About to enter first contest ... advice welcome!

[MikeInStillwater]

I'm seriously thinking about entering my next batch in an AHA contest or two. I don't know if that disqualifies me as a beginner. If so, sorry. I've made eight or nine 5-gallon batches of ale (all extract). My primary reason for entering is for the feedback. I want to learn. I'm hoping to avoid any common first-timer mistakes. I'm looking for definite "do's" and "don'ts." Thanks in advance for any sage advice you can lend.

 

[mongoose33]

Make the best beer you can, and let the chips fall. It's a learning process. Put yourself in position to do just that.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Make the best beer you can, and let the chips fall. It's a learning process. Put yourself in position to do just that.

Thanks. I will do that! I guess I wasn't specific enough. It's the process of contest entry that has me a little nervous. Things like timing, packaging, how to get entries there, stuff like that.

 

[SoCal-Doug]

Absolutely no reason to be nervous! One of the best things about brewing competitions are getting to see the judges comments and helpful tidbits of advice. They can really help you learn and brew even better. I've judged many an event when the wiz-bang zillion dollar brew rig 20 year brewer, entered pure crap, and the brand new pot-on-the-stove extract brewer took home a ribbon.

Follow the instructions for entering and getting your entries to them. Fill out whatever forms, pay the entry fee hoIf you have questions, ASK, they will help you understand their process. Brew your best and enter up!

The best advice I can give is to read the BJCP style for which you are going to enter (category and subcategory), because that style is what it will be judged against. If the style says "low hopped" don't brew 90 IBU's. If it says "pale to golden" don't enter a dark in that category. Simply be familiar with what the judges are expecting.

We judge based on a few basics that are well documented (those guides are available to brewers and judges). Each of the following below has a complete description in the guide for every style. Low means it is not even close to the style. High means it's dead nuts on style.

Aroma 0-12 points
Appearance 0-3 points
Flavor 0-20 points
Mouthfeel 0-5 points
Overall impression 0-10 points

Honestly, i've entered competitions where I knew some high power brewers were entering. I told my wife "those guys write books, do podcasts, and have been at this many years longer than me, I have no hope on this one". But I came home with a best of show award. I've also at times felt very good about an entry and thought it would kick butt, and got a bunch of low scores. No biggie, I paid $5 to get a ton of critique and help, hell yes! Another thing that ive done is bottled entries for two competitions (from the same keg) and entered both. Averaged high 30's in one competition, and low 20's in the other competition. Do not take anything as gospel or take it personally. Judges are human.

Hope this helps calm the nerves

 

[Rob2010SS]

Absolutely no reason to be nervous! One of the best things about brewing competitions are getting to see the judges comments and helpful tidbits of advice. They can really help you learn and brew even better. I've judged many an event when the wiz-bang zillion dollar brew rig 20 year brewer, entered pure crap, and the brand new pot-on-the-stove extract brewer took home a ribbon.

Follow the instructions for entering and getting your entries to them. Fill out whatever forms, pay the entry fee hoIf you have questions, ASK, they will help you understand their process. Brew your best and enter up!

The best advice I can give is to read the BJCP style for which you are going to enter (category and subcategory), because that style is what it will be judged against. If the style says "low hopped" don't brew 90 IBU's. If it says "pale to golden" don't enter a dark in that category. Simply be familiar with what the judges are expecting.

We judge based on a few basics that are well documented (those guides are available to brewers and judges). Each of the following below has a complete description in the guide for every style. Low means it is not even close to the style. High means it's dead nuts on style.

Aroma 0-12 points
Appearance 0-3 points
Flavor 0-20 points
Mouthfeel 0-5 points
Overall impression 0-10 points

Honestly, i've entered competitions where I knew some high power brewers were entering. I told my wife "those guys write books, do podcasts, and have been at this many years longer than me, I have no hope on this one". But I came home with a best of show award. I've also at times felt very good about an entry and thought it would kick butt, and got a bunch of low scores. No biggie, I paid $5 to get a ton of critique and help, hell yes! Another thing that ive done is bottled entries for two competitions (from the same keg) and entered both. Averaged high 30's in one competition, and low 20's in the other competition. Do not take anything as gospel or take it personally. Judges are human.

Hope this helps calm the nerves

Damn, well said! You just pumped ME up for a competition and I'm not even the one who asked lol!

 

[S-Met]

Be objective and honest with your brew. Don't take critiques too personal. Some judges suck, and its not always because they suck. They may have just tasted a stinker of a brew and they have sensory overload. Maybe your brew wasn't optimal serving temp. Maybe they are just beginning a cold and have off sense of taste/smell.

Take the critique, but take it for what it is... an opinion.

 

[schematix]

what are you trying to achieve?

do you just want technical feedback or are you looking for validation you aren't making pure swill?

do you like your beer?

only 2 pieces of advice i can offer:
1. choose the right category. enter the beer you brewed, not the beer you wanted to brew. out of style will automatically get you a poor score, even on the best beer you've ever tasted.
2. good or bad, there is a good chance the judge isn't all that qualified to judge. take their opinions, good or bad, with a grain of salt.

 

[dmtaylor]

The best advice I always give is to enter each batch into at least 2 if not 3 or more competitions. There will always be some scoresheets where the feedback is terrible or totally wrong, and then others where it's really great, and you want as much good feedback as you can get when you are first starting out so you know what you need to work on.

Good luck, hope you find it educational and worth the price of admission.

 

[Kent88]

Make something that firmly fits into the guidelines of a particular style. Saves you from being concerned about entering it in the right category later.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Absolutely no reason to be nervous! One of the best things about brewing competitions are getting to see the judges comments and helpful tidbits of advice. They can really help you learn and brew even better. I've judged many an event when the wiz-bang zillion dollar brew rig 20 year brewer, entered pure crap, and the brand new pot-on-the-stove extract brewer took home a ribbon.

Follow the instructions for entering and getting your entries to them. Fill out whatever forms, pay the entry fee hoIf you have questions, ASK, they will help you understand their process. Brew your best and enter up!

The best advice I can give is to read the BJCP style for which you are going to enter (category and subcategory), because that style is what it will be judged against. If the style says "low hopped" don't brew 90 IBU's. If it says "pale to golden" don't enter a dark in that category. Simply be familiar with what the judges are expecting.

We judge based on a few basics that are well documented (those guides are available to brewers and judges). Each of the following below has a complete description in the guide for every style. Low means it is not even close to the style. High means it's dead nuts on style.

Aroma 0-12 points
Appearance 0-3 points
Flavor 0-20 points
Mouthfeel 0-5 points
Overall impression 0-10 points

Honestly, i've entered competitions where I knew some high power brewers were entering. I told my wife "those guys write books, do podcasts, and have been at this many years longer than me, I have no hope on this one". But I came home with a best of show award. I've also at times felt very good about an entry and thought it would kick butt, and got a bunch of low scores. No biggie, I paid $5 to get a ton of critique and help, hell yes! Another thing that ive done is bottled entries for two competitions (from the same keg) and entered both. Averaged high 30's in one competition, and low 20's in the other competition. Do not take anything as gospel or take it personally. Judges are human.

Hope this helps calm the nerves

Thank you so much! I'll be entering my "Who's in the Garden Grand Cru Ale from Charlie Pappazian's wonderful book. I believe it would be considered 24A. Belgian Ale Witbier? Winning something would be great (and a huge surprise), but I'm really doing it for the sake of learning ... the judge's comments are what I'm paying for! Thanks again.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Make something that firmly fits into the guidelines of a particular style. Saves you from being concerned about entering it in the right category later.

Thank you for responding. Would a batch of the 'Who's in the Garden Grand Cru Ale from Charlie Pappazian's wonderful book qualify as a Belgian Ale Witbier (24A)??

 

[MikeInStillwater]

The best advice I always give is to enter each batch into at least 2 if not 3 or more competitions. There will always be some scoresheets where the feedback is terrible or totally wrong, and then others where it's really great, and you want as much good feedback as you can get when you are first starting out so you know what you need to work on.

Good luck, hope you find it educational and worth the price of admission.

Thanks for such a timely response! I'm in Minnesota, very near the Twin Cities, and it looks like Fargo, ND, and Madison, WI, are within the timeframe and near enough that I won't have to worry too much about getting bottles safely there. ???

 

[Kent88]

Thank you for responding. Would a batch of the 'Who's in the Garden Grand Cru Ale from Charlie Pappazian's wonderful book qualify as a Belgian Ale Witbier (24A)??

I am not familiar with that recipe. Can you give me the stats on that? Original gravity, final gravity, IBUs, color, and the yeast strain you intend to use?

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Be objective and honest with your brew. Don't take critiques too personal. Some judges suck, and its not always because they suck. They may have just tasted a stinker of a brew and they have sensory overload. Maybe your brew wasn't optimal serving temp. Maybe they are just beginning a cold and have off sense of taste/smell.

Take the critique, but take it for what it is... an opinion.

Thanks for your input. Will do!

 

[ba-brewer]

Keep a bottle or two to sample later when you get your score sheets back. If you send some beers off to contests that need to be mailed subject the beer your holding on to for later to a few days at room temp if you refrigerate your beers. If you don't normally refrigerate your beer put that beer you are holding on to in the fridge until you get your scoresheets.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

I am not familiar with that recipe. Can you give me the stats on that? Original gravity, final gravity, IBUs, color, and the yeast strain you intend to use?

O.G.: 1.005-1.059 F.G.: 1.004-1.008 Not sure a bout the IBUs, but it takes almost 2 oz. of Hallertauer hops (bitterness, flavor, and aroma). Last time I brewed it, it was a golden color, I'm guessing about 4 degrees L. I'll use 023 Omega Grand Cru yeast. It uses Extra Light DME, 2-3/4 lbs. of Orange Blossom Honey, orange peel and coriander seed as adjuncts.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Keep a bottle or two to sample later when you get your score sheets back. If you send some beers off to contests that need to be mailed subject the beer your holding on to for later to a few days at room temp if you refrigerate your beers. If you don't normally refrigerate your beer put that beer you are holding on to in the fridge until you get your scoresheets.

That's something I might not have thought to do. Excellent advice. Thank you!

 

[Kent88]

O.G.: 1.005-1.059 F.G.: 1.004-1.008 Not sure about the IBUs, but it takes almost 2 oz. of Hallertauer hops (bitterness, flavor, and aroma). Last time I brewed it, it was a golden color, I'm guessing about 4 degrees L. I'll use 023 Omega Grand Cru yeast. It uses Extra Light DME, 2-3/4 lbs. of Orange Blossom Honey, orange peel and coriander seed as adjuncts.

Would that be this yeast? It would seem appropriate.

Vital Statistics:
OG: 1.044 – 1.052
IBUs: 8 – 20
FG: 1.008 – 1.012
SRM: 2 – 4
ABV: 4.5 – 5.5%

I assume you meant that the OG should be somewhere between 1.050 - 1.059, not 1.005-1.059. It looks like this recipe could be a little strong for style. As someone who doesn't brew a lot of wits, I would think that you'd be able to get away with it. If it was me, I'd try to back off the OG a little, even if it meant I had to hold back on the extract or the honey. If you wanted to hold back on something to bring the OG down, I would recommend the honey because doing so might keep your FG a little higher.

It looks like you have a decent window to hit for the IBUs. Do you use any brewing software? I find it helpful when I want to calculate IBUs.

This link might also be helpful: '15 BJCP Guidelines.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Would that be this yeast? It would seem appropriate.



I assume you meant that the OG should be somewhere between 1.050 - 1.059, not 1.005-1.059. It looks like this recipe could be a little strong for style. As someone who doesn't brew a lot of wits, I would think that you'd be able to get away with it. If it was me, I'd try to back off the OG a little, even if it meant I had to hold back on the extract or the honey. If you wanted to hold back on something to bring the OG down, I would recommend the honey because doing so might keep your FG a little higher.

It looks like you have a decent window to hit for the IBUs. Do you use any brewing software? I find it helpful when I want to calculate IBUs.

This link might also be helpful: '15 BJCP Guidelines.

Thanks, Kent. I had looked at the guidelines, which is how I made my guess on the appropriate style in which to enter this one. Update: I brewed it this afternoon (Sat. 9/22), before reading your reply. I actually added honey after the boil. The recipe called for 2-3/4 lbs. and the bottle had 3 lbs. I just added the additional 1/4 lb. minus what stuck to the sides. I have a triple scale hydrometer and I got a reading of 9.2/ 72 / 1.7. So I'm reading that as 1.070. You must be cringing as you read that, based on your advice. I don't really trust my readings, thinking I need a new tube for the hydrometer or should just graduate to a refractometer when the budget allows. Anyway, whether this ale turns out to be contest-worthy or not, I and my friends and family will enjoy drinking it. Because you took the time to respond, I will try to keep you posted on how this all shakes out, if you want, that is. Once again, thank you so much for taking the time to help me out.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Would that be this yeast? It would seem appropriate.



I assume you meant that the OG should be somewhere between 1.050 - 1.059, not 1.005-1.059. It looks like this recipe could be a little strong for style. As someone who doesn't brew a lot of wits, I would think that you'd be able to get away with it. If it was me, I'd try to back off the OG a little, even if it meant I had to hold back on the extract or the honey. If you wanted to hold back on something to bring the OG down, I would recommend the honey because doing so might keep your FG a little higher.

It looks like you have a decent window to hit for the IBUs. Do you use any brewing software? I find it helpful when I want to calculate IBUs.

This link might also be helpful: '15 BJCP Guidelines.

Thanks, Kent. I had looked at the guidelines, which is how I made my guess on the appropriate style in which to enter this one. Update: I brewed it this afternoon (Sat. 9/22), before reading your reply. I actually added honey after the boil. The recipe called for 2-3/4 lbs. and the bottle had 3 lbs. I just added the additional 1/4 lb. minus what stuck to the sides. I have a triple scale hydrometer and I got a reading of 9.2/ 72 / 1.7. So I'm reading that as 1.070. You must be cringing as you read that, based on your advice. I don't really trust my readings, thinking I need a new tube for the hydrometer or should just graduate to a refractometer when the budget allows. Anyway, whether this ale turns out to be contest-worthy or not, I and my friends and family will enjoy drinking it. Because you took the time to respond, I will try to keep you posted on how this all shakes out, if you want, that is. Once again, thank you so much for taking the time to help me out.

BTW it is the yeast you posted, exactly. I tried a can of Fast Pitch to create a starter for it yesterday. They recommend 48 hours, but I didn't have the patience to wait that long. I figure it's better than just pitching the wort without any starter like I did the only other time I used this recipe, which produced a very drinkable ale.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

what are you trying to achieve?

do you just want technical feedback or are you looking for validation you aren't making pure swill?

do you like your beer?

only 2 pieces of advice i can offer:
1. choose the right category. enter the beer you brewed, not the beer you wanted to brew. out of style will automatically get you a poor score, even on the best beer you've ever tasted.
2. good or bad, there is a good chance the judge isn't all that qualified to judge. take their opinions, good or bad, with a grain of salt.

Thanks for your advice schematix. I guess I'm looking for technical feedback. I make what I like to drink. I haven't made any pure swill yet, though some batches have definitely been better than others. I'm wondering if anyone ever posts contest scoresheets. Having never seen one, I'm curious as to what they look like.

 

[Kent88]

Don't worry, I am not cringing. I may be picky about staying in style guidelines myself, but that is just me. I've looked up interviews with BJCP bigwigs and I've heard/read several times that they allow plenty of wiggle room.

You hit on the big thing for me. As long as I enjoy the beer I brew, I am happy. I've entered into a few small contests just to get some less biased, more critical opinion because I like to share when I can and I don't want to share bad beer.

Feel free to keep us posted. IMHO we don't get enough follow up on things like this. Also, you aren't too far from me and I occasionally have a chance to go to the TCs, we might have a chance to do a bottle swap some day.

Oh, and giving your yeast a little time in a starter to wake up can be a good thing. Check this out.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

The best advice I always give is to enter each batch into at least 2 if not 3 or more competitions. There will always be some scoresheets where the feedback is terrible or totally wrong, and then others where it's really great, and you want as much good feedback as you can get when you are first starting out so you know what you need to work on.

Good luck, hope you find it educational and worth the price of admission.

Thanks dmtaylor! I am looking at two contests, one in Fargo and one in Madison. They seem to come at about the right time. I brewed this afternoon and the Who's In The Garden Grand Cru Ale is now fermenting in my Big Mouth Bubbler.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

Don't worry, I am not cringing. I may be picky about staying in style guidelines myself, but that is just me. I've looked up interviews with BJCP bigwigs and I've heard/read several times that they allow plenty of wiggle room.

You hit on the big thing for me. As long as I enjoy the beer I brew, I am happy. I've entered into a few small contests just to get some less biased, more critical opinion because I like to share when I can and I don't want to share bad beer.

Feel free to keep us posted. IMHO we don't get enough follow up on things like this. Also, you aren't too far from me and I occasionally have a chance to go to the TCs, we might have a chance to do a bottle swap some day.

Oh, and giving your yeast a little time in a starter to wake up can be a good thing. Check this out.

I'd love to do that bottle swap and meet a fellow homebrewer. I see your profile is not specific on your locale. If you're serious, you can PM me. Read the yeast article and found it interesting. My new batch is showing some signs of fermentation, but the airlock isn't yet bubbling away. This is the second use of my Big Mouth Bubbler. I like that it has plenty of room left over with a 5-gal. batch. If memory serves, it holds 6.5 gal. Also, this is the first time I've dry hopped. I'm guessing that would account for the brown flakes in the kraeusen?

 

[Kent88]

I'll PM you if I find myself planning a trip to the cities and end up with some free time while I'm there. I know you originally said e-mail, but I thought you might like to keep your email off of public forums so the spambots don't pick up on it.

I've never dry-hopped, so I'll leave that to someone who is more familiar with that.

 

[Diver_Alan]

schematix is right on. Enter the beer in the correct category. Not what you intended to make but enter in the category that the beer you made best fits in to. If its in the wrong category your feedback will not be useful when it comes to making better beer. Comments such as too hoppy for style or Carbonation too low for style are only useful if it is being compared to the correct style.
I judged a competition last year when someone apparently entered several styles and mixed the labels up. They had made a very good stout. Unfortunately it was entered as a pale ale. We had to judge it based on the category they had entered and it received a low score. This is an extreme example but it is not unusual for beers to be entered in the wrong category. For example a NEIPA entered as a American IPA instead of an speciality IPA. If you are not sure which category to enter it in enter it in both.
I would also recommend entering the same beer in as many competitions as possible. When reviewing the feedback look at the comments that are consistent from several judges. Discount the comments that only appear on one scoresheet.

 

[MikeInStillwater]

I'll PM you if I find myself planning a trip to the cities and end up with some free time while I'm there. I know you originally said e-mail, but I thought you might like to keep your email off of public forums so the spambots don't pick up on it.

I've never dry-hopped, so I'll leave that to someone who is more familiar with that.

Looking forward to hearing from you.