12 Jun How to Judge a Judge: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Upland Brewing’s ‘Up CUp’ Home Brew Competition
This past Saturday I had the privilege of volunteering at Upland Brewing’s 7th Annual UpCup home brew competition. The interesting thing that sets the UpCup apart from other home brew competitions is that the winner gets the opportunity to brew a full-scale batch of their recipe with Upland’s brewing team. Previous UpCup winners Tom Wallbank and Andrew Korty, both certified beer judges, were on site to help with the judging and choosing of the next UpCup champion.
The day started when the 12 beer judges, all certified through the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP), arrived from all over the state. Becoming a certified beer judge requires a series of classes, written tests, and practical beer tastings, but perhaps most importantly, it requires a true appreciation of all types of craft beer. This elite group of beer aficionados raise the bar when it comes to beer appreciation–being able to see, smell, and taste the most subtle intricacies beer has to offer. Have you ever wondered what happens back stage at a home brew competition? I’ll walk you through our day.
First, the judges were separated into groups and assigned a category of beer. Some judges spent the whole morning tasting Pale Ales and IPAs while other judges only tasted Saisons and Belgian Ales. After the beers were distributed, the judges started by pouring the beer in small cups and sticking their nose as deep into the cups as they could. Ron Smith, one of the head judges and organizers of the event, told me that immediately observing the aroma is vital.
“Many of the subtle scents are lost very shortly after pouring; so smelling is always the first step.”
The judges are simultaneously inspecting the appearance of the beer; looking for head retention, clarity, and color.
After what seems to be ages, they finally taste the beer. When they taste the beer, they don’t react positively or negatively. There was no smiling and nodding, and there was definitely no frowning. Their job is not to mock bad beers, but to break down each beer into its components and identify its strengths and weaknesses. The professional approach that was taken for each individual beer was impressive. Even more impressive was the ability of the judges to differentiate specific compounds or off-flavors in the beer. For example, diacetyl often tastes like butterscotch and acetaldehyde, (a component that results from incomplete fermentation), gives off the taste of green apples.
After each category of beer, the judges pick 1 or 2 of the top scoring beers to advance to the “Best of Show”, a model that reminded me of the Westminster Dog Show. For the best of show, 11 beers advanced and only three of the top ranking judges were involved in the judging. The judges poured all 11 beers at once and held open discussions as they compared each beer against the other, slowly narrowing down the 11 beers to a top three. Of this top three they assigned a winner, a second place, and a third place.
After much deliberation, the judges chose Michael Calvin’s Good Miss Mosaic, an American wheat as the 2014 UpCup Champion. Michael will have the opportunity to scale up his recipe using Upland’s beautiful brewing equipment, so keep an eye out for his recipe on tap at the Upland locations.
Post competition, Upland held an American Homebrewers Association rally and the judges hung out and talked shop with local home brewers while Upland provided food, gave out raffle prizes, and served all of their beers, including Tom Wallbank’s Breakfast Berliner Weiss, last years UpCup winner.
Being able to see the beer judges in action and being able to taste all the home brew was a great experience, but it made me realize I may not know as much about beer as I thought I did…
(Based out of Bloomington, IN, Gordon is an exclusive Content Contributor with Indiana On Tap. To read all of his original contributions, click here. You can contact Gordon via email at langgordon@gmail.com.
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