Romancing The Beer: Past Winners – 2025
Best of Show – Beer
| Place | Brewer | Entry Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Thomas Taylor Shastid | Sweating Bullets | 21A: American IPA | Diablo Order of Zymiracle Enthusiasts (DOZE) |
| 2nd | Tom Fontes | Rose Park HBOY Pale | 18B: American Pale Ale | Long Beach Homebrewers |
| 3rd | Eli Palma | Cuello Azul | 2A: International Pale Lager | QUAFF |
Table 1: Amber Bitter Lager (7 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Doug Walker MHP | Vienna Knights | 7A: Vienna Lager | Inland Empire Brewers |
| 2nd | Todd Slater Co-Brewer: Matt Castellino | War Machine | 3C: Czech Amber Lager | Thousand Oaked Homebrewers |
| 3rd | Steven Severn MHP | Dark Amber | 3C: Czech Amber Lager | Orange County Mash Ups |
Table 2: Amber/Dark Malty Lager (7 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Ben Sookying MHP | Funkle The Dunkel | 8A: Munich Dunkel | Crown of the Valley Brewing Society |
| 2nd | Matt Castellino Co-Brewer: Todd Slater Courtney Castellino | Schwarzbier | 8B: Schwarzbier | Thousand Oaked Homebrewers |
| 3rd | Jason Dunn MHP | The Most Gluggable | 3D: Czech Dark Lager | Inland Empire Brewers |
Table 3: Light Beer (12 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Eli Palma MHP | Cuello Azul | 2A: International Pale Lager | QUAFF |
| 2nd | Steven Severn MHP | An Opportunity To Not Have A Sexist Beer Name | 18A: Blonde Ale | Orange County Mash Ups |
| 3rd | Jamie Crawford MHP | It's Funny When They're Later Made To Celebrate The Shit They Said Was Garbage | 1B: American Lager | Maltose Falcons |
Table 4: Pale Euro and Bitter Beer (15 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Steven Severn MHP | Stange | 5B: Kölsch | Orange County Mash Ups |
| 2nd | Joe St. John MHP | K Pils | 5D: German Pils | Yeastside Brewers |
| 3rd | David Gulotta MHP | Das Siegtreffer (The Winning Goal) | 5D: German Pils | Ace Brewing Society |
| HM | Matthew Young MHP | Isn't That A Daisy | 5D: German Pils | Ace Brewing Society |
Table 5: IPA (16 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Thomas Taylor Shastid MHP | Sweating Bullets | 21A: American IPA | Diablo Order of Zymiracle Enthusiasts (DOZE) |
| 2nd | Curtis Ritter MHP | Un·right·eous | 21A: American IPA | Ace Brewing Society |
| 3rd | Chris Sotelo | Dew Drops | 21B: Specialty IPA | Long Beach Homebrewers |
| HM | Joe St. John MHP | Pale Rider | 21A: American IPA | Yeastside Brewers |
Table 6: Belgian and Sour Beer (13 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Kyle Hufford | Gin Creek | 23F: Fruit Lambic | Santa Barbara Brewing Society |
| 2nd | Curtis Ritter MHP | Dubbel Shipped | 26B: Belgian Dubbel | Ace Brewing Society |
| 3rd | Kyle Hufford | Magic Barrel | 23E: Gueuze | Santa Barbara Brewing Society |
| HM | Jeremy Stacy | Peche Prime | 28B: Mixed Fermentation Sour Beer | Thousand Oaked Homebrewers |
Table 7: American/British Beers (12 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tom Fontes | Rose Park HBOY Pale | 18B: American Pale Ale | Long Beach Homebrewers |
| 2nd | Jason Dunn MHP | Nutty As A Fruitcake | 13B: British Brown Ale | Inland Empire Brewers |
| 3rd | Jason Dunn MHP | Brass Necked | 12A: British Golden Ale | Inland Empire Brewers |
| HM | Joe St. John MHP | Mama's Extra | 11C: Strong Bitter | Yeastside Brewers |
Table 8: Cold Winter Sippers (10 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Val Guerrero | Peach Anna | 29A: Fruit Beer | Long Beach Homebrewers |
| 2nd | Jamie Crawford MHP | Taking On Water | 20B: American Stout | Maltose Falcons |
| 3rd | Brian Hankey | Hazy Blood | 29C: Specialty Fruit Beer | Thousand Oaked Homebrewers |
| HM | John Aston MHP Co-Brewer: Allison Aston | CHOCOLATE DREAM | 16A: Sweet Stout | Inland Empire Brewers |
Table 9: Big Beers (6 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Doug Walker MHP | Darth Maltious | 10C: Weizenbock | Inland Empire Brewers |
| 2nd | Ben Sookying MHP | Bastard'ish | 22B: American Strong Ale | Crown of the Valley Brewing Society |
| 3rd | Steven Severn MHP | Six Wheat Under | 22D: Wheatwine | Orange County Mash Ups |
| HM | Eli Palma MHP | DREAM CHURCH | 22A: Double IPA | QUAFF |
Table 10: Ciders and Meads (10 entries)
| Place | Brewer | Name | Style | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | David Gulotta MHP | Sugar Magnolia | C2B: Cider with Other Fruit | Ace Brewing Society |
| 2nd | Robert Dexter | Pom And Circumstance | M2E: Melomel | Maltose Falcons |
| 3rd | John Aston MHP | APPLE BOTTOM CIDER | C1A: New World Cider | Inland Empire Brewers |
| HM | Mandy Porter | Roxie Poxie And Her Apple Tree | C1B: English Cider | Inland Empire Brewers |
Past Winners
- 2025
Judging Sessions
Competition judging dates are yet to be determined. Please check back later.
Account Registration Closed
Account registrations accepted 10/01/2025 12:00 AM, PDT through 01/23/2026 5:00 PM, PST.
Registrations for judges or stewards accepted 10/01/2025 12:00 AM, PDT through 02/04/2026 5:00 PM, PST.
Entry Registration Closed
Entry registrations accepted 10/01/2025 12:00 AM, PDT through 01/24/2026 5:00 PM, PST.
Entry Drop-Off Closed
Entry bottles accepted at drop-off locations 01/16/2026 12:00 AM, PST — 01/24/2026 8:00 PM, PST.
Please pay attention to the notes provided for each drop-off location. There could be earlier deadlines for some drop-off locations listed, particular hours when entries are accepted, certain individuals to leave your entries with, etc. All entrants are responsible for reading the information provided by the organizers for each drop-off location.
Entry Shipping Closed
Entry bottles accepted at the shipping location 01/16/2026 12:00 AM, PST — 01/22/2026 10:00 PM, PST.