And the winner is…
Memoirs of a first-time judge
By Vernee Green-Myers
vernee.green-myers@jenzabar.net
 I always tell my friends, “You have not had ‘good barbecue’ until you’ve had competition barbecue!” I attended my first barbecue competition a few years ago in 2006 when the guy I was dating invited me up to Washington, DC, where his fire department team was competing at the Safeway BBQ Battle. At that time, I had seen a “barbecue challenge” on the Food Network where three people competed in different categories, but I had never heard of a “barbecue competition.”
However, I had been to a few chili cook-offs and being from the South thought I knew a lot about barbecue, so when my boyfriend asked if I wanted to come up for the competition, I laughed and jokingly asked, “What do Yankees know about barbecue anyway?” Of course, his reply was, “Wait until you try MY barbecue!” I was skeptical because everyone thinks they have the best barbecue, right? So on my next visit, after returning from a motorcycle ride, I pull up and he takes me over to this huge smoker. It smelled incredible. Then, he pulled out a rack of ribs. I grimaced and reluctantly informed him that I’m not really fond of ribs. I mean I like “good ribs.” Don’t get me wrong. I mean I like “good ribs!” However, I rarely ate ribs out at restaurants or cookouts because I rarely had “good ribs” unless they were my daddy’s and my grandma’s! Nevertheless, after he went on and on about how he wished he had known because he would have cooked something else, I took a rib and tried it just to shut him up! Much to my surprise, my eyes lit up and my exact words were, “Oh my God, these are incredible! Wow, Mr. Skahill, I think I might have to marry you…just for your ribs!” That was the start of a beautiful relationship – BARBECUE!
I showed up on Pennsylvania Avenue with no idea what to expect. The number of teams that traveled from all over the country to compete in this contest stunned me. That first year, the DCFD Firefighting BBQ Team won the “spirit award” for best new team. The next couple of years were a blur as they competed in many competitions. I was at most of those competitions as support staff, so of course, over the years, I had tried other team’s barbecue. We are talking the best of the best! Not only was I spoiled, I learned what “good barbecue” was and could no longer eat “restaurant barbecue.” Anyway, back to my story. That firefighter and I broke up, but not before I was bit by the “competition barbecue bug” and developed a love for barbecue. I knew I was not ready to walk away from the barbecue circuit, but was not ready to start my own team, so I decided to become a certified barbecue judge… all for the love of barbecue.
So I trekked up to Memphis in February for the National BBQ Association Conference where I took both the KCBS and MBN Judge Certification Class. Once again, I was wowed by some “good barbecue!” Two MBN teams – Red Hot Smokers and Yazoo’s Delta Q – demonstrated the on-site judging process for the MBN Judge Certification class. The presentations were awesome! After being involved with a team, it gave me a whole new perspective. I walked away with my certification in hand, ready to judge my first competition!
Last Friday, I showed up in Jackson, Georgia on a very wet March day anxious to judge my first competition, Smokin’ Pork N Butts. I knew a few of the teams and recognized many other names on the circuit. I will admit that was just a little intimidating! There were some big name teams at the event, and I knew first-hand that was serious business. Much to my disappointment, I did not get to judge Friday night for the ancillary categories because there were more than enough judges with a few pro teams dropping out at the last minute due to the weather. Regardless, I stayed for the entire night to observe the process. I showed up early Saturday morning to check-in and was anxious to get started. Once again, the weather played a factor with more last-minute cancellations. The MBN representatives, Randy and Kathy McGee, and event coordinator, Danny Meadows, worked diligently to reassign judges to cover all categories. I was soaking it all in. Even after my exposure to the competitions, judging was a new experience for me. You could tell the seasoned-veterans from the “trained judges.” It wasn’t just their collections of pins that gave them away. The experienced judges were relaxed, laid back, enjoying their coffee, and having casual conversation. The “trained judges” looked tense, were tapping their feet, and impatiently waiting to find out if they would get to judge a particular category needed to complete their certification. Finally, the moment I had been waiting for - I heard my name called. (I am pretty sure I actually let out an audible “Woo hoo!”)
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Photo courtesy of Al Werts, Big Hat Photos, BIGHATPHOTOS.lifepics.com
Judging table at Smokin Pork n’ Butts, a MBN-sanctioned event, in Jackson, GA |
My first assignment was “blind judging.” If you are not familiar with the world of competition barbecue, this is where the team submits a Styrofoam box filled with the specified meat for a particular category. The event staff then takes the box, removes the team label, replaces it with an assigned number, and places the box on a table with other boxes for “blind” judging. The judges do not know what teams they are judging. Each judge is given a scorecard to rate specific criteria for that specific category. Every category is judged on “appearance.” All the boxes are lined up and opened, and each judge at the table rates the sample on appearance. My category was Shoulder and I would be judging on appearance, tenderness, and taste. Our table had three boxes. Two of the boxes looked as if they could have been prepared by the same team they looked so similar. I took a deep breath and got to work…Judging appearance was going to be much harder than I expected.
After finally deciding which box looked best, I moved on to the next two categories. All samples on my table were submitted with two sauces each. I took my plate, marked it into thirds and numbered them 1, 2, 3. I took a sample from each box and put it into the appropriate wedge. I first pulled the meat apart to determine tenderness, took a bite, mashed it to the top of my mouth to make sure it wasn’t mushy or overdone, noted the smoke flavor, and finally decided which one was “perfectly done” meaning tender without being mushy. I made a few notes, and then sampled the meat with each sauce. I made a few more notes and marked the scorecard accordingly. After picking the sauce I felt best complimented the meat, I had to go back and sample each product again before finally making a decision on taste. You would think this is a simple task, and after competing, I thought it would be a piece of cake. Wrong! When you have pro teams that are nationally ranked and all their products are top quality, it takes time and careful consideration.
As a new judge, I wanted feedback from more experienced judges. After the boxes were moved to the counter where leftovers could be sampled, I asked more experienced judges to taste the boxes from my table and tell me if my analysis was correct or way off. I was pleased – and relieved - to discover I actually knew something about barbecue after all! After serious discussions regarding previous samples and my confidence boosted, I did not expect to feel nervous when I heard my name called a second time. This time, I was selected for “on site” judging and my new category…RIBS!
As I said before, “You have not had good barbecue until you’ve had competition barbecue!” Well, I changed my quote after this experience.
I have had “the best ribs” in the world. I have tasted ribs from the reigning Memphis in May world-champion and many of the top ranked teams. The best part about MBN-events is it’s “comparative judging.” I was not there to compare these ribs to my favorite ribs or even championship ribs I have had at another event. My job was to go to three team sties for an on-site presentation and would judge all three teams based on their product and then decide which of the three were the “best ribs” that day. Sounds easy enough, right? I mean after all, ribs had become my favorite category and I was well-schooled on “good ribs” after a couple of years of attending these events and tasting every sample turned in to the judges at previous competitions. Wow! Let me say it again…Wow! I had my work cut out for me. Needless to say, I paid careful attention to each presentation, making notes about woods used, processes taken, and exactly how they prepared “the best ribs you’ll ever eat.” Each team had a completely different presentation – one team has done this long enough and often enough that it is almost memorized, one team was new and not as experienced and needed to work on their presentation, and the third was very simple, very informative, but no frills. One team had tough ribs, but the other two had ribs that were “dead on” that day. It was the hardest decision I ever made and, believe me, it was not made without much consideration. As a new judge, I wanted to make sure I followed sanction protocol and selected the “very best rib” of the day. I had two teams with “perfect ribs” and was not sure how to choose between them. I consulted the MBN representative, Kathy McGee, to make sure I was considering every aspect before making a final decision. I told Kathy, “I am not kidding you. Two teams had perfect ribs, I mean perfect, and I am struggling to choose which one is a 10. When the teams are that good and the ribs are that good, how do you differentiate by one point?” Kathy gave me some very good advice! She said, “I tell my judges when it’s that close to ask themselves the question, ‘If they are hungry and could only have one rib, which one would they go back to get?’” Eureka! That was exactly the advice I needed to make a much-deliberated decision.
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Photo courtesy of Al Werts, Big Hat Photos, BIGHATPHOTOS.lifepics.com
Judging Bloody Mary’s at Smokin Pork n’ Butts, an MBN-sanctioned event, in Jackson, GA. |
Now, I know not all competitions are going to be that hard to judge. Not all competitions will have several top-ranked teams competing. Regardless of the experience of the team, I know from personal experience, not all competitions go as planned and you don’t always end up with “the best ribs you’ll ever eat.” From a judge’s perspective, believe me, it will be a lot easier to judge when that happens. After the competition was over with, I told the MBN reps that I had no idea how much work was required to judge and how much work goes on “behind the scenes.” I have a whole new respect for judges. I can remember going to a competition, and looking at the score sheet afterwards and thinking, “What the heck! Who judged this? Are they nuts? Our (fill in the blank) was perfect today!” I promise, you will NEVER hear me say that again.
Judging a barbecue competition is “serious business!” Remember what I said I always tell my friends, “You have not had good barbecue until you’ve had competition barbecue?” Well, that statement changed when I judged my first competition. I will now say, “I thought we had good barbecue until I judged my first barbecue competition!” I called my son afterwards and told him it was much harder than I expected because all three teams had better ribs than we ever turned in at a competition – even when we placed or trophied. The teams at these events, old and new, have some really good barbecue!
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