How do you hone your reviewing skills?

I would not describe myself as a great reviewer but when I write, I ALWAYS check my spelling and grammar. Also it helps to read other reviews of the same beer I'm writing. It gives me an idea of what they taste and whether or not I agree.

 

Just use your own words to describe what you see, smell and taste. If I review a beer and say the aroma reminds me a high altitude conifer forest and you find the aroma is like lichen covered rocks on the sea coast then we're both correct because that's how it appears to us individually. I also find my first impressions are usually my most accurate ones.

 

Reviews should be entertaining and fun to write. They're mostly for yourself. Enjoy it. Whatever comes to mind, mention it. My reviews are based off flavors or smells I've come across in the past whether it be orange pith, leather jacket, or Wrigley Field's bathroom. Whatever, let it fly.

Most importantly, enjoy yourself.

 

I have learned by reading the reviews of experienced BA reviewers to learn the vocabulary. I have also consulted the BJCP in order to educate myself about style guidelines. I’d like to think I’ve gotten better. Every now and then I look over my early reviews and wonder “what was I thinking?”

 

Don't be afraid to just react to what you notice. if you think of something or if it comes to your mind go on and say it. don't look to others for agreement or confirmation. Don't be a deliberate meany but if you have knowledge of styles, and you should read styles often, then use that to make remarks and judgements. There is another thread on the board today where someone makes a judgemental remark about a nationally distributed brewer. it's ok to have preferences and it's ok to say what they are as you have some integrity in the review. You can't just pan a brewer for no reason whether they are ab in bev or sierra nevada or your local 2 barrel brewpub. You also should try not to repeat yourself. don't review the same beer over and over as that is looking for an audience. Review as many different beers from different brewers as you can. Seek out every style and do not be afraid to show your enthusiasm but also do not be afraid to cirticize something you feel is off or wrong in a beer. Join the thread new beer sunday and practice. ask questions and do not be afraid to ask the people who would know .

 

Don't over think it.
Try to be as non biased as possible.
Drink bad beer and good beer, you can learn from both.
Enjoy !

 

Drink more new beers.

Is this a trick question?

 

There are lots of folks on this site who've drunk hundreds, thousands of new beer and display no skill at all in reviewing. They're sometimes known as "tickers."

Is this a trick comment?

 

I certainly should’ve added “and write a review when you do” to my comment. Rookie mistake.

 

Trust your opinion and try not to read other reviews or the brewer description when writing your review. We want to see what you think about it subjectively.

Another thought is to buy singles where you can. Most folks, when they commit to buying a 4 or 6 pack probably are not taking a big chance on the beer - they have a good idea they'll like it enough not to regret that commitment. I find that since I tend to buy singles to review, I am more open minded in buying things I might not have bought in quantity - and these have been some of my favorites in spite of poor reviews from others.

 

An easy way to do reviews is 1 sentence about look (color and head), 3ish smell descriptors, 3ish taste descriptors, and a sentence on mouthfeel. That paints a clear enough picture usually.

 

I go for the Nike approach - Just Do It!

 

Drink plenty of beer
Write down your thoughts on the beer
When you're comfortable, go to NBS or WBAYDN and let others see what you've written.
It sounds daunting, but it is actually fun.

 

“Never forget that, at the most, the teacher can give you fifteen percent of the art. The rest you have to get for yourself through practise and hard work. I can show you the path but I can not walk it for you, Grasshopper.”
Translation: Drink more beer. Write reviews. Repeat.

 

I used to write up 5,000 character reviews on average until I realized most people couldn't be arsed to read it all.

Now I keep it around a 1,000 unless the beer is exceptionally good or exceptionally bad.

I seldom ever read other reviews prior to drinking a beer seeing as I don't want to be biased or have my thoughts muddled on the flavor.

Just review a few. You may be one of those folks who get straight to the point, or somebody who begins to dissect every single aspect of the brew in all categories.

 

Practice. Jog notes on your beers (I keep a personal log book, for instance). Read other’s reviews. Then jump in with reviewing here. And as has been mentioned above, no friendlier forum for your efforts exists than “New Beer Sunday”. Cheers!

 

My wife and I always review a beer together. She has a superior sense for taste and aroma. As a plus, she's an English major and no mispelling or grammatical faux pau will ever make it past her.

Another good exercise is to retrieve one of your past ratings and try the beer again and read it while tasting the beer. See if you can pick up the same nose, taste, mouthfeel again. This works best if it's something that is most likely pretty stable - from SN, Founders, Stone, Deschutes....you get the idea. And, yes, sometimes we will delete an old review and rework it.

 

There are several excellent reviewers who have posted on this thread. Read some of their posts on "New Beer Sunday." It may give you an idea of what to look for when reviewing. Just remember what @Squire says. You are the foremost expert on what you think. Good luck!

I had this beer. I think it was a Jack Daniel's barrel-aged saison.