USBTC names Hop Karma Grand Champion in Brown Ale category
Mar 18, 2010 by USBTC
Terrapin Beer Company is honored to see the Hop Karma Brown IPA (formerly known the India Style Brown Ale) named Grand Champion of the Brown Ale category in the Winter 2009/ 2010 United States Beer Tasting Championship. The USBTC also acknowledged the Wake ‘n Bake Coffee Oatmeal Imperial Stout as “Also Exceptional” in the Imperial Stout category of the regional competition.
This year’s competition is the USBTC’s 16th annual championship. A total of 360 beers from 116 breweries were examined across 14 different beer categories. Within each category, the USBTC determined both a Grand Champion and the best entry from each of six U.S. regions: 1) Northeast, 2) Mid-Atlantic/Southeast, 3) Midwest, 4) Rockies/Southwest, 5) California, and 6) Northwest/Pacific.
The USBTC takes a unique approach in that its competition is held in multiple stages. Sequential field trials are conducted wherein judges evaluate beers and select the best to advance to subsequent rounds. This allows beers to be judged in relatively small flights while ensuring that the best beers are still determined through head-to-head competition. All beers were tasted in blinded fashion and judged on a hedonic scale.
For more information about the United States Beer Tasting Championship and a complete list of winners, visit www.usbtc.com