Competition - Rules

The Redcoat Challenge Homebrew Competition is a BJCP sanctioned event, a British beer competition open to any amateur homebrewer; age 21 or older. All entries must be entered under the name of the brewer. Team brewers are allowed, but if entering as a team or as part of a club you may only designate one team or club name in the appropriate section on the entry registration.

All mailed entries must be received at the mailing location by the entry deadline on Friday, October 13, 2023. Please allow for shipping time. All entries will be picked up from drop-off locations the day of the entry deadline. Walk-in entries will be allowed, but only if they are dropped off by the entry deadline of 5:00 p.m. on October 13. All entries should be packaged as if they were being shipped in order to assist our homebrew store partners with storage/organization, as well as the organizers when collecting your entries.

Entries can be dropped off at the following locations:

BrewHound in Fort Worth, TX (View Map)
Kettle to Keg in Sherman, TX (View Map)
North Texas Homebrew Supply in Dallas, TX (View Map)

Note: If dropping off entries, please be sure to follow the competition packaging instructions. No loose bottles or cans in six-pack holders will be accepted.

All entries must be handcrafted products, containing ingredients available to the general public, and made using private equipment by hobbyist brewers (i.e., no use of commercial facilities or Brew on Premises operations, supplies, etc.). Entry forms must be printed off and sent with or dropped off with each entry. Please make sure to complete all sections on each form. If you wish to enter as an individual not associated with any team or club, please put N/A in the appropriate section. The Redcoat Challenge is not responsible for miscategorized entries, mailed entries that are not received by the entry deadline, or entries and/or paperwork that arrive damaged or are lost in transit.

TRC reserves the right to combine and/or expand styles for judging and to restructure awards as needed depending upon the quantity and quality of entries. All possible efforts will be made to combine or group similar styles. Combined or grouped entries will be judged according to the style they were originally entered in. Qualified judging of all entries is the primary goal of our event. Judges will evaluate and score each entry. The average of the scores will rank each entry in its category. Each flight will have at least one BJCP judge or judged during a BJCP certification class.

Brewers are limited to 1 entry in each subcategory.

For example, a brewer could enter 1 beer in each of the TRC1 British Bitter subcategories (1.1 Ordinary Bitter, 1.2 Best Bitter, and 1.3 Strong Bitter), which would be a total of 3 entries.

Recipes are not required. Judging style guidelines used will be the 2021 Beer Judge Certification Program Style Guidelines and the style guidelines created by TRC for future categories not listed in the 2021 BJCP Style Guidelines. As per BJCP sanctioning requirements, judges may not judge a category that they have entered in themselves if they are also a competitor in the event. The style guidelines are available on the BJCP's website. The style guidelines will be renumbered for our ease of use. Please fill out the entry forms completely.

Be meticulous about noting any special ingredients that must be specified per the 2021 BJCP Style Guidelines. Categories with a number of entries may be combined at the discretion of the competition organizers. The Competition Coordinator or other qualified person will review elements of beer categories and styles with each panel prior to judging.

The Best of Show judging will be determined by a panel of BJCP judges based on a second judging of the top winners. Bottles and cans will not be returned to entrants for any reason. All entries become the property of the The Redcoat Challenge Homebrew Competition. Rules and regulations are subject to change. Due to Texas law, Homebrew Competitions are not allowed to charge for entries. The fee is for providing completed score sheets back to the entrant.

Bottle Acceptance Rules

Each entry will consist of three (3) 12-ounce capped bottles or sealed cans that are void of all identifying information, including labels and embossing. Printed caps are allowed, though discouraged, and if used, must be completely blacked out. Bottles and cans must be free of labels or other easily identified marks. Re-used commercial bottles with embossed logos are allowed but discouraged. 12 oz brown glass bottles are preferred; however, green or clear glass and corked bottles will be accepted. Swing top bottles will be disqualified and not judged.

Bottles and cans will not be returned to entrants for any reason. Completed bottle/can labels must be submitted with all entries, and can be printed directly from the entry website along with any other required paperwork. Bottle/Can labels should be attached to bottles/cans with a rubber band only; glue and/or tape are unacceptable.

Failure to submit entries properly will exclude them from judging.

Note: In the event that only 2 bottles/cans are submitted, the Competition Coordinators will determine whether the second bottle/can needs to be used during the first round/mini-BOS. If the second bottle/can is used, the entry will not be eligible for the Best of Show round due to fact that there is not a third bottle/can available for judging.