So the BC Beer awards last weekend have garnered much online attention. I previously posted a few comments and the list of winners. One thing I often wonder about beer awards is, who entered? Something I wonder about less is, who judged? Well, I happen to have a direct line of communication to the guys at Brewery Creek who put on these awards, so I asked them for both lists. BTW, the direct line of communication I have with the guys at Brewery Creek is the cashier line.
I failed to get the list of entrants because Brewery Creek “[has] no interest in hi-lighting the losers”. I totally get this and don’t begrudge them at all. Similarly, nobody needs to know that I finished last in the grade seven district cross country race I foolishly entered or that I never finish last at sex.
Brewery Creek was much more accommodating when it came to the judges and I admire their transparency. Turns out they put together a pretty respectable list of qualified beer tasters. Below is the list as Brewery Creek sent it to me, though I added a few links when I knew who someone was. Most of these people are super qualified and/or home-brewers actively involved with VanBrewers.
- Nigel Springthrope : Beer Expert - experienced judge – Never heard of him, owns Alibi Room?
- Randy Shore: Media – Vancouver Sun’s The Green Man
- Chad McCarthy: BJCP ranked beer judge – Cicerone, on Twitter
- Tim Ellison: Sommelier - experienced judge – PICA Instructor
- Adam Henderson :BJCP ranked beer judge – Beer Importer and Cicerone
- Dave Shea: BJCP in training – CSS Legend and Mobifier
- Aaron Peterson : BJCP ranked beer judge
- Bob Boufford: BJCP ranked beer judge
- Danny Seeton: BJCP ranked beer judge
- Ian Crook: BJCP ranked beer judge
- Katy Wright: BJCP ranked beer judge
- Liam Wake: BJCP ranked beer judge
- David O’Halloran: BJCP ranked beer judge
- Ben Coli: BJCP in training – experienced judge - Sloppy Gourmand
- Nicole Coetzee: BJCP in training - experienced judge – Ginger Beer Blog
- Scott Butchart: BJCP in training - experienced judge
- Rob Ardies: BJCP in training - experienced judge
So yeah, they probably aren’t going to ask me to be a taster next year. For a few first hand accounts of the tasting process, check out this and this.
Cheers,
Chris
Production of a beer in any repetitious quantity is a science. The goal is to recreate the same product again and again with precise consistency. Sticking to the exact process is key to a successful production line. But, the creation of the original product is far more of an art than anything else. The point of creating something new is to create something new. BJCP style boundaries are not top of mind when creating a new beer.
No matter how talented the judging panel is, judging a brewmaster’s work by a predefined style guide does not work because maintaining BJCP stylistic integrity is not always the goal of the brewer.
Beer would be much harder to judge without a rigid style guide, but it would not be impossible. Drinking beer is not an academic endeavour. I am confident that the talented list of judges would be able to identify clear winners in each category without a rigid style guide. I am not suggesting we get ride the style guide, but perhaps following it less religiously would be beneficial. Why have such a talented judging panel when a scientific analysis in a lab would more successfully determine how to-style each entrant is?
The drinking public at the harvest cask festival successfully identified the out of style Quince Belgian IPA as the best in show. No style guides were used in the judging process, and most people I spoke with agreed that is was at least top 3.
@Erik Yes! There should be both completely subjective and chemical analysis beer awards!
The drinking public also successfully identified that the Cucumber Mint IPA from R&B finished last; just behind the water station and a gutter barrel I accidentally drank from.