Gearing up for a last minute influx on entries, the organisers are looking forward to an even bigger competition in 2013. According to Ruth Evans, director of Brewing Technology Services, there are plenty of beers coming pouring in, and lots are from obscure countries as well as the stalwarts.
“We have had twice the number of entrants that we had at the same stage last time and for that competition, we received over 50% of total entries during the December – so we’re expecting a busy month ahead,” she says. “We’re also pleased with the diversity of entries, both in geographical spread of the brewers, and the styles of beer. In 2011, we judged beers from more than 40 countries and are expecting to exceed that this time. Recent entries have arrived from brewers in Russia, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgystan and South Korea.”
Judging for the 2013 competition will be held from 13-15 February in Burton-upon-Trent, with beers to be judged by a panel of 33 practising brewers. A separate panel of specialist cider judges is also being assembled.
The entry fee for The International Brewing Awards has been kept the same as for the 2011 competition at £150 (+VAT at UK rate) per beer or cider. Also retained is the duty suspension, meaning that no entrant will have to pay duty on their submission to the competition.
Entry forms can be downloaded from the website www.brewingawards.org, and submitted right up to the deadline on 31st December.