1. Technical Installation - Second to None! A great distinction of these competitions is their unrivalled technical integrity, due to the combined expertise of the experienced team of industry dispense technicians who ensure all beers are presented in the best possible condition. Although the Competitions re-located to Munich in 2005, the established UK technical team, under the leadership of Barry Jones, went with them, was in charge of the installation and presentation of all entries and delivered what was, unquestionably, a superb range of beers, all of which were at dispensed at their optimum quality.

2. All Entries are Given the Chance to Show at their Best Extensive planning, good teamwork and, above all, technical skills go towards installing the Competitions so that every beer entered has a chance to show at its best. The proper handling of the beers prior to arrival at point of judging ensures that the beer’s quality is maintained when it is dispensed - just as brewers would hope when their beers reach point of sale. Other safeguards such as prompt and careful stewarding, labels for sediment beers and attention to venting of ‘working’ casks, all aid presentation.

3. Suitable Temperatures are Provided for Storing Good Beer As soon as entries are received - whether they are in bottle, can, keg or cask – they are carefully stored and transported in a suitable temperature-controlled environment right to the judging hall. For example, UK cask beers will be held at 11° C.

4. Choice of Temperatures for Judging your Beers Entrants are given the choice of judging 3 temperatures at which their beers will be presented to the judges, except for entries in the Cask Conditioned Ale category which will be judged at 12-13°C. Thus all smallpack beers will be in fridges, and all keg beers cooled by remotes in a full python cellar system. Cask beers will be jacket-cooled in the judging hall.

5. The Most Complex Python in the World Will Be There Another fact which singles out this event is that, in 2005, more than 100 keg lagers, ales and dark beers were presented and judged under a variety of dispense gas mixtures. The python tubing system to supply the keg entries is the most complex installed anywhere in the world. Visitors entering the judging hall in Munich were stunned by the ‘cat’s cradle’ of tubes which feed the beers from a phalanx of kegs to the ranks of identical taps. No other beer competition we know of can offer such a spectacle.

6. Anonymity for All The beers themselves remain entirely anonymous throughout the judging process. Containers bear no brand marks or features to distinguish them to the judges. • judging numbers are issued but a double de-code system ensures these   cannot be traced back to entry documentation • all crowns and embossings on bottles are obliterated on any entries which   arrive in that condition • casks are shrouded • the entries under gas are arranged to render the lines untraceable from keg   to tap by anyone who does not know the board-mount plan The importance of all these procedures is to ensure that every entry has an equal chance of winning - no matter what the size of the entering brewery, where in the world it is located, or how confined is the brand’s area of distribution.

7. Control and Analysis Control at all stages of installation and judging is a key factor in maintaining fairness and equality for all entrants. Control includes factors such as dividing the judging up into blocks of entries of similar size, so that judges can manage the process of bringing the best beers forward. Thus, no entry should be disadvantaged by being judged at the end of too large a block. Similarly, as the entries are thinned in each category down to those in line for an Award, and those on the ‘reserve’ list, all the contenders are tested for ABV% to ensure they fall within the prescribed range for the particular class. Any falling outside are omitted. Gathering statistical data on the ABV% of all entries enables the organisers to consider future changes which benefit fairness. Previous data prompted the addition of a second smallpack class in the Dark Beers category in 2005.

8. The Best Equipment Employed. A large variety of other equipment is necessary to ensure each category of beers has the right dispense conditions when presented to the judges. From the larger and more obvious cooling equipment, to the python, keg fittings, connectors and taps, to the dispense gases, high-performance glass-washers, the glasses themselves, and through to a whole host of smaller items, every one essential for the smooth and efficient running of the world’s top professional beer competitions. The Organising Committee of THE BREWING INDUSTRY INTERNATIONAL AWARDS express their sincere gratitude to all technical sponsors who provide equipment to make this event so technically trustworthy

9. Creating the Right Conditions for Judging Drinktec 2005 represented a very new departure for this event. While the Competitions had always had professional guests and media observers in recent years, never before had they been opened up to the scrutiny of so many in the beverage industry. Potentially, every one of the 80,000 visitors to Drinktec had the opportunity to visit the judging in progress, to see how professional an event it is, where every beer is given every chance to show its worth.

10. Who Knows Who Might Taste Your Beer? In 2010, with the competition running alongside the International Brewing Convention, who knows who might sample your beer.    It is the intent of the organisers to make the competition more consumer oriented - without risking the inherent integrity of the judging process.  After all, what is the point of brewing the best beer in the world if only the trade know about it?   Prior to announcing the medal winners, we want all visitors to have the chance to sample a few entries during the Convention and we shall have a changing range of samples on offer throughout Convention. While no entry will have its identity revealed then and there, its judging number will be made known. Delegates, exhibitors, media and visitors can note these numbers on cards provided, fill in their e-mail address, and we will inform them of the beers they have tasted soon after the judging is over. Media visitors will be similarly informed of beers they have tasted, if they so wish.

Brewers – if you brewed quality in, these procedures will bring it out … at the world’s top professional beer competitions … an Award truly worth winning