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Account Registration

You can create your account today through Friday 5 September, 2025 17:00, +12.

Judges and stewards may register now through Saturday 20 September, 2025 09:00, +12.

Entry Registration

You will be able to add your entries to the system beginning Friday 8 August, 2025 09:00, +12 through Friday 5 September, 2025 17:00, +12.

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Entry Fees

$15.00 (NZD) per entry.

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BJCP 2021 Styles Accepted

If a style's name is hyperlinked, it has specific entry requirements. Select or tap on the name to view the subcategory's requirements.

1A American Light Lager1B American Lager1C Cream Ale
1D American Wheat Beer2A International Pale Lager2B International Amber Lager
2C International Dark Lager3A Czech Pale Lager3B Czech Premium Pale Lager
3C Czech Amber Lager3D Czech Dark Lager4A Munich Helles
4B Festbier4C Helles Bock5A German Leichtbier
5B Kölsch5C German Helles Exportbier5D German Pils
6A Märzen6B Rauchbier6C Dunkels Bock
7A Vienna Lager7B Altbier8A Munich Dunkel
8B Schwarzbier9A Doppelbock 9B Eisbock
9C Baltic Porter10A Weissbier10B Dunkels Weissbier
10C Weizenbock 11A Ordinary Bitter11B Best Bitter
11C Strong Bitter12A British Golden Ale12B Australian Sparkling Ale
12C English IPA13A Dark Mild13B British Brown Ale
13C English Porter14A Scottish Light14B Scottish Heavy
14C Scottish Export15A Irish Red Ale15B Irish Stout
15C Irish Extra Stout16A Sweet Stout16B Oatmeal Stout
16C Tropical Stout16D Foreign Extra Stout17A British Strong Ale
17B Old Ale17C Wee Heavy17D English Barley Wine
18A Blonde Ale18B American Pale Ale19A American Amber Ale
19B California Common19C American Brown Ale20A American Porter
20B American Stout20C Imperial Stout21A American IPA
21B Specialty IPA 21B1 Belgian IPA 21B2 Black IPA
21B3 Brown IPA 21B4 Red IPA 21B5 Rye IPA
21B6 White IPA 21B7 Brut IPA 21C Hazy IPA
22A Double IPA22B American Strong Ale22C American Barleywine
22D Wheatwine23A Berliner Weisse23B Flanders Red Ale
23C Oud Bruin23D Lambic23E Gueuze
23F Fruit Lambic 23G Gose24A Witbier
24B Belgian Pale Ale24C Bière de Garde 25A Belgian Blond Ale
25B Saison 25C Belgian Golden Strong Ale26A Belgian Single
26B Belgian Dubbel26C Belgian Tripel26D Belgian Dark Strong Ale
27A1 Kellerbier 28A Brett Beer 28B Mixed Fermentation Sour Beer
28C Wild Specialty Beer 28D Straight Sour Beer29A Fruit Beer
29B Fruit and Spice Beer 29C Specialty Fruit Beer 30A Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer
30B Autumn Seasonal Beer 30C Winter Seasonal Beer 30D Specialty Spice Beer
31A Alternative Grain Beer 31B Alternative Sugar Beer 32A Classic Style Smoked Beer
32B Specialty Smoked Beer 33A Wood-Aged Beer 33B Specialty Wood-Aged Beer
34A Commercial Specialty Beer 34B Mixed-Style Beer 34C Experimental Beer
LSX5 New Zealand Pilsner  

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Entry Limit

There is a limit of 300 entries for this competition.

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Per Entrant Limits

Each entrant is limited to 5 entries.

Each entrant is limited to 1 entry per subcategory.

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Pay Entry Fees

After creating your account and adding your entries to the system, you must pay your entry fee(s). Accepted payment methods are:

  • Credit/debit card and e-check, via PayPal

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Entry Acceptance Rules

Number of Bottles Required Per Entry: 2

Entries are open to all New Zealand residents aged 18 or over. Minimum volume for entry; 2 bottles, each with a minimum volume of 500ml. Two bottles are required in case of breakage, single bottle infections, or Best Of Show taste-offs.

Due to issues with leaks in previous years FLIPTOP BOTTLES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. Additionally, we strongly recommend using PET bottles. Some dropoff points will only accept PET bottles this year, please check carefully.

Entry Fee: $15 per entry. Entry fees must be paid before the start of the competition to be eligible for judging. Each bottle must be labelled with the label generated by the registration software.

Each entry will receive 2 or 3 BJCP-style judge scoresheets. Beers will be judged according to the BJCP 2021 guidelines. The competition covers styles 1-34 and the local style X5 - NZ Pilsner.

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Drop-Off Locations

Entry bottles accepted at our drop-off locations Friday 8 August, 2025 09:00, +12Friday 5 September, 2025 17:00, +12.

Please pay attention to the notes provided for each drop-off location. There could be earlier deadlines for some drop-off locations listed, particular hours when entries are accepted, certain individuals to leave your entries with, etc. All entrants are responsible for reading the information provided by the organizers for each drop-off location.

Aylward Accountants
63 Bourke Street, Palmerston North 4410
06 3532259
*Please check opening hours before dropoff.

Hauraki Home Brew
11D Piermark Drive, Rosedale, Albany 0632
09 442 5070
*Entries must be in PET bottles. Please check opening hours before dropoff.

League Of Brewers
14 Vivian Place, Annesbrook, Nelson 7011
02041331383
*Please bag your entries for ease of handling.

Punky Brewster
22B Tyne Street, Addington, Christchurch
03 662 9943
*Please check opening hours before dropoff.

Regional Wines & Spirits
15 Ellice Street, Mt Victoria, Wellington 6011
04 385 6952
*Ask for Tom or Stefan, please bag your entries for ease of handling.

The Brewstore
3/51 Kenepuru Drive, Porirua 5022
042370483
*9am til 4pm Tuesday to Friday and 9am til 2pm Saturday.

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Shipping Info

Entry bottles accepted at our shipping location Friday 8 August, 2025 09:00, +12Friday 5 September, 2025 16:30, +12.

Ship entries to:

Brewing Education Trust - AHBC
Aylward Accountants Ltd, 63 Bourke Street, Palmerston North, 4410

Packing and Shipping

Tape the labels onto the bottles using clear packing tape, covering the label completely to prevent it being ripped. Let your bottles come up to room temperature to help the tape stick.

Pack your bottles tightly in a sturdy box, line the box with a plastic bag to prevent leaks. Roll each bottle in bubble wrap, fold the ends over and tape them down. Put good padding between the bottles, and fill in the gaps at the top and bottom with crumpled paper or extra bubble wrap. Tape the box along each edge, and that should do it.

Every reasonable effort will be made to contact entrants whose bottles have broken to make arrangements for sending replacement bottles.

Allow plenty of time for shipping, entries must be received by the Shipping Closed date to be eligible.

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Judging Sessions

Session 1 - Squashgym - Morning
Saturday 20 September, 2025 09:00, +12

Session 2 - Squashgym - Afternoon
Saturday 20 September, 2025 13:00, +12

Session 3 - Squashgym - Morning
Sunday 21 September, 2025 09:00, +12

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Best of Show

The Best Of Show winner will be decided by a taste-off between the top-ranked beers from each category.  The best available judges will taste all the beers without re-scoring them and pick a single winner.

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Awards

The awards ceremony will take place once judging is completed.

Entries will be sorted into tables/judging categories by style family according to appendix A(3) of the 2021 BJCP guidelines.  Places will be awarded to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in each category. A minimum score of 30 points will be required for an entry to be eligible for a place.

The 1st place entry in each category will advance to the Best of Show (BOS) round with a single, overall Best of Show beer selected.

Additional prizes may be awarded to those winners present at the awards ceremony at the discretion of the competition organizers.

The Champion Brewer award will be presented to the brewer with the most Champion Brewer points. 3 points will be awarded for a 1st place in a judging category, 2 points for 2nd place, and 1 point for 3rd place.

The Best Novice Brewer award will be calculated after the end of the competition. A novice as defined by this competition is a person who has not entered a previous AHBC as a main or co-brewer.

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Circuit Qualification

The Aotearoa Home Brewing Classic is a qualifying event for the Autumn Invitational. This is an Invitation-Only competition showcasing the best homebrewers from around the country. Winning a 1st, 2nd or 3rd place rosette in the AHBC allows you to enter the Autumn Invitational.

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