The Highland Cup
2009 Homebrew Competition
General Information

 On-Line Registration| Highland Brewing Website | BJCP Style Guidelines 2008


The Highland Cup
2009 Homebrew Competition
March 28, 2009

Location:
    The Highland Brewing Co.
    12 Old Charlotte Hwy Ste. H
    Asheville, NC 28803

Host Organization:  The Highland Brewing Co. - Asheville, North Carolina
Welcome to The Highland Cup 2009:

Homebrewers and Highland Brewing Company share a long history of supporting one another in the quest for great beer. We're excited about celebrating that association with the second annual Highland Cup! Founded in 1994, Highland recently moved from our original downtown Asheville, North Carolina location to a much larger and more efficient facility five miles east. There we produce five year-round brews and this year we will have four seasonal brews as well. The "Best Of Show" winner will be brewed (under the homebrewer's strict supervision) at our facility and distributed and sold commercially by Highland. The winning brewer will also earn a trip to the 28th annual Great American Beer Festival in Denver with Highland Brewing in October.  This includes air travel (from Asheville with the brewery representatives) plus room and board.  The winning beer will be entered into the Pro/Am competition at GABF, and served on the floor at the festival. A certificate for free entry into the AHA's National Homebrew Competition will be awarded to the Best Of Show winner. The Highland Cup is sanctioned by the BJCP.  There are some restrictions that apply to the entered beer, and the applicant must be a member of the American Homebrewer's Association at the start of the Highland Cup judging in order to be eligible for advancement to the BOS round.  We look forward to having you!!

Registration is limited to residents of NC, SC, GA, FL and TN. The GABF requires the winning brew to be sold commercially. Highland feels that the winning homebrewer should be able to sip their award winning ale at their favorite watering hole in their hometown. To assure that this can happen, we feel that it needs to be restricted to Highland's distribution area.   

The Highland Cup has few restrictions for the beer, but enough to pay attention to. They are listed as follows:

And now for some legalese!  Highland Brewing Company, will take the Best Of Show first place winning recipe and reproduce, as faithful as possible to the original recipe, on a professional scale with the help of the homebrewer.  By entering the contest the winning homebrewer agrees to disclose their complete recipe to The Highland Brewing Company and grant The Highland Brewing Company all commercial and intellectual property rights to the winning beer. Entering the Contest, constitutes permission to The Highland Brewing Company and its agencies to use your name, likeness, picture, signature, voice, audio and video recordings and biographical information in any manner or media whatsoever (whether now known or hereafter devised) anywhere in the world in perpetuity for the purpose of advertising and trade, without further compensation, unless prohibited by law. 

Quality judging is the primary goal of The Highland Cup. We make every effort to ensure that each entrant receives the best possible feedback for their entries. We need volunteers to step forward to judge and steward to make this happen.  March is a great time to visit Asheville!  Highland can secure corporate rates at the 4 Points Sheraton if need be.  Breakfast, snacks, and lunch will be provided by Highland Brewing.  Judges and stewards should use the same convenient on-line form as the entrants.  No paper work is necessary.  When your on-line form is received, you'll be contacted by the appropriate coordinator.  If you prefer, judges and stewards may contact Sandi Lynch sales@highlandbrewing.com; 828-299-3370  x 304.   All entries and payment in full must be received by the date specified below.  This deadline applies to every entrant, without exceptions.  Late deliveries will not be returned.  This procedure will allow us to conclude the competition in one day and better assure quality control.

Who can enter?
Last year's Highland Cup BOS winner cannot enter this year but is encouraged to be a member of the BOS panel.  The Highland Cup is open to all amateur homebrewers 21 years of age or older from Highland's distribution area (see second paragraph above).  Please, no professional brewers or Highland employees and their immediate family members.  Enter early and enter often. (Your entries will be assigned a competition-internal registration number based on random selection independent of time of entry.)  Beers must be brewed at home from start to finish.  Beer brewed in a commercial brewery or a brew-on-premises facility (BOP) is not allowed.  Fresh malt extract from a brewery is not acceptable.  Dry or liquid extract intended for homebrewing is allowed.   
 

Brewer Grouping:

If multiple brewers produced any of the brews to be entered, a separate registration must be made for each unique set of brewers.  The registration must include the point of contact data for the brewers in the Brewer's et al section.  A separate field is provided to identify multiple brewers with a team name.  The Brewer's Team Name field is limited to 35 characters maximum (about 6 words).  For multiple brewers, flight awards will be made to the named team, not the point of contact or the members of the team.  Most importantly for this competition, the Beer BOS prize is only awarded to only one brewer, either the single brewer or the team's point of contact as declared in the registration prior to the competition.   Accordingly, completing the Brewer's Team Name field is mandatory if there was more than one person who participated in producing the brew.  For the single brewer case, the point of contact and brewer are the same and the Brewer's Team Name field will be ignored.  This field will also be ignored by stewards and judges registering without entries. 

How much does it cost?
$6 for each entry.
There is no limit on the number of entries.

Special Note: The registration fees for this competition will be used exclusively to cover the cost of producing the Highland Cup and associated GABF costs.  Any remaining funds will be donated to charity by Highland Brewing.  Net proceeds from the initial sale of the beer made by Highland Brewing using the winner's recipe will likewise be donated to charity after all expenses are met.  Quality ribbons will be awarded to all 1st, 2nd and 3rd place flight winners.  The Best Of Show winner receives the trip to The GABF in Denver as explained elsewhere.  All 1st place flight winners, who have current AHA membership and have qualifying recipes, will be carried forward to the BOS round.  Highland also expects to allow additional beers into the BOS judging based exclusively on high scoring statistics. The high score cutoff (perhaps 40) will be set during the competition by Highland management to ensure a hearty BOS competition.  Highland reserves the right to combine style categories for judging and awards.  Each entry must be delivered with its completed recipe form.  The link for the recipe form is on the On-Line Registration page.  The AHA member # must be entered in the Comments section.  Entries without both the recipe and the AHA number cannot be selected as the BOS winner.


Important dates?

1/24/09 Opening day for on-line registration.  Also the first day for receiving entries at Highland Brewing with fee check and recipes.
3/21/09 Closing day for on-line registration (11:00 pm).  Also the last day for receiving entries at Highland Brewing with fee check and recipes.
3/28/09 The Highland Cup competition.  The competition concludes with an awards ceremony and hand out of scoresheets.
3/30/09 Results posted on the Internet (check the registration page).
4/6/09 Remaining scoresheets and ribbons mailed to entrants.
4/6/09 The competition organizer report filed with BJCP.


What kind of bottles are eligible?

Plain 12 ounce brown longneck bottles with plain silver or gold caps are requested. The bottles must have no raised markings or labels except the rubber-band-attached competition label.  If you can only provide distinctive bottles, please contact the organizer for approval.  We will be unable to return bottles or shipping materials.

How do I enter?

1. Prepare 2 bottles of each of your beers.
2. Complete the on-line entry form and print and cut-out the 2 bottle labels per entry.  Also complete the recipe form.
3. Attach a bottle label to each bottle with a rubber band. Do not use glue or tape.  It is advisable to enclose each label in a plastic (sandwich) bag to avoid smearing in the event of broken bottles during transit.
4. Write a check payable to Highland Brewing for the total of your entries. $6 for each entry. Check with FedEx or other private carrier if you prefer to ship.  Checks shipped with brews should be enclosed in a plastic bag to eliminate smearing.  Mailed checks are acceptable.  Please ensure that the check identifies the entrant/point of contact.  Also see MikeDixon for a JudgeNet posting on shipping advice.
5. Send or deliver entries, checks and recipes as noted above.
6. We will ensure that entries are well cared for once they reach the destination.  They will be transferred to a beer cooler promptly upon delivery.

Shipping address and optional check and recipe mailing address: 
      

       The Highland Cup
       c/o The Highland Brewing Co.
       12 Old Charlotte Hwy Ste. H
       Asheville, NC 28803

Entry and check drop-off addresses:
 

      The Highland Brewing Co.
      12 Old Charlotte Hwy Ste. H
      Asheville, NC 28803

We will accept beer deliveries on M- F  9-5pm, or by appointment only on Sat March 14 between 10-1 pm and Sat March 21 between 10-1 pm with some holiday closures. Beer delivery is preferred to be by appointment only due to staffing challenges. 


Phone 828-299-3370  (Organizer Steve Schwartz x 305 and Registrar Sandi Lynch x 304 , x 308 Kevin Wheeler, x 307 John Lyda)