Each year, recreational fermentationists from across (and beyond) the country get together at Homebrew Con to celebrate and revel in the homebrewing spirit. As part of that three-day convention put on by the American Homebrewers Association, winners of the country’s most prestigious recreational brewing competition are announced.
This year’s event was held in Providence, Rhode Island, where six San Diegans collected medals:
Gold Medals
- Pale British Ale—Patrick Leon with Nick Corona, San Diego (QUAFF)
- Spiced Beer—Tom Lawrence with Zach Dixon, San Diego *
Bronze Medals
- Strong European Lager—Derek Springer, San Marcos (Society of Barley Engineers)
- Amber & Brown American Ale—Derek Springer, San Marcos (Society of Barley Engineers)
- Specialty Cider & Perry—Chris Banker, Oceanside (QUAFF)
* – Spiced Beer was the second-most-entered category with 430 entries.
Additionally, local club Quality Ale and Fermentation Fraternity (QUAFF) won the Radegast Club of the Year Award, which acknowledges “one club’s efforts to better their local community through the power of homebrewing and beer.”
In a statement by club vice president Doug Brown, which you can read in full here, he mentions the #Cheers4Sarah campaign, working with Mexican homebrewers to up their game, engaging with multiple events in the region, building a community of high-ranking BJCP judges, and more.
QUAFF missed out on the coveted Homebrew Club of the Year award for the first time in four years (the recipient of that honor was the Arizona Society of Homebrewers).
This year’s National Homebrew Competition featured 9,189 entries from 3,492 homebrewers in all 50 states, plus Washington, D.C. and 17 countries.