How To Become A Beer Judge In Two Simple Steps - Musings From A Central Florida Homebrewer

So You Want To Learn How To Judge Beer!

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Before I share the steps for becoming a beer judge let me explain the process.

I’ve been a member of the Central Florida Homebrewers for over 25 years and have enjoyed all the members who have crossed my path. We have held our annual Sunshine Challenge for almost as long as I’ve been a member.

We are currently in the process of judging 400 entries this year. The Sunshine Challenge is one of the biggest competitions east of the Mississippi.

Over the years I have refined the steps to becoming a beer judge, so stick around.

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What Is Involved in judging beer you ask…

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For every entry you will receive a BJCP scoresheet. First you record the category (style of beer) and/or subcategory. There are currently 34 different BJCP categories. WOW!

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(Note, Did you know you can brew over 2500 different beers?)

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Then it’s time to checkout the bottle fill before you pop the cap. You don’t want to see a bottle under filled or overfilled. One thing to note is a residue ring floating on top of the beer. This is usually a sign that the beer is infected and be careful opening it as most of the time the beer will gush out of the bottle. Not a good sign.

Open the beer and pour just 1 or 2 ounces of beer and notice the appearance. Is it cloudy, hazy and are there any particles floating around, another sign of pour brewing techniques.

Then it’s time to put it to the nose test.

Bouquet and Aroma is a very important detail. Do you smell high alcohol? Hops? Grains? Or defects like acetaldehyde, astringent, metallic, oxidation…

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Here comes the best part. Passing the beer through your beer hole (or pie hole) and determining how close the brewer got to the style. While some judges can taste the specific grains, hops and yeast used in the process not every judge will have this talent. It comes from experience. More on the 2 steps to becoming a judge in just a bit.

Finally you will give your overall impression of the beer. Do you believe the brewer hit the mark? Did you enjoy the beer? Do you have any recommendation to improve the beer?

After you taste the beer you then give a score.

That’s pretty much it.

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So, What Are The 2 Steps To Become A Beer Judge…

1. Join a local homebrew club and find a competition.
2. Show up and open your beer hole.

That’s it! You don’t need to be certified or have to take classes as long as you judge with a certified judge. Just show up and dive in. You can always take a test to become a certified beer judge later.

So find a club, ask about local competition and have some fun!

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