Thinking about entering my first homebrew competition

Get it entered in correct category, remember they're largely judging to style, don't despair if you get one bad review, and taste it again as you read the scoresheets.
Good luck--
--Michael

 

Google= byo entering competitions
The first page has some great info.

Definitely make the jump, just don't let it break you. Just remember not all comps are created equal.

 

Don't worry about numerical scores, but look for trends and consensus amongst the judges. Enjoy the ride while you can (I'm burnt out on entering comps myself).

 

Style guidelines are meant to make judging more objective, and judges should mark you down if your beer doesnt fit in a category. Read the style guidelines for the categories you want to enter. If you cant find a category to enter your beers, enter them in category 23 or dont enter them. Dont enter them into category that it doesnt fit and then get mad when it doesnt do well.

Don't take beer competitions too seriously. Not all judges are equal, and most competitions have a tough time getting experienced judges. As much as the style guidelines try to make judging objective, tastes are still subjective. It is what it is. If you can't handle this, I recommend not entering.

Not meant to be a rant, I just see periodic posts on here complaining about competitions.

 

Go for it. Getting objective views of your beers can be a great way to improve your skills. The first rule of fixing anything is knowing where it is broke. And if everything is great you will get a lot of hardware.

 

By all means enter some comps... the feedback has been very helpful for me. You will find the timing (your schedule, yeast, hops, shipping, judging) to be as demanding as brewing.

 

My advice is to enter a couple* competitions and then totally disregard the feedback. Call it 'not useful' in single quotes. Then claim to be personally VERY sensitive (in your homebrew practice) to all off flavors.

*Really, enter as many comps as you can. Average the results. The averaged scores and comments will tell you a lot about your beer that your friends probably won't.

 

I love comps. Just stewarded for the first time. Some things that stood out...
1. Make sure you get in the right category. Dont enter a sour into a witbier category
2. If you brew a fruit beer, spice beer, or veggie beer, put the correct base style in the description and make damn sure the fruit or spice is present.
3. Beers brewed to the extreme of the style stand out, as long as they are brewed well.
One of the beers judged at our table (I was stewarding fruit beers) had pentered his beer without putting the right base style in entry info. It was obviously a sour brewed with second use grapes. The brewer put down belgian pale on his entry. The judges were forced to judge it as a belgian pale and not a sour, and unfortunately it wasnt to style according to his info. If he had put the right info down, he would have won that category.

 

Good advice above.

Competing has made me a better brewer. Always have an extra beer to taste if you have a score sheet that makes you say, WTF. About 3/4 times when you sit down in the right frame of mind and are critical, you will get the ding on the sheet. The other 1/4 of the time you scratch your head and say whatever. Entering the same beer in more than one comp is goo d advice.