Beer Judge Certification Program?

Anyone complete the Beer Judge Certification Program?

Just out of curiosity, has anyone done this?

Thought it might be interesting, although the exams are closed for 2009 (only 5 exams offered per month). I've downloaded all the study/style/judge/and competition guides.

Any info on this would be appreciated. Been to Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP)

You'll always have Argentina.

Sep ?? Buenos Aires, Argentina Carolina Pérez +54 11 4201 4050

First-

Congratualtions on having the desire to take this test.

Second-

If you can not take the test until next year, start studying now.

It is a 3 hour test, the majority of which you will spend writing.

In between all of the writing you will have to judge 4 beers. You will be scored against two currents judges and how they scored the same beers.

I learned a lot from the study groups leading up to the test.

Half of the group has gotten results back, I am in the half that has not

Texlaw has a good write up on the test somewhere here. search for that.

My brother in law just took it this past summer. He scored National Judge on his first attempt. Such a great accomplishment.

Last year I took the exam for the first time, and scored high enough for a National Judge too. I took no course, but attributed a good part of my success to HBT:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f19/thanks-hbt-you-helped-me-pass-my-bjcp-exam-77857/

It is definitely a worthwhile thing to undertake. It will make you a better homebrewer and you will have a broader appreciation of beer in general. I honestly enjoy beer more now.

I also get to enjoy lots of OTHER people's beers at homebrew competitions, too!

I wish more people would take the test because I'm tired of getting beers judged by average joes with no certification.

If you want to drive over to Atlanta, you can take the exam on March 15th. There are still spots open.

From those who have successfully completed the exam any pointers? This looks like a fun experience.

Beerrific said:

If you want to drive over to Atlanta, you can take the exam on March 15th. There are still spots open.

Click to expand...

Already have plans for that weekend... going fly fishing with some friends. Might need more prep time than that as well.

avaserfi said:

From those who have successfully completed the exam any pointers? This looks like a fun experience.

Click to expand...

The key to success in this exam is REALLY understanding the various beer styles, as defined by the BJCP guidelines. The biggest component of the exam will be style related questions. The technical (brewing) side is surprisingly small.

It's tough, grueling work, but you need to drink every good example of each style that you can lay your hands on. If you want to pass this exam, you need to drink and evaluate a lot of beer! :rockin:

It is also important to understand the origins, brewing techniques, cultural influences, ingredients, brewer's intent, etc. for each of these styles. If you do the tasting with the book-work, it makes it a lot more fun.

Part of the exam (30% of the grade) is to actually taste and evaluate four different beers. This is the more difficult part to learn on your own. It helps if you know other judges who can drink some different beers with you and coach you through what you are tasting, what is good, what is bad, etc. (Again, I know, tough work -- now you have to drink with other people, too!). Seriously, this is the primary function of a beer judge, and you are scrutinized at how well you can do it (you are actually graded according to how closely your evaluation matches the evaluations of two seasoned judges called proctors).

Anyways, there is a LOT of work to study for the exam, but if you can do it in groups it is probably a lot easier and more fun. Doing it on your own is certainly possible, though. Either way, it is a great excuse to 'research' beer.

For those that are interested in what the exam is like, below is a link to the relevant section of the BJCP Exam Study Guide:

BJCP Exam Study Guide

Drinking I can handle . I just need to find some judges in my area to drink with.

Thanks FlyGuy.

Any update on this? Any ideas about a zymurgy or fermentation degree? Assuming chemistry would be the appropriate focus area.

Any update on this? Any ideas about a zymurgy or fermentation degree? Assuming chemistry would be the appropriate focus area.

I see you are in NY. Check out Empire State College. It's a SUNY school that allows you to design your own degree programs. I was trying to create a brewing degree but they required much more chemistry than I was comfortable with while working full time. I'm pursuing a beer history degree instead.

BJCP is just a stupid subjective think tank...There is nothing objective or scientific about it. Narrowly defined style guidelines make you a BJCP expert when your opinion matches the BJCP idea of what a certain style ought to be.

Screw the BJCP.

OldWorld said:

BJCP is just a stupid subjective think tank...There is nothing objective or scientific about it. Narrowly defined style guidelines make you a BJCP expert when your opinion matches the BJCP idea of what a certain style ought to be.

Screw the BJCP.

Click to expand...

Well, I'm actually in Virginia (I'll update my profile) and am interested in some type of "homebrewing" degree or certification. Did you have a bad experience with the BJCP?

I didn't have a great experience with BJCP guidelines. If you brewer other styles of beer that don't fit into a rigid style, you are automatically lumped into the "other" category.

The only way to win a BJCP guideline competition is to produce a beer strictly adhered to what the BJCP says a style ought to be. I don't think the so called BJCP test can be accurate and objective. If I am to be certified as a BJCP judge all beers I taste should be the same test samples that were given to all certified test takers.

There is no scientific method in repeatability. Judges who are certified with the BJCP might all taste the same style of beer but the beers are not in fact exactly the same. So one individual might perceive a style of beer to be different based on his "test" beer.

I don't see uniform scientific standards in the BJCP program. I actually took third place in my category at a BJCP event. I'm simply not a fan of BJCP events. It's great if you want to make rigid style guidelines but if you are off in terms of color a few shades your beer is stylistic not correct to the BJCP elite...

The BJCP claims to be scientific and objective when in fact it is merely a subjective scoring protocol.

OldWorld said:

I didn't have a great experience with BJCP guidelines. If you brewer other styles of beer that don't fit into a rigid style, you are automatically lumped into the "other" category.

The only way to win a BJCP guideline competition is to produce a beer strictly adhered to what the BJCP says a style ought to be. I don't think the so called BJCP test can be accurate and objective. If I am to be certified as a BJCP judge all beers I taste should be the same test samples that were given to all certified test takers.

There is no scientific method in repeatability. Judges who are certified with the BJCP might all taste the same style of beer but the beers are not in fact exactly the same. So one individual might perceive a style of beer to be different based on his "test" beer.

I don't see uniform scientific standards in the BJCP program. I actually took third place in my category at a BJCP event. I'm simply not a fan of BJCP events. It's great if you want to make rigid style guidelines but if you are off in terms of color a few shades your beer is stylistic not correct to the BJCP elite...

The BJCP claims to be scientific and objective when in fact it is merely a subjective scoring protocol.

Click to expand...

Where does the BJCP claim to be scientific and objective??? If you really think that PEOPLE (who are drinking your beer all day, might I add) are going to be completely objective and follow a scientific method, then you might need to rethink that one.

The BJCP is a group of VOLUNTEERS. We are not paid. We do not judge/evaluate your beer in a lab based on lab protocol. We do not all have the same palates. We sometimes get it wrong. BUT, we do it for the love of beer and the hope that our feedback will somehow help the brewer who sent it in.

If you are mad about not winning comps, I'm sorry, but most people don't enter for that reason. Winning should be incidental, not the main goal, IMHO. If you are mad about the feedback (or lack thereof) you got, please take it up with the judge, and don't blast the entire, volunteer based, organization on a public message board. It's quite rude.

ursineogre said:

Well, I'm actually in Virginia (I'll update my profile) and am interested in some type of "homebrewing" degree or certification.

Click to expand...

UC-Davis has an Advanced Brewing Degree as does Siebel in Chicago, you may want to look into those.

OldWorld said:

I didn't have a great experience with BJCP guidelines. If you brewer other styles of beer that don't fit into a rigid style, you are automatically lumped into the "other" category.

The only way to win a BJCP guideline competition is to produce a beer strictly adhered to what the BJCP says a style ought to be. I don't think the so called BJCP test can be accurate and objective. If I am to be certified as a BJCP judge all beers I taste should be the same test samples that were given to all certified test takers.

There is no scientific method in repeatability. Judges who are certified with the BJCP might all taste the same style of beer but the beers are not in fact exactly the same. So one individual might perceive a style of beer to be different based on his "test" beer.

I don't see uniform scientific standards in the BJCP program. I actually took third place in my category at a BJCP event. I'm simply not a fan of BJCP events. It's great if you want to make rigid style guidelines but if you are off in terms of color a few shades your beer is stylistic not correct to the BJCP elite...

The BJCP claims to be scientific and objective when in fact it is merely a subjective scoring protocol.

Click to expand...

Wants rigid tasting and judging regimen.
Doesn't want rigid style guidelines.


You know they could just get all the compounds measured using a GC and declare a winner.

The point of BJCP competitions is to judge the skill of the brewer at brewing beers that fit within specific stylistic categories. Some people dislike that, but it evens the field and focuses on the skill of the brewer rather than the recipe of the beer itself. There are many non-BJCP sanctioned homebrew competitions out there where the main determining factor of the winners is solely the judges preference and taste. Usually you'll see a big beer like an IIPA, barleywine or a Belgian monstrosity win those.

If you haven't already, I would recommend picking up a copy of Brewing Classic Styles. Those are very solid recipes that generally score very well in BJCP competitions, and they are all delicious. Usually when I'm interested in a new style, I'll use the recipe from BCS first and then modify it to my preferences for subsequent brewing sessions.

Read Gordon Strong's book and you'll have a better appreciation for the purpose of the BJCP. Even he makes it clear that they are not the be-all and end-all and that he routinely brews "out of style". The guidelines were created as a framework for competitions to make them as subjective as humanly possible.

I haven't taken my exam yet (March 2013), but I've been studying and have stewarded a few competitions. I can tell you this - preparing for this exam makes you a better homebrewer. No doubt about it.

BillyBroas said:

I can tell you this - preparing for this exam makes you a better homebrewer. No doubt about it.

Click to expand...

This. x1000.

I went through several stages while studying for the exam.
1) Holy crap there is A LOT of information out there!
2) Ugh... my beer tastes like crap.
3) Okay, let's use this information to make better beer!
4) Queue the better beer! Hooray!

If we are going to have competitions how do we decide which beer wins if we have no standard to judge it against? If there are no style guidelines how do the judges decide between a really great IPA and a superb belgian strong? You want to lose because the judge happens to like hoppy beers? How do you decide which beer is better if they ate completely dissimilar? And who's to say the really horrible beer I just entered isn't the absolutely best example of my own completely out of style imaginings? If you have a better method then quite lambasting the people who give thier own time and effort and use the best methodology that is available and present your method to improve the situation.