Have any first contest hints/help/tips/warnings?

[klnosaj]

I'm about to enter my first contest. I'm submitting four different beers. My concern is that two, maybe even three, of the beers I'm submitting don't meet BJCP guidelines for their respective categories very well. I think they're great beers on their own but I'm wondering if it's worth entering them since the judging criteria seem really strict. For instance, I brewed what I call a "Honey Pils" with honey from a friend's apiary, German Pilsener malt, American 2-row malt, Czech hops and yeast. It might be the best beer I've ever made. But it doesn't fit any of the style guidelines. Is it a "Classic American Pilsener" (BJCP category #2C)? A "Bohemian Pilsenser" (#2B)? Who knows? Similarly, I executed a recipe for a Black Wheat Lager that is ****ing fantastic as far as I'm concerned. But probably isn't a Schwarzbier (#4C) but doesn't come close to any other category. I'm eager to have experts taste my beer but anxious to have my works pilloried because they don't meet the criteria very well even though they may be delicious in and of themselves.

Do any of you veterans of competitions have any advice or recommendations? Is it worth me submitting beers I'm fairly certain don't meet the specific criteria of the BCJP guidelines? Will I get a decent score card (and I don't mean a high score, I mean an objective evaluation) for a delicious beer that doesn't meet the criteria for the category in which it's entered? Is it customary for brewers to brew specifically to guidelines for entering comps? How abundant are the people like me who have some decent beers that they just want to have tasted and tested by trained palettes?

Thanks! Wish me luck!

 

[Zamial]

Take scattered feed back with a grain of salt and remember an average score is still decent in the great scheme of things.

 

[BrewKnurd]

Why not just enter them as specialty?

 

[rwmiscik]

in my experience that it doesnt matter how you made the beer. It really only matters what the beer tastes like. The judges will not have the recipe in front of them. Therefore if it tastes like a bohemian pilsner then enter it under that. If you cant decide then enter it under american pilsner and bohemian pilsner. I once entered a stout into a competition and I couldnt decide between american stout and oatmeal stout and it ended getting a gold in american stout and a bronze in oatmeal stout. so moral of the story is just enter it under what it tastes like regardless of what you were attempting to brew.

 

[david_42]

BJCP is all about brewing great beer to style, so no matter how good the beer is, it will get slammed if it is outside the guidelines. The first contest I judged, the best tasting beer of the flight got a 18 (out of 40). The brewer had entered it in the wrong class. It would have been a 35 otherwise.

Your best bet is to enter them as Specialty Beers (23). You'll get the feedback you want that way.

 

[klnosaj]

Why not just enter them as specialty?

This comp only covers categories 1-19.

moral of the story is just enter it under what it tastes like regardless of what you were attempting to brew.

I'm not convinced that they taste like any of the categories--that being the crux of my problem. But I understand what you're saying and appreciate the feedback.

BJCP is all about brewing great beer to style, so no matter how good the beer is, it will get slammed if it is outside the guidelines. The first contest I judged, the best tasting beer of the flight got a 18 (out of 40). The brewer had entered it in the wrong class. It would have been a 35 otherwise.

Your best bet is to enter them as Specialty Beers (23). You'll get the feedback you want that way.

This is what I was afraid of. I do wonder if I'm not setting myself up for a massive ego destruction by entering beers I know don't quite meet guidelines. Also, this competition is pretty big, I think. There were over 600 entries last year (which is big, right?) so I know it's going to be tough sledding anyway.

 

[rwmiscik]

well then you could always enter and at least get some good unbias feedback on your beers

 

[BrewKnurd]

This comp only covers categories 1-19.

Well, that would certainly explain that.

I'm not convinced that they taste like any of the categories--that being the crux of my problem. But I understand what you're saying and appreciate the feedback.

So all you can really do is enter and be prepared for possibly low scores if they're really our of style. Hopefully some of the feedback will still be meaningful, but you have to be ready for the very possible scenario where you get a bunch of comments about why its not right for the style, when you already knew that.

 

[dbreienrk1]

Brew good beer

 

[BradleyBrew]

I know it sounds crazy but make sure you fill your bottles to the correct level. I got comments on everyone of my beers that the beer level was to low. Other then that be ready for HONEST feedback. I entered 3 beers for my first competition and got a very good & 2 good ratings. I was happy but got dinged for a lot of "little" things.

 

[bruin_ale]

You should get an objective evaluation and description of the beer, but if it's out of style the score is going to reflect that. When I judge a beer, I ignore the style guidelines as I write a description of what I'm getting for each category (aroma, appearance, flavor, mouthfeel). Then I go back and assess each description with how well it matches up to the style and assign a score based on that. So suppose I liked your beer, I'd probably write a description of all the aroma and flavor components as I get them, then in overall I'd note that I enjoyed it but that it's really more suited to "X style or specialty" due to such and such quality. My feedback also may not be that helpful if you like your recipe, as it'd be intended to help you hit the style guidelines better, not necessarily to improve this particular recipe as you intended.
Considering what you've described for the beers you want to enter, I'd suggest waiting for a different comp that has a specialty category - you're likely to get more objective feedback as that category has no guidelines so there's nothing to sway a judges opinion other than flaws and overall flavor/drinkability.

And I'd say yes, it's customary for brewers to brew beers that are targeted specifically to meet the style guidelines if they are trying to do well in a competition. There are a fair amount who enter beers into categories that they don't belong, but as I said - they probably don't score well. It depends on what you're trying to get out of the comp, high score or objective feedback?

 

[dbreienrk1]

I've only entered one contest, but I placed 2nd for a strawberry ales with a 34. My saison scored a 37, but didn't even place

 

[klnosaj]

Considering what you've described for the beers you want to enter, I'd suggest waiting for a different comp that has a specialty category - you're likely to get more objective feedback as that category has no guidelines so there's nothing to sway a judges opinion other than flaws and overall flavor/drinkability.

And I'd say yes, it's customary for brewers to brew beers that are targeted specifically to meet the style guidelines if they are trying to do well in a competition. There are a fair amount who enter beers into categories that they don't belong, but as I said - they probably don't score well. It depends on what you're trying to get out of the comp, high score or objective feedback?

Thanks. This is really helpful.

I'm after objective feedback more than anything else. A little confirmation/affirmation would be nice, too, but really I want a trained palette to taste my beer.

 

[Howie]

I've only entered one contest, but I placed 2nd for a strawberry ales with a 34. My saison scored a 37, but didn't even place

You never know. The Saison category could have contained a lot of great beers and not so many in the fruit category.

How about this? I had a beer place in the BOS round in a big comp one week and then not even get a medal in a much smaller comp the following week?

Its all about the specific judges, their palates, and the rest of the group you are being judged against.