Brew like a champion.
Get expert feedback with Beer Judge Mobile
Sharing your homebrew is rewarding, but getting insightful feedback is key to taking your creations to the next level. Our app, Beer Judge Mobile, empowers you to gather valuable insights from fellow brewers and enthusiasts. Whether it’s praise or constructive criticism, this feedback is essential for fine-tuning your recipes and recognizing what works and what doesn’t. Join our community today and elevate your brewing journey with quality feedback.
Brewing for Gold
- My Journey Through the 2025 Circuit of America
It’s mid-January, and the 2025 Circuit of America is in full swing! Competitions are popping up left and right, registration windows are opening (and closing) faster than ever, and brewers everywhere are racing to secure their spots. If there’s one lesson I’ve learned already, it’s this: you need to stay ahead of the game.
The One That Got Away
Take the Kentucky Bluegrass Homebrew Competition, for example. Registration opened late in 2024, and unfortunately, I missed the boat on this one. Competitions like these are incredibly popular, and it’s a good reminder that planning and staying up to date on registration timelines is critical. Missing out is disappointing, but it’s also motivation to be even more prepared moving forward.
Hitting the Ground Running
On a brighter note, I’ve managed to register for six out of seven competitions happening this month! It’s exhilarating to see my schedule filling up with opportunities to showcase my brews and get valuable feedback. Every competition is a chance to learn, refine my process, and, hopefully, earn a few points in the Masters’ Homebrewer Program.
- Midwinter (CoA)
- KCBM (CoA)
- SNAFU (CoA)
- Extravaganza (CoA)
- Sweethearts Revenge (CoA)
- Drunk Monk (CoA)
- SoCal Cerveceros – Darker Side of Winter
- Doug King Memorial
Between brewing, bottling, shipping, and ensuring all the paperwork is in order, it feels like a full-time job. But hey, that’s part of the fun, right? The adrenaline of competition season is what makes it so exciting.
Lessons Learned (Already)
This early in the season, I’ve already learned a few key lessons for navigating the Circuit of America or any homebrew competition.
-
- Stay Organized: Keeping track of deadlines for registration, entry submissions, and shipping dates is crucial. A simple calendar or planner can make a world of difference.
-
- Act Fast: Popular competitions fill up quickly. If you’re eyeing an event, don’t wait to sign up. Procrastination could mean missing out.
-
- Plan Your Brew Schedule: With so many competitions in January alone, timing is everything. You need to ensure your beers are ready at their peak for judging.
-
- Learn from Missed Opportunities: While I missed the Kentucky Bluegrass competition this time, I’ve marked my calendar for next year. It’s all part of the learning process.
Looking Ahead
With six competitions on the horizon this month, I’m excited to see how my beers perform and, more importantly, what feedback I’ll receive. Each piece of constructive criticism is another step toward perfecting my craft and working my way up in the Masters’ Homebrewer Program.
To my fellow competitors, I hope your beers are bubbling, your fermenters are full, and your schedules are set. Here’s to a thrilling start to the competition season. Let’s make this a year to remember!
Stay tuned for updates on how the January competitions unfold. I’ll be sharing my experiences, scores, and, of course, lessons learned along the way.
Brewing for Gold
- My Journey Through the 2025 Circuit of America
Welcome to Brewing for Gold, a blog dedicated to documenting my year-long adventure in the 2025 Circuit of America Homebrew Competition. Homebrewing is more than just a hobby for me—it’s a passion, a craft, and a way to connect with others who share a love for creating something truly unique.
This year, I’ve decided to take my brewing to the next level by competing in one of the most exciting homebrew circuits in the country. The Circuit of America is an incredible opportunity to test my skills, refine my recipes, and learn from some of the best brewers out there. While my ultimate goal is to climb to the top of the leaderboard, this journey is just as much about the process as it is about the results.
In this blog, I’ll be sharing every step of my experience:
-
- Preparation for Competitions: Bottling, shipping, and meeting submission deadlines.
-
- Recipe Development: From brainstorming ideas to perfecting the final brew.
-
- Judging and Feedback: What the judges say and how I’ll use their insights to improve.
-
- Interviews with the very best – Meeting and hear from the top home brew competitors anywhere on the planet!
-
- Lessons Learned: The triumphs, the challenges, and the surprises along the way.
I’ll also include behind-the-scenes looks at the competitions, interviews with fellow homebrewers, and tips for anyone looking to get started in the world of competitive brewing.
Will I end up at the top of the heap? Probably not—but I’m ready to give it my best shot. Along the way, I’m sure there will be plenty of laughs, unexpected twists, and invaluable learning experiences.
Thank you for joining me on this journey. Whether you’re a seasoned competitor, a homebrewing enthusiast, or just curious about what goes into crafting award-worthy beer, I hope you’ll find something here to inspire and entertain.
Cheers to the 2025 Circuit of America—let’s see where this adventure takes us!
About Me
My name is Ben. As of today, I am a Master Homebrewer’s Program Grand Master 1. I have been brewing beer since 2016 and have brewed over 500 batches of beer. Brewing is not just a passion for me but also a craft I continually strive to perfect. I love to compete and am thrilled to embark on this journey to make a good run at the Circuit of America. Win or lose, join me for the journey.
The Challenges of Obtaining Quality Feedback
Capturing Feedback
Getting feedback can be tough. It’s hard to jot down notes when you’re just trying to enjoy your beer!
Inexperienced Evaluators
- Not everyone is a beer expert. Whether you're new to craft beers or simply enjoy them casually, our app makes it easy to share your thoughts, even if you're not sure what to say. Just a simple "It's good" can still contribute valuable feedback.
Beer Judge Mobile
Beer Judge Mobile revolutionizes beer feedback and evaluation with its innovative app. Effortlessly collect and organize quality feedback as a brewer, empowering you to enhance your craft. Track feedback trends over time to gauge the effects of recipe adjustments. Wondering if your brew is a hit or miss? Beer Judge Mobile provides valuable insights to inform your brewing decisions. For evaluators, Beer Judge Mobile offers a guided experience to evaluate beer like a pro. Easily capture and share your feedback with precision.
Why Choose Beer Judge
Simplifying the Feedback Loop
The Beer Judge Mobile App is designed to help all beer drinkers easily and accurately evaluate beer, modeled after Using a simple and intuitive design, evaluators will be guided through collecting their feedback and receiving the proper guidance to evaluate their beer like a pro.
Feedback Collection System:
- Streamlined Experience: Capture detailed feedback on aroma, taste, appearance, and overall impression effortlessly.
- Instant Insights: Receive near real-time feedback to refine and enhance your recipes.
- Continuous Improvement: Brew, evaluate, review, and improve. Keep track of your feedback history for ongoing development.
Guided Evaluation:
- Versatile Evaluation: Whether casual or detailed, Beer Judge Mobile makes the evaluation process easy with an intuitive wizard.
- Systematic Approach: Ensure comprehensive and systematic feedback on every aspect of your beer.
- Expert Methodology: Built on the BJCP beer evaluation framework, providing trusted and accurate assessments.
Beer Judge
Beer Judge Mobile
Beer Judge Mobile will help build your vocabulary and evaluation skills, without knowing the the lingo or exactly what to look for.
Beer Judge Mobile simplifies the evaluation process while making it fun.
Get Feedback!
You’re Clicks Away From A Quality Evaluation
Beer Judge Mobile will allow you to send an evaluation request to a friend and receive quality feedback whether they know what makes a great beer or not.
The process is simple: Just select a classic style or describe your homebrew through the easy to follow wizard and send the
request. That’s it!
Get Feedback!
Asking for feedback is easier than ever
Beer Judge Mobile will allow you to send an evaluation request to a friend and receive quality feedback whether your buddy knows about beer or not. The process is simple: Just type in your description of your homebrew, tell us what style it is and send the request. Simple!
Coming Soon to a Store Near You
Get Feedback!
Elevate Your Evaluation Game
Learn to evaluate beer like the pros! New to beer? No problem. Our evaluation wizard will guide you through key aspects such as appearance, aroma, and taste. Simply log in, click on an evaluation request, or scan a QR code to launch the evaluation wizard and follow along!
Download Now
Evaluation History and Evaluation Summary
Automatic Evaluation Summary
Beer Judge Mobile summarizes the evaluators’ selections and produces an expert summary effortlessly. Results are sent to the brewer or can be printed out as a score sheet.
Track evaluation results by the batch!
Track your evaluation history by the batch and learn how your beer evolves based on critical changes.
