By Chris Williams, National Homebrew Competition Director
Happy Holidays from the National Homebrew Competition (NHC)—the world’s largest amateur homebrew competition celebrating the most outstanding beer, mead, and cider, brought to you by the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) with support from the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). In its 46-year history, the NHC has judged 166,000+ homebrewed beers, meads, and ciders. We’re excited to announce what’s new for the competition in 2025!
2024 was a year of exploration in the NHC world. That exploration, while exciting, has paved the way for some great adjustments to the 2025 competition.
Registration Details
- Registration opens January 28, 2025 and closes February 19, 2025.
- There is no entry cap for individual entrants. Individual beers may only be entered once.
- Judging and shipping/receiving dates for the First Round and Final Round will be shared in early 2025, before January 28.
Category Updates
- Mead & Cider: In 2024, we expanded the mead and cider categories into standalone awards categories. While the intention was to increase mead and cider entries, the response did not meet expectations. For 2025, mead and cider categories will again be distilled into four mead award categories (Traditional, Fruit, Spice, Specialty) and two cider categories (Standard Cider/Perry and Specialty Cider & Perry).
- German Pils, So Strong! This may come as no surprise to those who love good beer, but the rise of the lager in recent years is real. Because of its strong showing the past few years, German Pils will have its own standalone category in 2025. This also shifts the name of the previous “Pilsner” award table to “Pale Lager.”
Judging Locations
- Final Round in Kansas City: Final Round judging will be in Kansas City, Mo. We’ve been extremely fortunate and grateful to host the Final Round in San Diego for the past two years and are excited to move to a new city with a vibrant homebrewing scene for Final Round judging.
- First Round Sites: Cheers to more competition to make those medals even more worthwhile! Thank you to Philadelphia for all their years hosting (and KC, we’re excited to see you for the Final Round!).
- Chicago, Ill.
- Indianapolis, Ind.
- Longmont, Colo.
- New York, N.Y.
- San Diego, Calif.
- Seattle, Wash.
- Tampa, Fla.
- These sites will determine the beers that will advance to the Final Round. Get ready to represent!
- Entrants will select a First Round judging site preference during registration (January 28 – February 19) on a first-come, first-served basis. Each location is limited to 750 beers each.
- Entrants are not required to choose the site that is geographically closest to them. Choose your site wisely as it may make a difference!
Entry Feedback
- Once again, entrants will receive digital BJCP scoresheets via email for their entries from some of the world’s top homebrew judges. Feedback will be distributed within two weeks of each First Round location’s judging date.
- In addition to the First Round BJCP scoresheets, Final Round entrants will receive written feedback from judges. The NHC Final Round judge pool is the most robust, advanced, and experienced judge pool of any homebrew competition in the world.
Awards
- NHC Award Ceremony: The location, date, and format of the Final Round awards ceremony, as well as prizes, are still in the works. Unfortunately, we have yet to find a suitable partner to execute a cost effective 2025 Homebrew Con (HBC), the AHA’s annual member gathering and the usual location of the awards ceremony. However, we are on track with an ongoing search for options to bring back HBC as a valued and important annual event in 2026. We are hopeful that we’ll be able to host the awards ceremony on-site in Kansas City after Final Round judging and will share additional details as we have them. Stay tuned for more information.
- Ninkasi, Homebrew Club, and Gambrinus Award Tiebreaker Criteria Update: We have reviewed and updated tiebreaker criteria for these awards. The updated criteria focus on awarding both those who excel in the Final Round and the First Round. See updated tiebreaker info under the Results & Awards section of the NHC site.
The NHC website has been updated for 2025. Sign up for the newsletter and keep an eye on the site between now and when registration opens on January 28 for additional information. This competition is made possible through the generous support of AHA member entrants, volunteers, judges, and our sponsors. Thank you!
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