- Fruit Beer (29A)*
- Specialty Fruit Beer (29C)*
- Fruit & Spice Beer (29B)*
- Grape Ale (29D)*
- Catharina Sour (X4)*
Table 29: Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer Beer*
- Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer (30A)*
Table 30: Specialty & Seasonal Spiced Beer*
- Specialty Spiced Beer (30D)*
- Autumn Seasonal Beer (30B)*
- Winter Seasonal Beer (30C)*
Table 31: Smoke-Flavored Beer
- Rauchbier (6B)
- Historical: Lichtenhainer (27A3)
- Historical: Piwo Grodziskie (27A5)
- Classic-Style Smoked Beer (32A)*
- Specialty Smoked Beer (32B)*
Table 32: Wood-Aged Beer*
- Wood-Aged Beer (33A)*
- Specialty Wood-Aged (33B)*
Table 33: American Wild Ale*
- Brett Beer (28A)*
- Mixed Fermentation Sour Beer (28B)*
- Wild Specialty Beer (28C)*
- Straight Sour Beer (28D)*
Table 34: Specialty Beer*
- Other Historical Beer (27A)*
- Alternative Grain Beer (31A)*
- Alternative Sugar Beer (31B)*
- Commercial Specialty Beer (34A)*
- Mixed-Style Beer (34B)*
- Experimental Beer (34C)*
Table 35: Traditional Mead
- Dry Mead (M1A)*
- Semi-Sweet Mead (M1B)*
- Sweet Mead (M1C)*
Table 36: Fruit Mead
- Cyser (M2A)*
- Pyment (M2B)*
- Melomel (M2E)*
- Berry Mead (M2C)*
- Stone Fruit Mead (M2D)*
Table 37: Spice Mead
- Fruit & Spice Mead (M3A)*
- Spice, Herb or Vegetable Mead Count (M3B)*
Table 38: Specialty Mead
- Braggot (M4A)*
- Historical Mead (M4B)*
- Experimental Mead (M4C)*
Table 39: Standard Cider & Perry*
- New World Cider (C1A)*
- New World Perry (C1D)*
- English Cider (C1B)*
- French Cider (C1C)*
- Traditional Perry (C1E)*
Table 40: Specialty Cider & Perry*
- New England Cider (C2A)*
- Applewine (C2C)*
- Ice Cider (C2D)*
- Specialty Cider/Perry (C2F)*
- Cider with Herbs/Spices (C2E)*
- Cider with Other Fruit (C2B)*