# Merri Mashers IPA Comp 2018



## Cerevisius (19/12/17)




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## Cerevisius (19/12/17)

The Merri Mashers IPA Comp returns in 2018!

Entries will be judged at The Terminus Hotel, Fitzroy North on Sunday 25th of March

Entry is online via the official comp web page 

The deadline for online entry is Saturday 17th of March

If your beer can arguably be recognised as an IPA as described in sections 21A, 21B, 22A or 12C of the BJCP 2015 Style Guidelines, you may enter it here! In addition, we will accept adequately described Specialty entries of more experimental brews still identifiable as IPA:

The term ‘IPA’ is used as a singular descriptor of a type of hoppy, bitter beer. It is not meant to be spelled out as ‘India Pale Ale’ when used in the context of a Specialty IPA. None of these beers ever historically went to India, and many aren’t pale. But the craft beer market knows what to expect in balance when a beer is described as an ‘IPA’– so the modifiers used to differentiate them are based on that concept alone.
(BJCP 2015 Style Guidelines)​
This year we will only be accepting single bottle entries, with a minimum bottle size of 500 ml

Price per entry remains $10 for the first entry, and $8 for subsequent entries

Sponsors and prizes will be updated here and on the official comp page

As per last year, there will be sponsored category prizes, and awards for Champion Beer, Champion Brewer, Best Novice, Club of Show, and Brewer's Choice

Decisions of the Head Judge and Chief Steward will be final!

Ask your questions here or head to the Merri Mashers Facebook group


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## Cerevisius (20/12/17)

The deadline for getting bottles to drop-off points is Saturday, 17th of March 2018.

Drop-off points will be announced via this thread and the official web page, but will include all the usual suspects, and the venue, The Terminus Hotel, North Fitzroy. Paid entries can be dropped at the venue up to Saturday, 24th of March.

Please DO NOT post entries to the venue.

Postal entries can be sent (carefully packed) to:

*Home Make It, Reservoir
265 Spring St, Reservoir VIC 3073*


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## Cerevisius (17/1/18)

If you'll be in Melbourne this March, you may want to consider signing up to judge or steward at Victoria's premier home brewing event.

Expressions of interest at this link: http://merrimashers.org/ipacompsignup


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## Cerevisius (21/1/18)

Online entries are now live!!

Head on over to the official comp web entry page at this link:

https://comps.merrimashers.org/

Good luck, and keep those entries coming!


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## Cerevisius (30/1/18)

Please have all your entries at a drop-off point before 1pm on Saturday, 17th of March 2018.

Official drop-off points include:

Brewer's Den, 253 Dorset Rd, Boronia
Grain and Grape, 5/280 Whitehall St, Yarraville
Greensborough Home Brewing Supplies, 29 Beewar St, Greensborough
Home Make It, 4/158 Wellington Rd, Clayton and 265 Spring St, Reservoir
Keg King, 2/33-35 Smith Rd, Springvale
The Terminus Hotel, 492 Queens Parade, Fitzroy North
(Entries will be accepted at the venue, The Terminus Hotel, Fitzroy North, up to the 24th of March, 2018).


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## Cerevisius (5/2/18)

The Merri Mashers IPA Comp 2018 is being brought to you by an array of supporters.

Our major sponsors include:

The Terminus Hotel, Fitzroy North who are providing the venue for the fourth year running, as well as sponsoring the category prize pool.

Himmel Hund Brewing Co who are providing their brewhouse for the MM IPA Comp 2018 Calibration Collaboration beer, as well as supporting the event.

Keg King are sponsoring the Champion Beer prize, with the winner taking away a Fermentasaurus™ conical PET fermenter, complete with Pressure Kit.

Hawkers Beer are sponsors of the Champion Brewer prize. The brewer who tallies the highest number of points for category placing beers, across the comp, will receive a carton of Hawkers beer as well as the opportunity to visit the Reservoir brewery for a personalised tour. Hawkers are also donating malt towards the Calibration Collaboration beer.

Grain and Grape are sponsoring the Best Novice prize, with a $250 voucher for the brewer with the highest scoring beer who has not previously placed in a BJCP endorsed competition.

BeerCo are again sponsoring the Club of Show prize, with the club amassing the most points across the competition receiving a range of malts, hops, yeast & merchandise.


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## fdsaasdf (5/2/18)

Does the comp accept PET bottles, or glass only?


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## Cerevisius (5/2/18)

fdsaasdf said:


> Does the comp accept PET bottles, or glass only?



Both PET and glass bottles are accepted - minimum 500 ml, although 640-750 ml is preferred.


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## fdsaasdf (5/2/18)

Cool, thanks for confirming - may be on the website somewhere but I couldn't find it.


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## moonhead (6/2/18)

fdsaasdf said:


> may be on the website somewhere but I couldn't find it.



Not specifically on the website, about PET bottles at least, just the size requirements. Like all home brew comps (at least in Melbourne), we're fine with PET or glass bottles.


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## Cerevisius (6/2/18)

In addition to some awesome major prizes, the Merri Mashers IPA Competition 2018 will be offering three Brewer's Choice Awards, thanks to the generosity of sponsors Clifton Hill Brewpub, Tallboy and Moose, in Preston, and The Craft and Co, Collingwood.

An expert industry panel will be evaluating the best beers on the day and selecting three outstanding beers that merit special reward. The criterion here is that the beer must not only be excellent, it must also be commercially viable when scaled up to a brewery volume.

Entrants are encouraged to submit a 640 to 750 ml bottle for consideration for these awards. The limit is still one bottle per entry.

Tallboy and Moose *Brewer's Choice Award* winner will have the opportunity to visit the brewery in Preston to be involved in wort production with Dan. The winner can ask as many questions as they like, get their hands dirty if they so please, and taste different beers in tank and on tap (potentially in barrel). Thanks very much, Steve (Moose) and Dan (Tallboy)!

Clifton Hill Brewpub *Brewer's Choice Award *winner will have the chance to have their recipe brewed on a commercial scale at the brewhouse in Clifton Hill, and see their beer on tap at the brewpub. Thanks go out to Ben and Michael.

The Craft and Co  *Brewer's Choice Award* winner will also have the opportunity to have their beer rebrewed on a commercial system, at the brewhouse in Collingwood. This remarkable offer will involve seeing the beer on tap at the brewpub, but also packaged in cans for wider distribution! Thanks Heath and James for making this possible.

If you harbour the ambition to make the journey from home brewer to pro brewer, then the value of these prizes is obvious. The Merri Mashers are proud of our record as an incubator of start-up brewing concerns, including Old Wives Ales, CoConspirators, Cobalt Brewing and Tuesday Night Brewing. With the support of our magnificent sponsors, the next professional brewer could be you!


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## fdsaasdf (6/2/18)

moonhead said:


> Not specifically on the website, about PET bottles at least, just the size requirements. Like all home brew comps (at least in Melbourne), we're fine with PET or glass bottles.


Cool, thanks. I'm quite new to comps but some QLD comps have been firm with 'glass only'.


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## moonhead (7/2/18)

fdsaasdf said:


> some QLD comps have been firm with 'glass only'.



Ergh, that just sounds annoying! (I'm a firm believer in counter pressure filled PET bottles being superior to glass though)


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## fdsaasdf (7/2/18)

Yeah, it's annoying. I keg and haven't got a decent counter-pressure setup but have certainly come around to PET being preferable for bottle conditioning and general tolerance to being shipped/handled with minimal risk of breakage.


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## moonhead (7/2/18)

fdsaasdf said:


> I keg and haven't got a decent counter-pressure setup



It's super easy, get a carbonation cap from Keg King (and check on their video on how to counter pressure fill). Very low oxygen introduced, low CO2 loss, and like you've said, in the PET bottles, much easier to handle.


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## Cerevisius (18/2/18)

The *Merri Mashers IPA Competition 2018* has some great major prizes - for _Champion Beer_, _Champion Brewer_, _Best Novice_ and _Club of Show_ - as well as three fantastic _Brewer's Choice Awards_. 

But wait - there's more!

Every category winner will receive a prize package to the value of $100 or more! 

Trophies will also be awarded to all 2nd and 3rd place-getting entries.

This year's *Category Prize Pool* is brought to you by major sponsor *The Artisan’s Bottega* and by the support from the following contributors:

*• 3 Ravens Brewery
• Carwyn Cellars
• Clever Brewing Ltd
• CoConspirators Brewing Co
• Exit Brewing
• Home Make It
• KAIJU! Beer
• Moon Dog Brewing
• Old Wives Ales
• The Terminus Hotel Fitzroy North*​
Our sponsors are an invaluable part of our competition, not merely for enabling us to offer impressive prizes, but also as demonstration of the great community involved with home brewing and craft beer.

Get your entries in! https://comps.merrimashers.org


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## moonhead (23/2/18)

We've had a great response so far from both sponsors and members interested in helping us out, but we're still in need of judges and stewards on the day, the 25th of March. If you are able to, and want to help us out, it would be most appreciated. We're collecting details in this form here - 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfFc_jUtBk9PNQ_J5-BrtOONZOPrx73oPLTlwR-rEIanmjZHA/viewform

Thanks y'all!


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## Cerevisius (28/2/18)

There are plenty of prizes up for grabs in the Merri Mashers IPA Comp 2018, but this year 2nd and 3rd place getters will not go empty handed.

Place 2nd or 3rd in any category and you will receive one of these engraved bottle openers:




:


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## Take Your Chances (8/3/18)

Is there a limit on the number of entries per category or style?

Haven't been able to find anything on the comp page...

Cheers!


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## Cerevisius (9/3/18)

Take Your Chances said:


> Is there a limit on the number of entries per category or style?
> 
> Haven't been able to find anything on the comp page...
> 
> Cheers!



We are generally sticking to the established VicBrew/AABC rulebook, but we are not limiting entries. My philosophy is that carpet bombing doesn't guarantee a win or place - you are better off concentrating your efforts. Entering the same beer twice (or more) in the same style is poor form, but I'll leave that as a matter of individual conscience.


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## Cerevisius (26/3/18)

Full competition results are attached.

Individual results are available at: https://comps.merrimashers.org/

Scoresheets will be uploaded and available soon.


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## Cerevisius (26/3/18)

Thanks again to all stewards and judges who volunteered their time yesterday. I hope you enjoyed the day, and will be willing to come back again next year. Please provide any feedback you think will help us improve the competition and your experience.


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## Cerevisius (26/3/18)

Thanks, too, to all the sponsors who have made the Merri Mashers IPA Competition 2018 possible. Thanks especially to The Terminus Hotel Fitzroy North for hosting the event.

You can expect your Certificates of Appreciation shortly.


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## Take Your Chances (26/3/18)

Cerevisius said:


> Full competition results are attached.
> 
> Individual results are available at: https://comps.merrimashers.org/
> 
> Scoresheets will be uploaded and available soon.



Thanks to all involved in organising and judging. Great job on getting the results up so quickly! 

Just wondering if there is any info on who won the major prizes, especially the 3 brewers choice awards?


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## Cerevisius (26/3/18)

If you won a Category First Place in the Merri Mashers IPA Comp 2018, you have won a prize, and every place-getter receives a trophy (glass or commemorative bottle-opener). I will be contacting each winner individually to arrange the collection of their prize.

Best Novice will be announced when we have had the database cross-checked. That lucky winner scores a $250 voucher to be spent in-store at Grain & Grape, Yarraville.


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## Cerevisius (27/3/18)

Take Your Chances said:


> Thanks to all involved in organising and judging. Great job on getting the results up so quickly!
> 
> Just wondering if there is any info on who won the major prizes, especially the 3 brewers choice awards?



Glad you asked, Take Your Chances:

The _Champion Beer_ was brewed by Todd Wade (No Club), whose American IPA scored 124 points.

Todd wins an Oxebar Fermentasaurus (plus pressure kit) from our sponsor Keg King.
_
Champion Brewer _prize goes to Rohan Lowe (Merri Mashers) who scores a carton of Hawkers Beer and a personalised tour of the Reservoir brewery.

Tallboy and Moose _Brewer's Choice Award _goes to Dylan Toune (No Club). Dylan gets a day in the Preston brewhouse and the opportunity to talk beer and brewing with Dan, and sample some beers (finished and from the barrel).

Dylan also received the Home Make It _Consolation Prize for Best Beer That Won't Ever Be Brewed Commercially_, receiving a $100 in-store voucher.

The Clifton Hill Brewpub _Brewer's Choice Award_ goes to Julian Robinson (Merri Mashers), who will get to rebrew his winning beer at the brewhouse in Clifton Hill.

The Craft and Co _Brewer's Choice Award _goes to Hamish Brown (No Club). Hamish will get to rebrew his winning beer, which will be exclusively available on draught at The Craft and Co, Collingwood, as well as being canned for wider distribution.

_Club of Show_ was the Merri Mashers. BeerCo have sponsored this major prize, with malt, hops, yeast, glassware and merch to be distributed amongst the members.

_Best Novice_ will be advised when we have had the VicBrew database cross-checked.

Congratulations to all winners, and heartfelt thanks to all the sponsors.


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## Cerevisius (5/4/18)

After confirmation via VicBrew, we can announce that the winner of the Grain and Grape *Best Novice Award *is *Todd Wade *(No Club). Todd took 1st Place in the American IPA category, with the beer that was crowned Champion Beer. Not a bad effort on his first competitive outing! Congratulations, Todd!


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