Stay tuned here at The Full Pint, as we bring you live coverage of The Great American Beer Festival. The results of the 2010 Samuel Adams LongShot American Homebrew Contest were just announced outside the GABF, and we’ve got the winners!

Congratulations to the winners of the 2010 Samuel Adams “Category 23” LongShot American Homebrew Contest, Rodney Kibzey (Illinois) and Richard Roper (Georgia). Rodney, who brewed a Black American IPA and Richard with an Imperial IPA tweaked with Belgian flair, will be going to Boston to brew their winning entries and have them distributed nationally in the 2011 LongShot Category 23 variety pack. Their homebrews will be packaged with “Honey Bee’s Lavender Wheat,” brewed with lavender petals and honey, brewed by a Caitlin DeClercq’s, who won this year’s Samuel Adams employee homebrew contest. The winners were announced at the 2010 Great American Beer Festival in Denver.

So, what is Category 23? The Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) defines 22 different categories of beer that vary in style and brewing technique. But, as innovation and experimentation has always been integral to homebrewing, a “catch-all” Category 23 is reserved for specialty beers that don’t exactly fit into the prescribed beer style guidelines. This year, Samuel Adams chose Category 23 to highlight the creativity of American homebrewers and their ability to brew specialty beers by thinking outside of the proverbial box.

From the BJCP Style Guidelines, Category 23:

“A harmonious marriage of ingredients, processes and beer. The key attributes of the underlying style (if declared) will be atypical due to the addition of special ingredients or techniques; do not expect the base beer to taste the same as the unadulterated version. Judge the beer based on the pleasantness and harmony of the resulting combination. The overall uniqueness of the process, ingredients used, and creativity should be considered. The overall rating of the beer depends heavily on the inherently subjective assessment of distinctiveness and drinkability.”

The Samuel Adams LongShot American Homebrew Contest was started in 1996 to encourage homebrewers to continue to hone their craft and experiment with the age-old practice of homebrewing. Samuel Adams founder Jim Koch began his brewing career when he first brewed his great-great-grandfather’s recipe for Boston Lager in his kitchen in 1984. “It’s my hope,” says Koch, “that through the Samuel Adams American Homebrew Contest, I’m able to give homebrewers who really love the hobby and are passionate and committed to brewing better beer the opportunity to achieve the ultimate homebrewer’s dream, making their beer available to beer lovers across the country; one that I have come to realize with Samuel Adams Boston Lager.”

The runners-up for the LongShot competition were Michael Eads (California), who brewed a wheat beer with honey and goji berries and Alixandra Peters (Nevada), who brewed an ale with Egyptian Chamomile, Hawaiian Honey and Heather tips.

The runners-up for the Samuel Adams employee homebrew contest were Rachel McAdams’ “Rae Rae’s Ale,” a brown ale brewed with black tea and bergamot, and Theresa Szilagyi’s “Don Tiburon Ale,” brewed with agave, mango, and cherries. All three of the finalists for the employee homebrew contest were women coincidentally, and this was the first time all three of them had tried their hand at homebrewing.

Congratulations to the winners of the LongShot contest and all of the finalists!