Details for Entering
- Pricing
- Entering Your Beers into the GABF Judging
- Helpful Suggestions for Completing the Entry Form
- Walk Through of the Registration Forms
Pricing
Festival Beer
A beer you send in kegs, cans, or bottles to be served at your booth for public tasting. All festival beers will be automatically judged. However, judging samples (including Pro-Am entries) must be sent separately from festival beer. We will not pull judging samples from your festival beer.
| Beer | Pricing |
| 1 or 2 beers on the festival floor | $315 for BA Members ($480 non-members) |
| Up to 5 beers on the festival floor | $675 for BA Members ($890 non-members) |
Judge Only Beer
A beer you enter into the judged competition that will not be served at your booth for public tasting at the festival.
| Beer | Pricing |
| Price per beer | $175 for BA Members ($390 non-members) |
Please note that the pricing reflects on-line registration prices. Using the paper forms adds $20 to the festival beers pricing format, but not judge-only entries.
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Entering Your Beers into the GABF Judging
- You can register online at www.GABFregistration.com. Breweries entering online will receive a $20 discount.
- Please note that category numbers, descriptions and styles have changed from last year. Be sure to review the category list carefully to identify the appropriate categories for your beer brands.
- When completing the Festival Registration Form, remember the importance of entering your beer into the appropriate category and subcategory and be sure to indicate the appropriate category number and subcategory letter. It is of equal importance that you enter your brewery into the correct Size category based on the Brewery of the Year criteria. See Competition Information.
- Be sure to print and sign the License Agreement Form and send in with your forms. You can also agree to it on the online form.
- Fax or mail in Registration Form, License Agreement and payment information or complete all info online.
- Check payments for online registration must be postmarked by the registration deadline to ensure your place in the festival.
- Supplemental information is required for judging when entering beers in certain categories and subcategories. Failure to provide this information will place your entry at a significant disadvantage to other entries.
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Helpful Suggestions for Completing the Entry Form:
- If registering online, have your registration forms filled out and ready to go before entering.
- Specify the requested information in the block on the registration form titled "Specify Ingredients and/or Classic Style." Use extra paper if needed, and enter "See Attachment" in the box.
- When entering beers with ingredients like fruit, vegetables, spices or chocolate (or others), avoid words like extract, puree, fresh, all natural, artificial, concentrate, frozen or canned—just indicate which ingredient is used. For example, both "Fresh Raspberries" and "Raspberry Extract" would be indicated simply as "Raspberry." These words will be removed from your description, and will not be provided to the judge panel.
- Do not specify any regional information that could compromise the anonymity of your entry. For example, "Arizona Wildflower Honey" should be listed as "Wildflower Honey."
- Please limit the specialty information you submit to 30 character spaces. The information you provide will be reviewed by the competition manager and abstracted down to the essential information needed by the judges to evaluate the beer during judging according to competition guidelines.
- Breweries can enter unlimited number of beers in the GABF judging until the July 10 deadline (the first 5 brands must be entered in the festival public tasting). After this date, some or all categories may be full. Please indicate on your registration form, which beers are exclusively for "Judge Only."
- The following should serve as a checklist for your competition entries. Failure to follow these guidelines will result in disqualification of the beer.
- Each beer may be entered only one time. Beers may not be entered in multiple categories.
- The first 5 beers entered must be registered to appear in the Festival tasting. The first eight beers listed on your entry form will be counted toward Brewery of the Year awards; if you plan to enter more than eight beers in the GABF, please be sure to prioritize them appropriately.
- All entries to be judged must be shipped separately from your Festival beer.
- Entries submitted for judging must be bottled or canned. If your product is only available in draft, you must hand bottle your entries for the Judging. If your product is bottle conditioned, and you wish it poured carefully, please add a label to the beer with that request.
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Walk Through of the Registration Forms
The hardcopy and online versions of the GABF registration form are almost identical and contain the same section numbers. This section will walk you through the registration process:
1. Contact Information
- Fill in the Brewery information here and list the contact who will deal with your participation in the GABF. Be sure the address listed is your mailing address.
- If another brewery owns more than 25% of your brewery, list that company in this section as well.
- Note: Be sure to also put the physical address of your brewery for shipping Microstar kegs at the bottom of the section if you have listed a PO Box address above.
2. Membership Information
Please indicate if you are a current member of the Brewers Association and include member number.
3. Brewery Information
- Put in your brewmaster or brewery team name in the first section.
- Indicate if you are a brewpub, packaging brewery, both or if you are contract brewed. If you are contract brewed, list the company that brews your brands.
- Indicate your production size. This is important in determining brewery of the year awards.
- Indicate if this is your first GABF.
4. GABF Festival Beer Drop Off Point
Indicate the location at which you will be dropping off your festival floor beer. This is not your judging beer!
5. Festival Beers
- Entering 1 or 2 beers on the festival floor is $315 for BA members ($480 for non-members). Entering up to 5 beers (the maximum) is $675 for BA members ($890 for non-members). You do not add up the 2 amounts if entering 5 beers. It’s just $675. (Pricing reflects online registration fees.)
- Enter up to 5 beers you will putting on the GABF festival floor. These will be judged & on the festival floor. Include the beer name, category name and number and any subcategory names and numbers (if applicable).
- If your beers are in one the of the category numbers requiring additional information, enter the specialty information for this beer. Specialty information includes classic style of the beer and any unique ingredients. Use an additional piece of paper if you need more room.
- For your festival beers, indicate for each beer one of the following:
i. You need Microstar kegs sent to you (most common)
ii. You are sending your own keg(s) (breweries must arrange to have these picked up on Sunday. GABF will not ship back kegs)
iii. You are sending this beer in bottles or cans
iv. You are a current Microstar client and will be sending kegs out of your existing Microstar inventory (Required if you’re a current Microstar client). - Check if you want the GABF to tap this beer for you if it is being sent in kegs.
- Check the next box if you are sending your own tapping system.
6. Judge Only Beers
- After you have entered your 5 beers on the festival floor, you may enter additional beers to be judged in the competition. These beers are not on the floor but are eligible to win medals. Each additional beer is $175 for BA members ($390 for non-members).
- Breweries may only enter Judge Only after the GABF festival floor has been filled.
- Enter the beer name, category name and number, and any subcategory names and numbers (if applicable).
- If your beers are in one the of the category numbers requiring additional information, enter the specialty information for this beer. Specialty information includes classic style of the beer and any unique ingredients. Use an additional piece of paper if you need more room.
- If you want to enter more than 5 additional beers and are using the paper copy, make copies of this sheet and attach to your registration.
7. Pro-Am Competition Entry
- Put your Pro-Am entry into this field. Include the category name and number and any subcategory letter of the beer you are entering. Also be sure to put the homebrewer’s name.
- The Pro-Am is only open to BA members. Please see the Pro-Am section of this book for all of the rules.
8. GABF Representative Information
- If you are entering 1 or 2 beers on the festival floor, you receive 2 complimentary passes for the GABF. If you are entering 3 to 5 on the festival floor, you receive 4 complimentary passes. Enter names for these passes into these fields.
- If you do not know the representatives' names yet, put TBD and add the names later. It is important that if you think you are coming to the GABF you at least reserve rep badges now as we will sell out of these!
- You can purchase up to 6 additional badges for brewery representatives while supply lasts. We have a limited number available—first come, first serve.
- These are for your reps working your booth, not to be purchased for guests. Proof of affiliation with your brewery is required.
9. Volunteer Donations
- If you would like to donate any additional cases of beer to the volunteers who spend many hours working on the GABF, please mark how many cases you would like to send. Please send donated beers to your drop off location.
10. Designated Driver Beverages
- If your brewery makes craft sodas or root beers, we’d love to have these available to our many DDs who attend the GABF. We have a special area set up for these in the festival hall where all of the beverages are served. You can send kegs or bottled product.
11. Payment Information
- a. Put in your payment information in this section.
- If you are sending in a check, it must be postmarked by the last day of registration June 26, to ensure you place in the festival.
12. Non-Exclusive License Agreement
- Fill out the section on the last page and sign and return with your registration form.
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