"Professional" homebrew evaluation

Based on my participation on AHA... sounds like a decent idea, plus it's legal. I wish the guy the best of luck. Personally I won't pay $40, but there are probably others out there who will. In my younger days, I might have paid the 40, knowing that GMs are doing the judging and not just some random non-ranked fucktards.

 

This comment is not explicitly directed to you but regardless of who is judging the beer 40 bucks is not justified in my opinion.

it appears to just be a money making move to me.

Cheers!

 

Well of course it is. And why not. It's a service, which is as valuable as people are willing to pay for it. I wouldn't pay it, but others probably would. So, go for it.

 

Fair enough but it just feels sleazy to me.

Oh well.

Cheers!

 

If I want my beer judged by BJCP qualified judges I'll enter it into a BJCP sanctioned competition.

 

Not me...unethical "fucktard", IMHO

 

I just don't see what's unethical about this. Someone with a relatively unique sill is trying to make money from that skill. Would you similarly characterize a carpenter who can drive a nail into a board a "********" if he wanted to get paid for it?

 

Not something I would ever pay for but I can't say I'm surprised. Some people have to monetize everything

 

Analogies: if you wanted to learn to play golf & tennis, would it be unethical for the local golf & tennis club to hold a clinic where one of their experts assesses your swing, for $40? If you are a foodie, and the local food coop offers a $40 cooking class, is that unethical? I don't see it that way.

If you were a professional brewer, or really, a professional anything, paying a qualified professional $40 for a sincere evaluation of your product sounds like a steal. However, for me, homebrewing is a just for fun hobby, where I primarily am competing with myself to make better beer for my own consumption. I probably am not interested in this service being offered.

 

I think it is an interesting idea and potentially a lot more useful than entering a contest. This should avoid the palate fatigue on the part of the judges and allow for detailed comments. I don't see paying, but I could see others wanting better feedback than sometimes happens in a contest.

 

Another thought: I'm not hugely into the AHA, I haven't been to any meetings where I have rubbed elbows with the homebrewing elite. But if I did go to meetings, I can see how there might be some opportunity to meet one of these luminaries, possibly share a story or two, and develop a bit of camaraderie as we discuss beer. Then, after the meeting, the person says, "Hey, for $40, I'll evaluate your beer." If you see it that way, yeah, it might feel a little sleazy.

 

not interested in competitions or anybodys evaluation of my brew at any price. now if you want to swing by and hoist a few and give your opinion , great! Maybe bring some of yer own.

 

If someone joins a non-profit organization and acquires skills to potentially make a profit with those skills that ultimately detracts and cheapens the work done by the non-profit...than I say, "fucktard"

I guess this grandmaster is more like Donald Trump than Jimmy Carter

 

Eh. I'm sure there's a market for it. And I don't think it's unethical, assuming the judging panel is really going to give it their best effort. But personally I'm not interested.

I also think $40 could be better spent by entering the same beer in multiple competitions. The evaluation in each competition will be independent. When 2 or 3 or 4 different comps agree about aspects of your beer, you can believe it. When judges sit together and evaluate a beer, the comments tend to be eerily similar.

 

One possible point of confusion in your argument is that it seems that you are interpreting non-profit as non-revenue generating.

 

Yes, my bad...did not read the links initially...thought this was some lone wolf GM...but in some ways, this is even more disturbing (cabal).

 

In the past, I would have agreed with the VikeMan wholeheartedly. For years I've been saying "you need to enter at least 3 or 4 different comps, discarding the occasional poorly done scoresheets, to know for sure how good your beer is". But now after recently entering a slew of my beers into several different competitions, and seeing how poor MOST of the scoresheets are..... I'm not a huge advocate for that anymore. Probably doesn't help that I'm Certified and my own worst critic as well. Come to think of it, I'm kind of a dick. But anyway.

If you want something judged right........... good luck with that, in ANY forum.

See? I told you I'm kind of a dick.

The bottom line fact of the matter is: Judging remains an extremely subjective thing. We all have our own opinions and own experiences, and many of them will never align. It's impossible to get everyone on the same page. Impossible.

 

I agree with your statement here, beer judging is a very subjective exercise.

Cheers!

 

Send me your beer and I will evaluate it for free! In the AHA magazine where they all evaluate a beer they are all over the place. Even in my brew club there are all kinds of judges including grand masters and they are not always on as well. Last year I entered my last competition because of idiot comments and not able to read the score sheets because the judges were drunk.