Using the Feedback from Competitions
by Jim Vondracek on 05/05/16
Bill Goetz and the BOSS board asked members for ideas on topics they'd like to talk about at meetings and one suggestion was to discuss how to use the feedback from competitions. These are notes I put together to get us started on the conversation - to be filled out by conversation, questions and specific examples from members.
Four Important Aspects to Understand about the Feedback from Competitions
- Beer evaluation is neither totally objective or totally subjective. Human perceptions are not exact but judges can give you insights into your beer. Like a lot of things, you have to dig into it to get the most out of it.
- There are many variables at a competition that can impact perceptions - flight order, number of beers in a flight, shipping, how the beer is stored, the condition of the bottle, temperature served at, other aromas at the competition site, etc.
- There are two great advantages of beer competitions:
- The judging is anonymous - the feedback you get is honest and legitimate.
- There is a process for educating, testing and ranking judges.
- If both judges agree on a point, it’s probably good to look into it. Also, looking at a judge’s experience and ranking might also give you insight into her/his comments.
How Do I Interpret the Scoresheet?
The top four sections (Aroma, Appearance, Flavor, Mouthfeel) are where the judges share their perceptions - what they are smelling, seeing, and tasting. Read those to compare what they perceived to what you perceive in your beer. Sit down with one of your beers and go through it with them.
The final section, overall impression, is where the judge gives you a sense of your beer’s strengths and weaknesses, how it fits or doesn’t fit the guidelines, and ideas for how you might improve your beer.
You should also look at the check boxes to the left for any off-flavors that were perceived. Sometimes those may be appropriate for the style.
Three Common Problems and How to Address Them:
- Low level, slowly developing wild yeast or bacteria. When the brewer tried the beer at home, it was great. S/he shipped it off, it sat in a hot UPS truck for a few days, then in the organizer’s garage, and finally, four weeks later, the judge is evaluating it. Many wild yeast and bacteria are slow developing and relentless and start to be more perceptible in a beer as time passes. Reviewing all the sanitation practices is the best advice.
- Staling and/or oxidizing. See above. These can develop over time, also, becoming more prominent and perceptible, especially if the beer isn’t transported and stored well, or the beer style is better represented by a younger beer - hefeweisen, for example. Some advice is to watch post-fermentation oxygen exposure and, depending on the style, perhaps enter it younger.
- Fruity and estery. These are usually related to the yeast flavor profile. Brewers may be underpitching yeast, or fermenting at too warm a temperature, or have some other yeast management issue that is leading to the fruitiness and estery flavors in styles where a clean yeast profile is called for by the guidelines.
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