Morning: Beer judges are early risers. We were asked to arrive at Keystone Homebrew Supply, about a 45-minute ride from Philly, at 8:30am to be ready to judge at 9am. This was a Saturday, March 31. This harsh awakening helped underscore the seriousness of the pursuit. This was no open bar happy hour. We were judges--we could have been judging orchids or pekingese or marble statues of Sam Calagione, except our judging would require some serious drinking.
Long tables were set up in the cavernous homebrew shop, with stacks of BJCP scoresheets, pencils, little plastic cups, water bottles, and tons of saltines (the saltines would come to play a very important role).
My morning category was Belgian Strong Ales, which includes: Belgian Blonde, Tripel, Belgian Strong, Belgian Golden Strong, and last, but definitely not least, Belgian Dark Strong. These beers hit a 9% abv on average. Suffice it to say, it was a powerful start to the day. We paired off in each section: a more experienced judge partnering with a newbie (like me!) to determine scores for each beer presented to us.
I chased my coffee with a handful of saltines to refresh my palate before the first beer arrived. You want to drink lots of water too, just not so much that you irritate your judging partner with bathroom breaks at 10-minute intervals.
After every pair had come up with their top two, we formed a winner’s circle to taste how they ranked side by side. I have to congratulate the brewers in this category; most all the beers I tasted were very, very good and it was difficult to select top choices amongst them, especially since it can be hard to appreciate the delicacy of a good Blonde once you’re awash in the rich stone fruit flavors of Belgian Dark Strongs. I was happy with the winners despite none of my samples making the cut (you do start to feel protective of them!).
Lunch Break: I tried desperately to sop up the morning round with a complimentary lunch of meatball subs and Caesar salad.
Afternoon: My afternoon category was IPAs, subcategories: English IPA, American IPA, Imperial IPAs. I gotta say, IPAs are my favorite, favorite beer (my desert island companion barring my boyfriend is an endless case of Founders Centennial). Here I learned an interesting lesson about the experience of drinking your favorite beer during times of casual enjoyment vs. the experience of judging it. What extreme mouth-blistering hops I love in a pint, I grew a little weary of by the time the 10th convenience cup arrived. By the end, I was reaching for something, anything I could say about those hops to describe them in a new way. I tried very hard to find new and accurate ways to describe the full frontal assault of resin and juicy grapefruit. I hope my desperation was not too evident in my commentary, despite describing one quaff's aroma as "B.O., but in a good way."
When you fill out a BJCP judging form, you disclose your real name and e-mail (no “Hops McCoy” pseudonyms here), so there is a risk that the brewer of your anonymous beer will contact you demanding to know just why you suggested their beer had a whiff of oxidation. Around my table, few had been contacted, except for one guy whose recipient had complemented his writing style and detail, even though his beer lost out. (Someday, I want to judge that guy and/or be that judge.)
Leaving, we got to select a complimentary beer. I drew, of course, a Hop Stoopid--not only a fantastic beer, but an all-too-accurate representation of my state of mind by our 4:30 departure time. But, lest anyone worry, I'm currently in hop marathon training for my next judging opportunity at the Magic Hat Brewery BBQ and Homebrewing Contest on May 12.
