Thank you for your interest in the West Coast Best Coast 2026 organized by Beer Boars.

You only need to register your information once and can return to this site to enter more brews or edit the brews you've entered. You can even pay your entry fees online if you wish.

Entry Registration is Open

84 entries have been added to the system as of 23:11, BST, Wednesday 13 May, 2026. There is a limit of 90 entries for this competition.

82 paid entries are in the system as of 23:11, BST, Wednesday 13 May, 2026. There is a limit of 90 paid entries for this competition.

To add your entries into the system, please proceed through the registration process or log in if you already have an account.

Judge and Steward Registration is Open

If you have not registered and are willing to be a volunteer, please register.

If you have registered, log in and then choose Edit Account from the My Account menu indicated by the icon on the top menu.

Rules

Due to high demand payment should be made for your entry within 7 days of entering. Any entries not paid after 7 days may be removed from the system. To avoid disapointment we'd recomend paying for your entry when you register it to be on the safe side. 

Editing entries will be locked on 31 May - from 1 June you will not be able to edit or change entry details.

West Coast Best Coast 2026 is a BJCP Sanctioned competition. 

This competition is open to any amateur homebrewer age 18 or older. NB This competition is only for amateur brewers, if you own or run a commercial brewery then please do not enter as you will be disqualified. If you are a brewer at a commercial brewery owned by someone else then you are free to enter any beer you have personally brewed at home, however, may be excluded from winning some prizes at the discretion of the company offering the prize, e.g. a brew day at a commercial brewery. 

Shipping / Drop Off Info:

Entries must arrive between 2 and 12 June.
Entries received before / after this may not be judged.

Shipping / Drop Off Location

Fraser Withers
c/o Noble Green Wines,
153-155 High Street,
Hampton Hill,
TW12 1NL

Monday: Closed
Tuesday - Saturday: 10am - 7pm
Sunday: 11am - 5pm

Where possible please add opening times to the delivery notes so couriers know when the shop is open.

With the shipping location being closed on Mondays please try to ship to arrive Tuesday to Friday with your courier.

If delivery is attempted on a Monday then you will need to arrange redelivery, we won't able to to collect from a courier depot on your behalf.

For the recipient email please addhello@beerboars.co.uk if the courier system asks for one.

All entries must be handcrafted products, containing ingredients available to the general public, and made using private equipment by hobbyist brewers (i.e., no use of commercial facilities or Brew on Premises operations, supplies, etc.).

The competition organisers are not responsible for mis-categorised entries, mailed entries that are not received by the entry deadline, or entries that arrived damaged.

The competition organisers reserve the right to combine styles for judging and to restructure awards as needed depending upon the quantity and quality of entries.

Qualified judging of all entries is the primary goal of our event. Judges will evaluate and score each entry. The average of the scores will rank each entry in its category. Each flight will have at least one BJCP judge.

Entries will be assessed against the BJCP Style Guidelines 2021 available via this link PDF.

However, the emphasis is on West Coast styles and the judges will be scoring in favour of beers that have a signature “west coast” expression  - so please take note when selecting your hops. 

What defines a West Coast style compared with other IPA or APA styles? There isn’t an exact  BJCP definition but will be looking for clear, bitter and hoppy. Flavour and aroma wise we typically expect one or more of pine, resin, citrus and tropical fruit. 

Both 'modern' and 'classic' West Coast IPAs sound be entered as 21A - American IPA - judges will be given instructions to take both interpretations into acccount when judging.

Brewers are not limited to one entry in each category but may only enter each subcategory once.

For styles that are not currently included in the BJCP guidelines eg West Coast Pilsner, India Pale Lager, Session IPA etc we will be using the American Brewers Assoc guidelines which can be found here:

https://cdn.brewersassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/20143326/2025_BA_Beer_Style_Guidelines.pdf 

The Best of Show judging will be determined by a Best of Show panel based on a second judging of the top winners.

Bottles will not be returned to entrants.

Entry fees are not refundable. 

Entry Acceptance Rules

Number of Bottles Required Per Entry: 2

Each entry will consist of 2 x 330ml to 500ml bottles or cans that are completely clear of all identifying information, including labels and embossing. Printed caps are allowed but must be blacked out completely.

If bottling your entries, brown glass or PET bottles are preferred. Green and clear glass will not be be accepted. 

Bottles or cans will not be returned to contest entrants.

All requisite paperwork (labels) must be submitted with each entry and can be printed directly from this website. Please attach the barcode directly to the bottle and cover it with clear tape. We find the wider clear parcel tape is good for labels.

Please consider condensation when labelling your bottles, for example waiting until the bottle is at ambient temperature before taping on the label.

Be meticulous about noting any special ingredients that must be specified. Failure to note such ingredients may impact the judges' scoring of your entry.

Failure to comply with the entry requirements above will see the entry disqualified. We will attempt to still judge the beer and provide feedback but it will be disqualified from winning any awards or progressing to Best of Show rounds. 

Competition Officials

You can send an email to any of the following individuals via Contact.

• Stew Horne — Head Judge
• Simon Thompson — Head Steward
• Rick Woolliss — Communications

Sponsors

Beer Boars is proud to have the following sponsors for the West Coast Best Coast 2026.

Jawbone Brewing

Strawberry Hill

Tucked away in a sleepy, riverside spot in south-west London, Jawbone Brewing is the new craft brewery making a big noise. It’s here you’ll find founder Ben Hughes experimenting with bold, innovative ideas, providing the spark that brings people together. Born in a boatyard, enjoyed everywhere.

The Malt Miller

Swindon

Established in 2010 by Rob Neale, driven by his discovery of the joy of homebrewing beer. Rob’s passion for brewing the best beer at home and sourcing the finest ingredients directly from suppliers led to the founding of the business. This passion for freshness and high-quality ingredients, along with a commitment to serving the creative and enthusiastic homebrewing community, are the cornerstones of the business today.