Question about submitting a style for competition

[user 103238]

I'm in the process of submitting a couple of my beers for a local competition. The competition is limited to specific styles. I have a pale ale and an amber that I'm entering, and most likely a porter as well. I have a nut brown that is really good, though the competition doesn't have anything for that style. Any thoughts as to submitting it as an American Brown Ale, knowing that it wouldn't exactly fit the style? I am looking for input on several different batches, but don't want to waste the judge's time and my beer if the feedback centers more around the particular style of beer rather than the process.

Also while I'm here, I have an 8.8% rye whiskey porter, I'm assuming that would be submitted under the porter, rather than any of the specialty categories?

Thanks in advance for any feedback. I'm attaching a screenshot of the categories available for this competition.

 

[stpug]

You are allowed to enter any beer into any category, however if it isn't a good match stylistically then your score might not be an accurate representation of the beer itself. Entering an english brown ale into the american brown ale category will not be a great match unless you're english brown really maxed out the beer attributes of maltiness, abv, and hoppiness AND kept the english esters low. Also, your porter is pretty high ABV with the addition of whiskey. It could potentially make an okay candidate into the robust porter category (especially if the alcohols are VERY subdued) but a specialty beer category is probably a better fit.

Hops this helps!

BTW, I've been wondering why some beer competitions leave out large portions of categories. Is it a lack of adequate judges for those styles? Is it to simply limit the entries so the judging can happen quicker? Any ideas?

 

[dcp27]

if you can taste the whiskey in the porter just save it for another competition

the brown might be ok, but lack of hops & bitterness will hurt it.

BTW, I've been wondering why some beer competitions leave out large portions of categories. Is it a lack of adequate judges for those styles? Is it to simply limit the entries so the judging can happen quicker? Any ideas?

usually a lack of help so its done to limit the entries

 

[Spartan1979]

You are likely to only get comments relating your beer to the actual category. The best you can hope for is a comment in the overall impression section that says "This would make an nice English Brown Ale."

I wouldn't bother.

 

[user 103238]

I appreciate everyone's input. I was able to get some feedback from the coordinator of the competition. He stated that entering the nut brown in the American Ale category seemed "reasonable", and since I had slightly increased the hop additions, I decided to go for it. He also recommended that I enter the Rye Whiskey Porter in the Spice/Herb/Vegetable category, since the addition of the rye malt as well as the rye whiskey and oak cubes were an essential component of the beer.

All four entries are tagged and packaged, and I will be dropping them off this afternoon. Now I wait until Saturday........

 

[user 103238]

Agreed, I suspect it's primarily based on the number of judges available to help with the event. If anyone is a BJCP judge and wanted to travel to Fairbanks, Alaska for the competition each July.......

BTW, I've been wondering why some beer competitions leave out large portions of categories. Is it a lack of adequate judges for those styles? Is it to simply limit the entries so the judging can happen quicker? Any ideas?

 

[Shred]

Really? Rye puts you into the vegetable beer category? Interesting. I just entered a Habanero Imperial IPA which was brewed with rye. If it didn't have the habanero I never would have thought to enter it in vegetable.

 

[dcp27]

He also recommended that I enter the Rye Whiskey Porter in the Spice/Herb/Vegetable category, since the addition of the rye malt as well as the rye whiskey and oak cubes were an essential component of the beer.

he's wrong. none of those qualities put it in that category, do not enter it there you will be wasting your beer & money. it would fit in 22, not 21

 

[user 103238]

As I looked through the BJCP guidelines, I could see this beer fitting in category 23 because of the rye. However since neither category 22 or 23 are available for this competition, my options are somewhat limited. That being said, I had all 4 beers packaged up and the check written, so I decided to submit all 4. I'm willing to sacrifice 3 bottles and $5, even if it's technically out of style. I believe the guy running the event is also one of the judges, and since Fairbanks typically leads towards the eclectic approach, it's a risk I'm willing to take. He has given me positive feedback on some previous batches that he's sampled, so I'm mostly looking for formal feedback on my brewing process and whether there's anything I can do to continue moving forward.

And in the end, if he doesn't like it, I do, and so do a number of my friends and brewing companions. Although we are a little biased.......

Funny, I can easily wait out a batch of beer for several weeks, but the anticipation of waiting for my scoresheets is already driving me nuts. Thankfully I'm relaxing, trying not to worry, with a homebrew in my hand. I will let you know how the results turn out this weekend.

 

[dcp27]

the problem is it's not whether they like the beer or not, its how well it fits the category. cat21 is about a balance of SHV with the beer and since yours lacks any SHV, it won't (or at least shouldn't if they know what they're doing) score well. even if its the best beer in the world, technically it should be capped around 30 if its clearly out of style like it is. most of your feedback on that beer will be about how its not to style and how to make it so or what it should be entered as, not necessarily your process (unless something is off in it)