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Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing

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Definition of terms
MCAB The General Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing concept
MCAB XII The annual MCAB championship competition (roman numeral increments yearly)
CY Calendar year: Jan - Dec, each year of qualifying events.  The annual finals event is early the following year
Qualifying Event (QE) Any of several independent homebrew competitions that have been chosen as qualifying events for entry into the MCAB championship event.  These events may change over the years, although several have been mainstays for many years.
Qualifying brewer Any brewer who has taken first place in a qualifying event in one of the BJCP style categories allowed by MCAB
MCAB styles 2008 BJCP style categories 1 through 19, and category 22

   

MCAB Overview

MCAB is more an event than an organization – the Master’s Championship of Amateur Brewing is an annual national championship competition for homebrewers.  It is open to all amateur homebrewers of legal age.  Brewers qualify for the MCAB championship event by competing in independent homebrewing competitions that have been selected as Qualifying Events for MCAB.  These Qualifying Events are located all over North America, and the qualifying cycle runs for the entire calendar year.  Placing first in any MCAB-recognized category (see Definition of Terms) qualifies the entrant for admission into the MCAB championship competition, which is typically scheduled to take place early the following calendar year. 

 

Because each qualifier is a Qualifying Event first place winner, the competition is very strong.  In the words of the announcement for the very first MCAB, it is a “champions’ championship.”  Awards are given to the first three places in each category, as well as Grand Master and Grand Champion awards for best of show and most medal points, respectively.  Simply qualifying for entry into the MCAB championship event is a mark of an excellent brewer because only first place finishers qualify, and the individual Qualifying Events are generally the biggest and best homebrew competitions.

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MCAB Qualification Rules and Details
You qualify for the MCAB championship competition in a given year by placing first - and only first - in any of the eligible BJCP style categories in a Qualifying Event.  Note that not all BJCP categories are eligible for MCAB.  Qualifying events are held throughout the year, and the championship for that year occurs in the following year, typically in February of March.

You can only qualify for the MCAB once per category per year; that is to say, if you place first in one Qualifying Event with a Dry Stout and first in another with an Imperial Stout, you can only send one Stout entry to the MCAB championship, in any Stout subcategory you want.  Additional first place finishes in other Qualifying Events in the same style category would reduce your competition in the MCAB championship, but you would still only be allowed one entry in that category.  However, you do not have to enter the same subcategory in the MCAB event – you could qualify for IPA with an English IPA, but you could enter an Imperial IPA in the MCAB.  Brewers may qualify in as many categories as they can win in the year’s Qualifying Events.  A running list of Qualifying Brewers will be kept on this page: Qualifying Brewers  The list will be updated as the information is supplied by each Qualifying Event.  Only the brewers/teams listed may enter the finals event, and they may enter only those categories for which they have specifically qualified.  No category substitutions are allowed; only the subcategory is flexible.

Aside from the American Homebrewers Association's National Homebrew Competition, almost all competitions combine or split categories.  This is done for a variety of reasons - usually it is to ensure that no category has an insufficient number of entries, and in some cases it is to ensure that no category has so many entries as to overwhelm the judges.  In the past, MCAB had some complex rules for split and combined categories, but we have decided to simplify the process by taking only the first place winners in all (MCAB-relevant) categories.  Thus, if American Pale Ale is split out into its own category and American Amber and Brown are left in another category, there would be two qualifiers in American Ale – one Pale and one Amber or Brown.  There can also be instances in which there is no qualifier in a category: if European Amber and Dark Lagers are combined and an Oktoberfest wins that category, then it would qualify for MCAB and there would be no qualifier from the Dark Lager category.

Team entries will be treated as a single entry, but all team members must be listed.

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MCAB Mission and Goals
The purpose of the Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing:

> to provide an annual national championship competition for amateur brewers

> to provide multiple year-round, well-distributed qualifying events
 
The goals of the Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing:

> to seek the highest level of judging available

> to encourage and promote excellent service to entrants in all events

> to provide premium medals and awards to winners of the annual MCAB event
 

MCAB Operating Committee
MCAB Organizer/Director: John Peed jpeed@elotouch.com
Webmaster: John Peed
Creative Director: Dennis Collins
   
Advisors: Curt Stock
  David Houseman
  Scott Birdwell

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What does MCAB look for in a Qualifying Event?
 
The goal of MCAB is to provide excellent service to entrants in all events, including the annual MCAB finals event.  Excellent service, as defined by entrants themselves in a survey is:

  • advance notice of the competition

  • clear, accurate, well-organized  web site information

  • ease of entry (on line entry is strongly preferred)

  • good judging

  • good score sheet feedback

  • notice of where the results will be posted

  • fast posting of results

  • prompt mailing of score sheets and medals

  • 2 bottles are preferred to 3 bottles, if that's possible

  • a broad entry window is appreciated

  •  minimum time between the entry deadline and the competition date is appreciated
Rating judge quality and quality of feedback is extremely subjective and, therefore, impractical, although we will look into ways to evaluate the certification level of QE judge pools. 

Many of the other items can be evaluated objectively, although some will still be subjective.  MCAB participants will be encouraged to rate all participating competitions, including the annual MCAB event; the rating form is available for download on the Feedback page (or click here).  The rating form is based on feedback from a survey of MCAB qualifying brewers, which we will try to do annually. 

In addition, the MCAB Director rates each Qualifying Event, as well as the annual MCAB event, using the rating sheet with the following scoring system, with a maximum score of 100 points.  The desirable score is 85 or higher.  Bear in mind that these are our goals, things that we think are measurable and that, if done well, will give our entrants a sense that they are competing in an atmosphere of excellence and responsiveness.  We value continuity in our Qualifying Events and will continue with those that meet our expectations.  At the same time, we will seek out competitions that we think are among the very best, while keeping the total number of Qualifying Events at a manageable level.  In addition to the performance criteria below, some other factors that are considered are number of entrants (300 to 700 is desirable), geographic location, time of year that the competition is held and potential judge pool.

Advance notice (20 points total):

  • The competition date, entry due date and contact info should be posted on the sponsoring club's/competition's web site at least two months in advance of the entry due date.  WHY?

    • 4 points max

    • -1 point for each week late

  • The complete competition info should be posted on the sponsoring club's/competition's web site at least one month in advance of the entry due date.  WHY?

  • The competition should be registered for AHA sanctioning at least two months in advance of the competition date.  WHY?

    • 8 points max

    • -1 point for each week late

    • -2 points for non-working contact or web site link

Ease of entry (15 points):

  • We would like all Qualifying Events to have on-line entry.  WHY?

    • On-line entry, near perfect: 15 points

    • Paper-based, near perfect:  7 points

    • -2 to -10 points for cumbersome or mistake-prone

Organization (15 points total)

  • Lag time (5 points) - It is assumed that all MCAB QE's will be well organized, but an overall measure of organization is the amount of time between the entry due date and the competition date.  The lag time should be no more than 14 days.  WHY?

    • 5 points if < 15 days between due date and competition date

    • -1 for each day beyond 14 days

  • Web site organization (10 points) - The competition's web site should be clear, concise and sensibly organized.  SPECIFICS

    • 10 points max

    • - 5 for lack of a specific statement of when and where results will be posted

Posting results (20 points)

  • Results should be posted on the QE web site as soon as possible after the competition is complete.  WHAT'S THE RUSH?

    • posted day of: 20 points

    • -1 per day for next 3 days

    • -2 per day for each additional day

    • -5 if location is a mystery

    • MCAB annual finals event posts the evening of the competition

    • Within 2 days seems reasonable

Returning score sheets and medals (20 points)

  • Score sheets and medals should be mailed promptly.  WHAT'S THE RUSH? 

    • Mailed by the Wednesday following the competition: 20 points

      • within 1 week: 18 points

        • by Monday a week after the competition is considered 1 week

      • within 10 days: 15 points

      • within 2 weeks: 10 points

    • Yes, we know it's a lot of work - we will be striving to do it too, so we know!  But competitions that have 500 to 1000 entrants get it done within ten days, which means they grade out well.  Some do it within three days, which means they get full points.  The target for the MCAB finals event is to get it done within the 18 point time frame.

      • As noted in the "what's the rush" link above, mailing of score sheets and medals to medalists can be deferred if the medals require customized manufacture before they can be mailed.  But the non-medalists should not have to wait to get their score sheets.

Sending MCAB Qualifying Brewer (QB) results to the MCAB director (10 points)

WHAT'S THE RUSH? 

WHY CAN'T YOU JUST GET IT OFF OUR WEB SITE?

  • 10 points if e-mailed within the week following the competition in a usable format

    • preferably a Microsoft  Excel spreadsheet

    • this is very easy if someone in your organization is designated to do it

  • All first-place finishers in BJCP categories 1 - 19 and category 22, regardless of splits

    • in other words, if you split the Stout category into three subcategories, then all three first place finishers qualify for the MCAB finals in the Stout category

  • The following information is desired/required:

    • Category & subcategory

    • Brewer last name

    • Brewer first name

    • Beer name

    • Club name

    • e-mail address

    • Mailing address

    • City                            WHY ALL THIS?

    • State

    • Zip/postal code

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As the end of the calendar year approaches, it's necessary to post the coming year's Qualifying Events on the MCAB web site so MCAB competitors can prepare for those that occur early in the year.  The following will apply to the next year's Qualifying Events table:

  • Absent any known changes, your Qualifying Event will be listed as occurring in the same month as the previous event

  • No entry due date will be listed until you provide it to the MCAB webmaster - sooner is always better; 2 months advance notice is appreciated, as brewers need time to brew their entries

    • Those competitions that occur early in the year must provide next year's competition specifics before the current year's end

  • Please  provide an interim web page if at all possible.  A good interim page gives approximate date and due date of the next competition, a link to the previous year's information (or the standard competition information), contact information and links to past winner lists.  Entrants also like to know the number of entrants you get.