Urban Knaves of Grain Club-Only Competitions


Six times a year, we are allowed to select just one brew to represent our club in an American Homebrewers Association-sponsored competition with a theme, such as stouts, pale ales, wheat beers, or pilsners. Each competition is hosted by a different homebrew club.  (The UKG hosted the Extract Only competition in 2008 and the Weiss is Nice in 1997.)  The winner's recipe is published in Zymurgy, and the winning club earns points toward the Homebrew Club of the Year Award.

The UKG selects our entry in our own informal mini-competition, with the help of volunteer members, who practice their judging skills while evaluating the entries. Just as in a real competition, they return judging forms full of constructive comments to the entrants.

Whenever possible, our judgings are held at monthly UKG meetings. To enter a beer, just bring one bottle to the meeting. Remove any labels and black out all markings on the cap. You should keep two more bottles in reserve.

If your beer wins the judging, you will be responsible for following the AHA's entry instructions and shipping those two bottles to the club-only competition. You should fill out the standard AHA entry/recipe form and bottle labels.  Put the entry form and a $7 check payable to the AHA into an envelope.  Rubber-band a label to each bottle, and rubber-band the envelope to one of them.  Pack them up securely (individually wrap each bottle with bubble wrap, then put them in a tightly cushioned box), and send them via UPS to the shipping address shown on the AHA club-only competition schedule.  Save your shipping receipt; the UKG treasurer will reimburse you for the shipping and the entry fee at the next meeting.

If you have questions about entering a club-only competition, or if you would like to help in our informal judging, please contact Steve McKenna.


This is the schedule of club-only competitions in 2008-2009.  All competitions will be based on the 2008 BJCP Style Guidelines.  (Judging dates marked as tentative may be adjusted if the competition deadline turns out to be earlier or later than expected.)

DateCompetition
July 30, 2009
(hosted Aug. 23 by
Keg Ran Out Club (KROC);
entry deadline:  Aug. 19)
Amber Hybrid Beers.
  • 7a Northern German Altbier
  • 7b California Common Beer
  • 7c Düsseldorf Altbier

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner: 
Sept. 24, 2009
(hosted Oct. 17 by
Jayhops of Kansas City;
entry deadline:  Oct. 9)
European Amber Lagers.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 3a Vienna Lager
  • 3b Oktoberfest/Märzen

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Nov. 19, 2009
(hosted Dec. 5 by
Dunedin Brewers Guild;
entry deadline:  Nov. 27)
Belgian Strong Ales.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 18a Belgian Blond Ale
  • 18b Belgian Dubbel
  • 18c Belgian Tripel
  • 18d Belgian Golden Strong Ale
  • 18e Belgian Dark Strong Ale

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Jan. 28, 2010
(hosted Feb. 20 by
Impaling Alers;
entry deadline:  Feb. 16)
The Session Challenge - English Brown Ales.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 11a Mild
  • 11b Southern English Brown Ale
  • 11c Northern English Brown Ale

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Feb. 25, 2010 (tentative)
(hosted Mar/Apr by
Carolina Brewmasters;
entry deadline:  TBA)
American Ales.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 10a American Pale Ale
  • 10b American Amber Ale
  • 10c American Brown Ale

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Mar. 13, 2010
(hosted May 22 by
Niagara Association of Homebrewers;
entry deadline:  May 1)
Extract Beers.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • all styles 1-23 (>50% of fermentables must be from malt extract)

The highest-placing UKG extract-brewed entry at the Drunk Monk Challenge will be selected.

Winner:
July 29, 2010 (tentative)
(hosted Aug. by
Hop Barley and the Alers;
entry deadline:  TBA)
Mead.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 24a Dry Mead
  • 24b Semi-sweet Mead
  • 24c Sweet Mead
  • 25a Cyser (Apple Melomel)
  • 25b Pyment (Grape Melomel)
  • 25c Other Fruit Melomel
  • 26a Metheglin
  • 26b Braggot
  • 26c Open Category Mead

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner: 
Sept. 30, 2010 (tentative)
(hosted Sept./Oct. by
the Maltose Falcons;
entry deadline:  TBA)
Sour Ale.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 17a Berliner Weisse
  • 17b Flanders Red Ale
  • 17c Flanders Brown Ale/Oud Bruin
  • 17d Straight (Unblended) Lambic
  • 17e Gueuze
  • 17f Fruit Lambic

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Nov. 18, 2010 (tentative)
(hosted Nov/Dec by
Greater Everett Brewers League;
entry deadline:  TBA)
Strong Ale.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 19a Old Ale
  • 19b English Barleywine
  • 19c American Barleywine

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Jan. 27, 2011 (tentative)
(hosted Jan/Feb by
Mad Zymurgists;
entry deadline:  TBA)
English Pale Ales.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 8a Standard/Ordinary Bitter
  • 8b Special/Best/Premium Bitter
  • Extra Special/Strong Bitter (English Pale Ale)

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
Mar. 31, 2011
(hosted Mar/Apr by
Fellowship of Oklahoma Ale Makers (FOAM);
entry deadline:  4/16/2011)
Bock.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 5a Maibock
  • 5b Traditional Bock
  • 5c Doppelbock
  • 5d Eisbock

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner:
April 28, 2011 (tentative)
(hosted May by
club TBA;
entry deadline:  TBA)
Style TBA.
Winner:
July 28, 2011 (tentative)
(hosted Aug. by
Prairie Homebrewing Companions;
entry deadline:  TBA)
Mead.  BJCP 2008 styles:
  • 24a Dry Mead
  • 24b Semi-sweet Mead
  • 24c Sweet Mead
  • 25a Cyser (Apple Melomel)
  • 25b Pyment (Grape Melomel)
  • 25c Other Fruit Melomel
  • 26a Metheglin
  • 26b Braggot
  • 26c Open Category Mead

Judging will be conducted at the monthly meeting.

Winner: 


Past winners representing the UKG:

Mar 2009 Extract Beers Ed Seaman, Extra Special/Strong Bitter
Feb 2009 Beers with OG > 1.080 Doug Newberry, Imperial Stout
Dec 2008 Belgian and French Ales Tom Dennis, Saison
Nov 2008 Celebration of the Hop Steve McKenna, Imperial IPA
Sep 2008 Imperial Anything no entry
Jun 2008 Mead Rich Janevicius, Cyser
May 2008 Extract Beers Ed Seaman, Belgian Golden Strong Ale
Mar. 2008 Perfect Porter Challenge Ed Seaman, Brown Porter
Feb. 2008 Dark Lagers Rob Miller, Dark American Lager
Dec. 2007 Pilsner Ed Seaman, Classic American Pilsner
Oct. 2007 Bock Joe Formanek, Doppelbock
Aug. 2007 Strong Ale Ed Seaman, Old Ale
Apr 2007 Extract Beers Ed Seaman, Bavarian Weizen
Mar 2007 Scottish Ale Rodney Kibzey, Scottish Light 60/-
Feb 2007 Low Gravity/Session Beers Andy Stumpf, witbier
Nov 2006 Light Hybrid Beers Ed Seaman, blonde ale
Oct 2006 Stout Calvin Rowland, dry stout
Aug 2006 Mead Joe Formanek, cranberry mead  3rd place winner
in the national club-only competition!
May 2006 Extract Beers Tom Seiler, doppelbock
Apr 2006 American Ale Ron Stazuk, American Pale Ale
Feb 2006 Big Beautiful Belgians Tom Dennis, Belgian Golden Strong Ale
Nov 2005 Baltic Porter Joe Formanek
Oct 2005 European Amber Lager Bea Jones, Oktoberfest
Aug 2005 Belgian and French Ales Ken and Bea Jones, saison 1st place winner
in the national club-only competition!
May 2005 Extract Beers Steve Gurski and Aimee Brucks  3rd place winner
in the national club-only competition!
Apr 2005 In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lambic Shane Coombs
Jan 2005 Irish Red Ale Rodney Kibzey and Liz Lerch
Nov 2004 IPA Mark Neil
Oct 2004 Smoke-Flavored & Wood-Aged Beers Eric Duske
Aug 2004 Wheat Beers Rodney Kibzey and Liz Lerch
Apr 2004 Extract Beers Tom Dennis
Mar 2004 Mead Rich Janevicius
Nov 2003 Barleywine and Imperial Stout Shane Coombs
Oct 2003 Kölsch and Altbier Dave Andrew
Aug 2003 Specialty/Experimental/Historical Beers Mark Neil  1st place winner
in the national club-only competition!
Jun 2003 European Pale Lager Joe Formanek
May 2003 English and Scottish Strong Ale Joe Formanek  2nd place winner
in the national club-only competition!
Apr 2003 Brown Ale Tom Tipton
Jan 2003 Bitter and English Pale Ale Joe Formanek
Dec 2002 Fruit and Spice Beer Darrell Proksa
Oct 2003 Strong Belgian Ale Zemo
Aug 2002 American Lager Shane Coombs
Apr 2002 India Pale Ale Jeff Hertz
Feb 2002 Porter Shane Coombs
Jan 2002 Scottish Ales Mark Linton
Nov 2001 Mild Rich Cullotta
Sep 2001 California Common John Kleczewski
Jul 2001 Witbier Ted Grudzinski
Apr 2001 Bockanalia Shane Coombs, doppelbock
Feb 2001 Stout Joe Formanek, foreign extra stout
Jan 2001 Dunkel & Schwarzbier Dave Hahne, Munich dunkel
Nov 2000 Historical Beers Zemo Holat, gruit
Oct 2000 Best of Fest George Dailey, Oktoberfest
Jul 2000 Best of Big Brew Zemo Holat
Apr 2000 Weiss Is Nice Zemo Holat, Bavarian weizen
May 2000 Belgian-Style Lambic Shane Coombs, gueuze
Dec 1999 My Barley Doesn't Whine John Mains, American barleywine
Nov 1999 Winter Warmer Mike Uchima, strong Scotch ale
Aug 1999 Porter!Kevin Spealman, robust porter
July 1999 It's a Mead, Mead, Mead WorldZemo Holat, still traditional mead
April 1999 Bockanalia Jay Kash, helles bock.  1st place winner
in the national club-only competition!
Feb 1999 Why Don't We Do It in the Robe Joe Formanek, tripel
Jan 1999 You're Special to Me Shane Coombs, espresso imperial stout
Nov 1998 If It's Not ScottishShane Coombs, strong Scotch ale
Sep 1998 Best of FestShane Coombs, Oktoberfest
July 1998 Weiss is NiceShane Coombs, Berliner weisse
Apr 1998 Classic PilsnerJay Kash, Bohemian pilsner
Feb 1998 Stout BoutJoe Formanek, imperial stout
Jan 1998 Hale to AleMike Uchima, India pale ale

Questions? Contact Steve McKenna.

Last modified June 26, 2009.

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