Thank you for your interest in the Hudson Valley Homebrewers Winter Competition organized by Hudson Valley Homebrewers, Poughkeepsie, NY.

You only need to register your information once and can return to this site to enter more brews or edit the brews you've entered. You can even pay your entry fees online if you wish.

If you are willing to judge or steward, please return to register on or after Tuesday, September 1, 2026 12:00 AM, EDT.

Rules

ATTENTION!     ATTENTION!     ATTENTION!     ATTENTION!

This is a themed competition for dark & spicy beers, meads, and ciders. Please take note of accepted styles as they are limited. All spiced entries should be of winter spices and will be judged accordingly.
Any wood beers should be from the allowed categories.

NO ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED ON DAY OF THE COMPETITION!!!

All entries must be received within the designated drop-off window dates/times at one of the designated drop-off locations.

Sorry for the inconvience this year to all our judges, stewards and volunteers.  Organizing has become increasingly more difficult over the years.  In order to maintain the integrity of this event we need all participant's entries to be received by the time the drop-off window ends.  Thank you for your cooperation.

This competition is AHA sanctioned and open to any amateur homebrewer age 21 or older.

All mailed entries must received at the mailing location by the entry deadline - please allow for shipping time.

All entries will be picked up from drop-off locations the day of the entry deadline.

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.).

The competition organizers are not responsible for mis-categorized entries, mailed entries that are not received by the entry deadline, or entries that arrived damaged.

The competition organizers reserve the right to combine styles for judging and to restructure awards as needed depending upon the quantity and quality of entries.

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.

Brewers are not limited to one entry in each category or sub-category as long as the beers are from different brewing sessions.

Categories with a small 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 Blue Ribbon Panel based on a second judging of the top winners.

Bottles will not be returned to entrants.

Entry Acceptance Rules

Number of Bottles Required Per Entry: 2

Each entry will consist of TWO 12 to 22 ounce cans, capped bottles or corked bottles that are void of all identifying information, including labels. Printed caps are allowed, but must be blacked out completely.

12oz brown glass bottles are preferred; however, green and clear glass or plastic will be accepted with the understanding that color can affect storage quality. Swing top bottles, corked bottles and cans will also be accepted.

Bottles will not be returned to contest entrants.

Completed entry forms must be submitted with all entries, and can be printed directly from this website. Entry forms should be attached to bottles with a rubber band only; glue and/or tape are unacceptable.

Please fill out the entry forms completely. Be meticulous about noting any special ingredients that must be specified per the 2021 BJCP Style Guidelines. Failure to note such ingredients may impact the judges' scoring of your entry.

Brewers are not limited to one entry in each category.

Competition Officials

You can send an email to any of the following individuals via Contact.

• Ellen Chadwick — Competition Organizer
• Ellen Chadwick — Mail In Entry Contact
• Monica Metty — Registration Coordinator
• Tbd Tbd — Judge Coordinator
• Tbd Tbd — Prize Coordinator
• Tbd Tbd — Steward Coordinator

Sponsors

Hudson Valley Homebrewers is proud to have the following sponsors for the Hudson Valley Homebrewers Winter Competition .