
The head organizer this year was Ohad Boxerman, who home-brews (with partners Maor Pallivatikal, Yaron Berger, Michal Shelly and Yoni Goren) under the name of The Excuse Brewery (HaTirutz).
"We had 104 entries which we divided into nine categories for judging," Ohad told me. "Seven were for beers, plus ciders and meads. We devised the categories after the entries were submitted, based on similarities of style, flavor and aroma profiles, and strength."
There were all kinds of prizes, of course, given to the winners, as well as certificates. But Ohad said that the best prize was the feedback that every entrant received for his beer. These were the comments made by the judges on the scoring sheets.
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Some of the beer judges at their work for the Mevshalim home-brew competition. All of the judges were qualified by the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). |
"With our limited manpower, we translated as many of the English comments as we could into Hebrew, and gave them to the entrants. Each form also had the contact information for the judge, and the entrants were encouraged to direct any questions or comments directly to the judge. They appreciated this as the best way to improve the quality of their brewing."
In addition to Ohad, the members of the organizing committee included Zvi Sharon, Certified BJCP Judge, in charge of Information Technology, Yonatan Goren, Certified BJCP Judge, marketing and design, and Omer Basha, Master BJCP Judge, Head Judge.
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Ohad Boxerman (right), head organizer of this year's Mevshalim home-brew competition, presents the Best Of Show award to Nitai Leffler of the Sabresa Brewery. (Photo: Ariel Behar Kent) |
Best Of Show (chosen from all of the first-place winners)
Sabresa Brewery -- Nitai Leffler, Yogev Nathan and Ofer Pekerman
Champion Brewer (Amassing the most points for all of his ranked entries. All five of his entries won awards!)
Alex Fux (The Three-Legged Crow Brewery)
IPAs
First: Sabresa Brewery -- Tiger Phoney, Specialty IPA
Second: Tom Arad -- Fearsome Cadence, American IPA
Third: Danny Perets -- Hugeness IPA, American IPA
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Rafi Kent (left), winner of the first prize for Specialty Beers at the Mevshalim home-brew competition, accepts his award from Ohad Boxerman. (Photo: Ariel Behar Kent) |
First: Zvi Sharon -- Sour Lady, Mixed Fermentation
Second: Tomer Avramovitch -- Gose
Dark Beers
First: Alex Fux -- Cowboy's Breakfast, Oatmeal Stout
Lagers and Wheat Beers
First: Alex Fux -- Better Beer Fest, Cream Ale
Second: Assaf Friedman, Kupe, New Zealand Pilsner
Third: Boaz Lanner -- Weizen, Weissbier
Strong Ales
First: Murat Nepesov -- Theo's First Steps, Imperial Stout
Second: Alex Fux -- Cowboy's Breakfast, Smoked Beer
Third: Gilad Ne-Eman -- They Have Walked the Fields, Old Ale
Specialty Beers
First: Rafi Kent -- Kataleen Bebe, Spice, Herb or Vegetable Beer
Second: Alex Fux -- Wanna Turn Up the Heat, Fruit Beer
Third: Alex Fux -- Red Heads Revenge, Fruit Beer
Honorable Mention: Boaz Lanner -- Gruit, Spice, Herb or Vegetable Beer
Light Ales
No winners were chosen
Meads
First: Gilad Ne-Eman -- Mead Me, Dry Mead
Second: Talor Turjeman -- Melomel
Ciders
First: Akiva Amiel -- Ginger Ale, Herb or Spice Cider
Second: Ohad Boxerman (The Excuse Brewery) -- Just Cider, New World Cider
Congratulations to all the winners -- and to all of the entrants! As I've written before, home-brewing is the wide base of the pyramid that supports the Israel craft beer revival.
Congratulations to all the winners -- and to all of the entrants! As I've written before, home-brewing is the wide base of the pyramid that supports the Israel craft beer revival.