Winners
2009 National Homebrew Competition Winners Announced!
National Homebrew Competition judges have chosen this year's winners! A total of 1,310 brewers entered the competition in the First Round. Following the First Round, 455 brewers qualified to enter 840 brews in the Final Round. Of these, 422 brewers sent 760 entries to the Final Round. There were 84 category awards possible in the Final Round, and 71 brewers won those awards.
| NHC 2008 | NHC 2009 | |
| Number of Entries | 5,644 | 5,166 |
| Advancing Entries Judged in the Final Round | 759 | 760 |
| Number of Brewer Entered | 1,308 | 1,310 |
Gordon Strong of Beavercreek, OH was a repeat winner of the Ninkasi Award, which is given to the brewer who scores the most points for awards in the Final Round. The Saint Paul Homebrewers Club of Saint Paul, MN won the Homebrew Club of the Year Award for the third straight year.
The Gambrinus Club Award was won by a club with approximately 140 members. Eight club members entered 44 brews in the First Round of the National Homebrew Competition. Four brewers advanced 12 brews to the Final Round, and two of the entries earned Gold medals for 12 points (the points awarded are 6, 4, 2 for Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals, respectively).
This year three Gold medals were awarded to the same brewer as last year:
- Richard McLain of Highlands Ranch, CO took the Gold medal in category 10 for the second year in a row. Category 10, American Ale, is one of the most entered categories in the competition with 364 entries this year and 430 entries last year.
- Thomas Eibner of St. Paul, MN took the Gold medal in category 25 for the second year in a row using the same cherry mead in both competitions. Thomas won the mead Best of Show, Meadmaker of the Year award this year.
- Jeff Carlson of Grand Rapids, MI took the Gold medal in category 27 for the second year in a row with a Common Cider. Jeff is the Cidermaker of the Year (Best of Show cider) for the second year in a row.
There were 155 judges, of which 150 are BJCP-ranked judges, and 30-40 stewards who volunteered their time and effort for the competition.
We would like to thank the Brewing Network for the live audio stream of the awards broadcast, and thank all of the Final Round judges and participants!
| Award | Award Sponsor | Winner |
| Ninkasi Award | Boston Beer Company | Gordon Strong Beavercreek, OH Saint Paul Homebrewers Club |
| Homebrew Club of the Year Award | Coopers Brew Products | Saint Paul Homebrewers Club Saint Paul, MN |
| Gambrinus Club Award | Tampa Bay BEERS Tampa Bay, FL |
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| Homebrewer of the Year Award | Muntons P.L.C. | Dick Blankenship Salem, OR Capitol Brewers |
| Meadmaker of the Year Award | Redstone Meadery | Thomas Eibner Saint Paul, MN Saint Paul Homebrewers Club |
| Cidermaker of the Year Award | Woodchuck Draft Cider | Jeff Carlson Grand Rapids, MI Prime Time Brewers |
2009 National Homebrew Competition Awards Ceremony
The American Homebrewers Association (AHA), a division of the Brewers Association, presented the National Homebrew Competition Final-Round winners with awards at the Awards Ceremony and Grand Banquet Dinner Saturday, June 20, 2009 at the close of the AHA National Homebrewers Conference.
Winners that are not present at the Awards Ceremony will be notified by mail.
See Awards for a description of the Competition Awards presented.
2009 NHC Photos © Ed Bronson