# Top Twister Pro-am Competition



## /// (4/10/07)

Hi Folks

Pls see the below press release for the Top Twister Pro-Am held in conjunction with the Bitter and Twisted Competition.

Also some info here http://nswbrewersguild.asn.au/index.php?id=51

Happy Brewing

Scotty 

View attachment Top_Twister_ProAm.pdf


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## MHB (10/10/07)

Bitter and Twisted is on in a couple of weeks.

Just a reminder

Anyone who wants to get their beer entered can drop/send it to my SHOP; I will arrange to get it to the competition.

I have tickets to both Saturday and Sunday available at the shop*. You can pick up tickets right until the last minute.

Hope any beer lovers that can get along do - everything we can do to encourage more exposure to good beer is wort doing.

MHB

*This is just for your convenience - I dont make anything from the tickets so this isnt a retail post.


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## Tony (10/10/07)

you have my bottle of IIPA Mark.

It should be made the mascot drink..... it certanly is Bitter and Twisted 

cheers


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## etbandit (14/10/07)

MHB said:


> Bitter and Twisted is on in a couple of weeks.
> 
> Just a reminder
> 
> Anyone who wants to get their beer entered can drop/send it to my SHOP; I will arrange to get it to the competition.



MHB,

What's the address of your shop for shipment of our beer entries?

Cheers.


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## MHB (14/10/07)

Marks Home Brew
18 Maitland Rd
Islington NSW 2296

The "SHOP" in my post (underlined) is a link.

Be good to see some more entries.

MHB


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## Hargie (14/10/07)

....it'd be good to see a drop off point in Canberra....


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## Weizguy (14/10/07)

Hargie said:


> ....it'd be good to see a drop off point in Canberra....


Well, young 'argie,
ask the Canberra brewers, or a local hbs to help out.

Someone will help u, coz U guys have a good brew fraternity in Kanberra, from what I infer.
Apart from that, I'll be helping at B+T, as a guest speaker and beer judge.

Also, I need to know if Tony is taking about an I2Pa he left at the shop, or the one I left 4 him?
Been sittin' there a week, an' all...

Seth (just messin' with ya Tony) :lol:


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## Hargie (15/10/07)

Les the Weizguy said:


> Well, young 'argie,
> ask the Canberra brewers, or a local hbs to help out.
> 
> Someone will help u, coz U guys have a good brew fraternity in Kanberra, from what I infer.





...Thanks Les , i am a member of the Canberra Brewers and we happen to have the ACT Championships this coming Sat & Sun, at which i'll be stewarding , dunno if that will leave any of us much time to get our sh*t together....



Cheers, Cougar


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## /// (15/10/07)

Am sure Kurtz and Ophelia from the Kanberra Brewers would also assist...

Scotty


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## rough60 (16/10/07)

Hi guys,
I cant get near any of the drop off points, so does anyone know the address I can send my entries to?
Cheers.


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## Hargie (16/10/07)

/// said:


> Am sure Kurtz and Ophelia from the Kanberra Brewers would also assist...
> 
> Scotty




....i'll be spending all weekend with Kurtz at the comp so i'll ask him....


....also any news on the 5 day course you guys were gonna run again at Potters ?...



....cheers, Cougar....


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## /// (16/10/07)

Hargie said:


> ....i'll be spending all weekend with Kurtz at the comp so i'll ask him....
> ....also any news on the 5 day course you guys were gonna run again at Potters ?...
> ....cheers, Cougar....



Wont steal the thread so quickly.... We were playing November in Sydney but have to push to the New Year. Will let the AHB know when etc.

Scotty


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## Hargie (16/10/07)

/// said:


> Wont steal the thread so quickly.... We were playing November in Sydney but have to push to the New Year. Will let the AHB know when etc.
> 
> Scotty





...thanks mate, sorry for the OT folks....



Cougar


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## Keith the Beer Guy (16/10/07)

rough60 said:


> Hi guys,
> I cant get near any of the drop off points, so does anyone know the address I can send my entries to?
> Cheers.



Hi Rough60,

there are a few places you can send them to including:

Marks Home Brew
18 Maitland Rd
Islington
NSW 2296

Please mark your package "Top Twister Comp" or something similar.

Good luck!

Keith


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## goatherder (16/10/07)

What day is the comp being held - Saturday or Sunday?


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## rough60 (16/10/07)

Thanks mate.
Sending tomorrow.
Cheers.


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## Trent (16/10/07)

Goatherder
The comp is being held on the sunday at Potters, though as far as the BOS round (being held at the Bitter and Twisted festival), I am not sure if that is being done the saturday, or the sunday. Maybe the requirements should be "one 330mL bottle, and one 19L keg per entry", that way the small bottles can be judged, and whatever beers make it through to the BOS round, we can have HEAPS of!
All the best
Trent
PS I am not sending in a keg of any of my beers, so dont think I am gonna practice what I preach - just that I would LOVE to be able to taste the BOS winner. I guess I will, in a sense, after it has been brewed by the commercial brewery. Cannot wait. T.


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## Keith the Beer Guy (16/10/07)

The first round of judging will take place on Sunday the 28th October, at Potters Brewery, a week before the Bitter and Twisted Festival. 

The _Best of Show _round is being held on Sunday the 4th November, at the Bitter and Twisted Beer Festival in Morpeth, hopefully in front of a large crowd of interested on-lookers.

Entries should be received by Wednesday the 24th October - that's about a week away!

Good Luck,

Keith


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## bigfridge (16/10/07)

Trent said:


> Maybe the requirements should be "one 330mL bottle, and one 19L keg per entry", that way the small bottles can be judged, and whatever beers make it through to the BOS round, we can have HEAPS of!



Trent,

I have heard that there could be a few kegs being entered by WA breweries - so we will have to help empty those before they are sent back. Need to help reduce their freight costs ;-)


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## Keith the Beer Guy (21/10/07)

Hi,

So you''ve become a competition junkie! (It's certainly the right time of the year.)
Or perhaps you've never entered a competition before, but have a beer or two kicking around that you think deserves more recognition.
Or you simply want some quality feedback to help you brew better beer.

_Well get your skates on, package that beer, and head to your local post office (or courier) bright and ealy on monday morning because:_
*http://nswbrewersguild.asn.au/fileadmin/user_upload/_temp_/TopTwister.pdf* 
*Entries for the Top Twister Pro-am Competition close Wednesday the 24 October!*​ 

Good Luck to all entrants,

Keith


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## Duff (21/10/07)

Took a drive up to Newcastle yesterday morning to drop mine and Doc's entires off.

Got to meet MHB and check out the shop, lots of good gear in there. Mark was keen to have a chat and talk about brewing, tasting different grains, etc. Easy to see why he's a great resource for the brewers up that way.

Good luck to all entrants.

Cheers.


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## mikem108 (23/10/07)

Last day for drop offs


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## Jye (23/10/07)

I got mine in the mail this morning express post, you should have it tomorrow.


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## Stuster (23/10/07)

mikem108 said:


> Last day for drop offs



Isn't it tomorrow? :huh:


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## etbandit (24/10/07)

Keith the Beer Guy said:


> _Well get your skates on, package that beer, and head to your local post office (or courier) bright and ealy on monday morning because:_
> *http://nswbrewersguild.asn.au/fileadmin/user_upload/_temp_/TopTwister.pdf*
> *Entries for the Top Twister Pro-am Competition close Wednesday the 24 October!*​
> 
> Good Luck to all entrants,




Kieth,

Will the top twister results be posted on this forum?

Cheers.


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## Trent (24/10/07)

ET
The results will probably be posted on this site, unbder the heading of top twister comp results, or something like that. Judging is on this w/e, but I dont think the results will be known (not even for those of us judging) until the Bitter and twisted festival the following weekend. The BOS round is being held Sunday arvo at the festival, and I assume all winners will be announced then, and probably posted up here on the 6th or 7th of November.
Best of luck to all entrants (god knows I need some!)
Trent


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## bigfridge (24/10/07)

Jye said:


> I got mine in the mail this morning express post, you should have it tomorrow.



As long as it gets to us by the weekend it will be ok. We have all the existing entries under control so a few late comers won't cause us any probelms.

Dave


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## Tony (24/10/07)

Mine is on your desk next to your computer mark.

dont forget it  or drink it.

Drinking your beer now les. Not bad......  I wouldnt bothe entering it aginst mine though :lol: 

only joking. Bloody nice mate. please PM me the recipe. Will put a piccy in the WITG thread but that cant replicate the hop burp i just did :super: awsome.

what would homer say.............mmmmmmmmmmmmmm hop burp.
cheers


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## bigfridge (25/10/07)

I must say a big thank you to all the entrants in the Top Twister competition.

I spent a pleasant afternoon picking up and sorting all the entries and there was not one problem with poor labelling or incorrect forms.

There are some really nice looking beers and I am really looking forward to seeing them at the comp or brewed at one of the NSW breweries.

Good luck to all.

Dave


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## etbandit (26/10/07)

bigfridge said:


> I must say a big thank you to all the entrants in the Top Twister competition.
> 
> I spent a pleasant afternoon picking up and sorting all the entries and there was not one problem with poor labelling or incorrect forms.
> 
> ...



Dave,

Was there a good turn out of entries?


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## mikem108 (26/10/07)

What happens if the winner is a kit or fresh wort brewer?
Rock up at Potters with a pallet of cans :lol: or fresh wort kits  ....yep I'm ready to brew !


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## bigfridge (26/10/07)

etbandit said:


> Dave,
> 
> Was there a good turn out of entries?



Due to our stealth marketing campaign it has exceeded all our expectations. :lol: 

Looks like we will have around 80 entries which will make it a nice manageable comp for the amount of helpers that we have.

For this first year we were aiming for a well run comp, not a big one.

Dave


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## bigfridge (26/10/07)

mikem108 said:


> What happens if the winner is a kit or fresh wort brewer?
> Rock up at Potters with a pallet of cans :lol: or fresh wort kits  ....yep I'm ready to brew !



Yes of course, if that is their wish.

The actual wording is:

"The brewer of the best Non-Commercial beer will also to invited to brew a *beer of their choice* at Potters Brewery in the Hunter Valley."

<_< 

Dave


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## mikem108 (26/10/07)

I should have read it more carefully....just having a laugh really.


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## bigfridge (26/10/07)

mikem108 said:


> I should have read it more carefully....just having a laugh really.



And it did give me a good laugh .....


Much needed at this time.

Dave


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## mikem108 (29/10/07)

Any idea who qualified for the next round?


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## bigfridge (29/10/07)

mikem108 said:


> Any idea who qualified for the next round?



Yes, but it is a secret as results aren't released until the actual B&T festival.

No even the judges know who's beers they tasted.

Dave


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## bigfridge (4/11/07)

Results were announced today at the conclusion of the Best of Show round.

Entries were received from NSW, ACT, QLD and VIC with the Beer of Show round being judged by 3 BJCP Certified judges (one each from NSW, ACT and QLD).

The BOS was awarded to a Scottish Export 80/- brewed by Chan & Eileen Lay of RICHMOND,	VIC.

Runner up was an English Barleywine by Keith Grice of NEWCASTLE, NSW.

I have attached a copy of the results.

Thanks go to all the entrants, judges, stewards and officials that made this competition possible.

Looking forward to next year,

David 

View attachment Results_2007.pdf


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## Doc (4/11/07)

A great lineup of brewers there.
Some notable AHB names too.
Next year I'll be making every effort to make it up the state for the weekend.

Appreciation to the organisers of the comp and great to see a wide reaching patronage.

Beers,
Doc


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## Stuster (4/11/07)

Look like there were some good beers there. Well done to the Lays (AHBers??), Keith :super: Michael and Barry (of course), Les (reclaiming his weizguy crown) and all the other winners (except for you Philip. :angry: :lol: )


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## Keith the Beer Guy (4/11/07)

My congratulations to all participants, David, all the assistants including judges, stewards and other miscellaneous helpers.

I believe the brewer(s) of the Grand Champion Beer is (are) in fact an AHB forum member(s) and I'm sure he or she (they) will soon speak up to bask in the glory.

Thanks again and Happy Brewing,

Keith



*Edited to make a token attempt to introduce consistency amongst singular and plural elements.


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## goatherder (4/11/07)

Congrats everyone. Big thanks to David for all his hard work and to everyone else who helped out. It was great to be a part of the judging and even better to score a place!


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## Jye (4/11/07)

Well done everyone :beer: 

I take it the scores are out of 100?


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## bigfridge (4/11/07)

Jye said:


> I take it the scores are out of 100?



Hi Jye,

Yes we used 2 judges per panel.

David


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## Barry (5/11/07)

Good Day
A big thanks to David and all involved. From what I have read the the festival and comp were both great. :beer:


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## Ross (5/11/07)

Congrats to the place getters & well done David & the organisers for putting on such an exciting competition.
Work commitments kept me away this year, but next year i hope to give it my best shot & get down for the weekend.  

Cheers Ross


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## Tseay (5/11/07)

Many thanks and congratulations to the organisers and judges. Running a comp is a huge workoad and rarely appreciated by the on-lookers.

Well done guys and gals


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## crozdog (5/11/07)

Thanks David & everyone who helped organise, judge and steward this event. Sorry i couldn't be there. Congrats to the other winners & entrants for having a go.

Sorry Stu 8 points is 8 points :lol:


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## mikem108 (5/11/07)

Nice work Phil, do you have a spare bottle to bring over next week?

Be nice to try all the beers that palced ...hint


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## Weizguy (5/11/07)

Goes to show that fresh beer is best. The #1 wheat beer was only 4 days old and still fermenting when it went into the bottle.

I had a great time judging in the comp and will happily do so again next year. I also hope to see more judges next time, to cope with the expected higher number of entries. In addition, trust that people appreciate the email address I provided on my feedback sheets, if they want more info (if I can recall anything, though).

Cheerz
Les

Oh, and big ups re the comp, and thanks for the wheat beer title affirmation. I'm awaiting the photos of the days.


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## crozdog (5/11/07)

mikem108 said:


> Nice work Phil, do you have a spare bottle to bring over next week?View attachment 15800
> Be nice to try all the beers that palced ...hint View attachment 15799
> View attachment 15801



Yeah, no worries will bring some


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## etbandit (5/11/07)

bigfridge said:


> Results were announced today at the conclusion of the Best of Show round.
> 
> Entries were received from NSW, ACT, QLD and VIC with the Beer of Show round being judged by 3 BJCP Certified judges (one each from NSW, ACT and QLD).
> 
> ...




AhhHHH!  BOS? Thats so awesome! I had two wheat beer bottles that broke on transit to Potters :huh: and another that exploded during storage  . Glad they were'nt the Scottish.

Congrats to other place getters and many thanks to Dave and Keith, other members of the oganising committee, the NSW brewers guild, Judges, Stewards, Potter Brewery and sponsors, for such a cool comp! 


Looking forward to brewing at Potters Brewery and entering the US AHA comp.

Cheers
Chan.


PS: How do we find out how our other beers placed given that there are no names published for placings below 1st, 2nd and 3rd?


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## etbandit (5/11/07)

Dave,

Where can we view the results for the Commercial beers that entered the Top Twister Pro-Am Comp?


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## Trent (5/11/07)

Congrats to all the winners and placegetters, it was certainly a high standard of comp. Big congrats to etbandit (Chan?) for the BOS winning beer. It was an exceptional beer, I was lucky enough to try it both at the first round, and the BoS round. Very well made, and if you can make the exact same beer at potters, I will probably move in there until it is all finished!
Just wanna say a MASSIVE thanks to David for organising such a great competition, and I know that all the judges were of a very high calibre, so I think that the best beers won. Funnily enough, in a tip of the hat to the quality of judging, the BoS and runner up were the highest, and second highest scoring beers in round one - so that means the judges got it right in round one anyway. Also, I should offer a very big thanks to Potters Brewery for allowing us to run the first round at their place, and for providing some thirsty judges with very good beer after the comp was over. They are really supportive of the home brew community there, and also brew some great beers.
I look forward to being a part of the comp again next year, and hopefully we can get Dr K and Berapnapod as guest judges in the BoS round again - those guys are very good judges. My email address is also on the top of any scoresheets I did, like Les, so if ya want any more feedback, dont be afraid to ask (please just keep the hatemail reasonably friendly )
All the best
Trent


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## Trent (5/11/07)

etbandit said:


> PS: How do we find out how our other beers placed given that there are no names published for placings below 1st, 2nd and 3rd?



Chan
When the scoresheets are posted out, they will have the number of your entry on them, and then you can look up the number in the results, so it may be another week or so before you find out for sure. If you had any distinctive beers (like a vanilla porter I put in) you can find it that way though. And dont tell me you had beers in the pro comp too?!?  I'm sure the results of that will be up shortly.
Trent


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## Keith the Beer Guy (5/11/07)

etbandit said:


> AhhHHH!  BOS? Thats so awesome! I had two wheat beer bottles that broke on transit to Potters :huh: and another that exploded during storage  . Glad they were'nt the Scottish.


It is an awesome effort Chan (and Eileen). And I too am glad the Scottish did not explode along the way. I was on the panel that judged the 80 /- and it was a stand-out beer. A fantastic beer.

I look forward to tasting your commercial effort.

Keith


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## bigfridge (6/11/07)

I am afraid that I owe Doc and Les a big apology. I have found an error in the Wheat beer results where the place getters were not correctly sorted.

A certain Roggenbier brewed by Jye Smith in RUNCORN, QLD has vaulted into 2nd place causing some shuffling downwards.

Sorry guys - this is what happens when things are done in a state of exhaustion :angry: 

At least Jye should still be talking to me .....

I have attached the corrected results, including the Commercial placings.

All scoresheets and certificates will be in the post tomorrow.

Dave 

View attachment Results_2007.pdf


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## leeboy (6/11/07)

Thanks to all who helped in the running of the b+t pro am. Can't wait to get up to potters when the scottish pale is brewed and pouring. Thats one style that I have never tried before. Should be tops. Congrats on a well ran event boys. Should be bigger and better next year!!!


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## bigfridge (6/11/07)

leeboy said:


> Congrats on a well ran event boys. Should be bigger and better next year!!!



Leeboy,

You obviously haven't read my correction above  

I must say thanks for all the kind words that I have received. But apart for a few busy days and sleepless nights it is not too hard to run a comp like this.

The main thing is to have enough trained judges and stewards to make sure that the competitors get great feedback. They did all the hard work. Mind you, they must be a bit simple as they actually thanked me for it !

One amazing difference about this comp was how supportive the Bitter & Twisted festival organisers were. This was a festival solely devoted to beer ! Sure there are other one day events run by pubs etc, but this was the first time I have seen a whole weekend, not to mention a town - devoted to beer and brewing. 

I will post some more pictures and newspaper articles when I get over a few computer problems that I am having at the moment.

Thanks again everyone for your kind comments - see you up here next year.


David


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## Jye (6/11/07)

bigfridge said:


> I am afraid that I owe Doc and Les a big apology. I have found an error in the Wheat beer results where the place getters were not correctly sorted.
> 
> A certain Roggenbier brewed by Jye Smith in RUNCORN, QLD has vaulted into 2nd place causing some shuffling downwards.
> 
> ...



Cheers Dave, I was a little disappointed after it did so well at the QABC. 

Felling much better now


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## Stuster (20/11/07)

Just got the scoresheets from this one. Thanks to the judges, who all gave really detailed and informative feedback. :super: :beer:


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## Doc (20/11/07)

bigfridge said:


> I am afraid that I owe Doc and Les a big apology. I have found an error in the Wheat beer results where the place getters were not correctly sorted.
> 
> A certain Roggenbier brewed by Jye Smith in RUNCORN, QLD has vaulted into 2nd place causing some shuffling downwards.



Dang, just saw this now.
Just as well I saw it before the results arrived and I would be thinking WTF!!!.
My Weisen was the same that got third at the NSW comp, so was happy (prematurely) with third from the B&T.
No one hurt, and the keg is now empty 

Doc


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## bigfridge (20/11/07)

Doc said:


> Dang, just saw this now.
> Just as well I saw it before the results arrived and I would be thinking WTF!!!.
> My Weisen was the same that got third at the NSW comp, so was happy (prematurely) with third from the B&T.
> No one hurt, and the keg is now empty
> ...



Thanks for being so understanding Doc  

Coming fourth is still pretty good and probably the best you could expect with Les and Jye competing against you !  

Dave


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## Barry (20/11/07)

Good Day

Thanks to Dave and all concerned. Just received my score sheets, the most detailed sheets that I have ever seen. I am looking forward to examining them in detail. The certificates look great and the "medal" idea is great. I have judge some great beers in the past that have missed a place and they deserved greater recognition.
I hope to make it there next year :beer:


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## goatherder (20/11/07)

Mine arrived today also. Thanks to David and the judges for the great feedback.


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## bigfridge (20/11/07)

goatherder said:


> Mine arrived today also. Thanks to David and the judges for the great feedback.



Guys,

It was truly the Judges that did all the work. I just strode around the room with a bit whip yelling "more writing ..... I don't want to see any space on those sheets or you will have to do it again!"  

But thanks, your kind words are appreciated by all the team.

David


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## Tseay (21/11/07)

Just adding my voice to the above- the standard of judging comment and feedback was the best I've seen. Well done !


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## crozdog (21/11/07)

+1 for the great feedback! :beerbang: Also the certificates are great - my kids think I'm a legend!! LOL


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## Jye (21/11/07)

The mailman has come and gone and still nothing up here


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## Duff (23/11/07)

Been away and read mine this morning. Thanks for the feedback by some well known judges such as Weizguy, Trent and Goatherder. Even better that they enjoyed my beers getting a couple golds for the Bo. Pils and APA.

Very good feedback, thanks to all.

Cheers.


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## Jye (23/11/07)

Got the judges sheets this arvo and great job filling them out :icon_cheers: 

But Im a little disappointed there was no trophy of any kind for the pool room


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## etbandit (24/11/07)

Received the score sheets in the mail too. They were the most descriptive and comprehensive feedback I have received to date! The certificates look so cool. 

Thanks again to all involved with the Bitter & Twisted Pro-Am comp. Looking forward to brewing at Potters! :icon_cheers: 


PS: Keith, I'll contact you shortly re brewing at Potters.

Cheers.


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## etbandit (16/4/08)

Hi folks,

Just thought I'd update you on the brew day with Keith (the beer guy, who is also the head brewer) and Josh (the assistant brewer) at Potters Brewery back on March 10th.  

The brewery consisted of a 6-hectoliter copper mash tun/kettle setup with four fermenters, and two larger tanks in the cool room. We made 6 hectoliters of the Scottish recipe I entered into Bitter & Twisted. Mashing in was the most physical of the stages, as it required constant manual stirring of the mash as we topped up the tun with strike water and grist in stepped intervals to avoid dry dough balls. The plume of coffee and chocolate aromas coming from the mash made it all worth the while. Sach rest was the standard 60min before we lautered and sparged into the kettle. The condenser wasnt working so we had an open boil. As a result, Eileen and I took turns manning the kettle opening with a hose in hand in case of any boil over. The open boil eventually filled the brewery with a dense smoke and it got quite hot and sweaty. Luckily it wasnt a 35C day outside. The wort was then chilled via a glycol/plate heat exchanger and oxygenated in line to the fermenter. The biggest difference I noticed between a micro and home setup, besides the size, was the ease of process from the use of pumps to move wort (cleaners and sanitizers) around, and the consistency this allowed. The yeast was then pitched from above the fermenter, and the beer fermented to 1015 and is now largering. Not sure when itll be on tap yet, but I'm sure Keith will give us the heads up. Looking forward to sampling it! :chug: 

We were really well looked after during our stay, well fed and well hydrated (with beer of course). If youre ever heading that way, I highly recommend you dropping by to sample the top beers and food on offer. On tap at the brewery restaurant if I recall was a Kolsch, Larger, Wit, ginger and my favorite, the Bock. The hefty Hunter Bock went down a treat with the Shepards stout pie.

Finally, I want to send a big thanks to Keith, Josh and Potters Brewery for their hospitality and for making it such a memorable experience, and also to Bitter & Twisted and the NSW brewers guild for putting on a great comp! :super: 

Cheers :icon_cheers: 
Chan.


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## leeboy (16/4/08)

Awesome, can't wait to hear that its on tap so I can try some. Heard great things of the beer. 

Congrats to you both and again a big thanks to potters for the funding of such a event/prize. Really great to see such a event followed up by a brewday/ weekend away for the winners!! And also its great to have a local microbrewery supporting local events. Thats the way things should be..
Lee


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