Too Much Spice??

B

Born2Smoke

Guest
So yesterday at HVR, we got a comment card that blew my mind. We took second place in pork. One judge gave us a 4 for taste. The other 5 scores were 8’s and 9’s. The comment said… “your tenderness was great but you should consider using less spice.” Less spice?? Really?? :doh: Our pork sauce is very sweet with a little tiny kiss of heat that literally tickles the tongue. The only spice we add to our sauce is Tennessee Red and we add very little. The rest of the ingredients are mild including sugars, juices and syrups…. Our Rub is very basic and mild with lots of flavor but no heat or spice.

I know that score was dropped and it most likely did not keep me out of first place, but my point is why would someone that sensitive to spicy food judge a BBQ competition? How did this person get through the day, especially in the rib category? Ribs usually have the most heat of all 4 categories…. I am really blown away by this because my sauce really has no spice.

I usually ignore stupid comments, but for some reason, this one drove me crazy.

Thoughts????
 
Is it possible that one of the red pepper flakes or black pepper from the Tennesee Red was in the bite they took ?
 
This is why I think the KCBS should do away with the comment cards. Generally people don't like criticism and when the get a comment card they have a tough time with it because they fail to realize that it is only one persons opinion and doesn't mean much in the scheme of things. People fail to realize that opinions are like a$$ holes, everyone has one, and have a difficult time dealing with opinions that do not not agree with their own.
 
Tennessee Red has a touch of heat yes, but not enough to create too much spice....and no I dont think even if there was a flake of pepper, that it justifies a 4.

Do you really think Tennessee Red is a spicy sauce??


MilitantSquatter said:
Is it possible that one of the red pepper flakes or black pepper from the Tennesee Red was in the bite they took ?
Click to expand...
 
Technically spice does not equal heat. It is a flavor enhancer. Maybe the judge thought you had too much seasoning on the pork.
 
Born2Smoke said:
Tennessee Red has a touch of heat yes, but not enough to create too much spice....and no I dont think even if there was a flake of pepper, that it justifies a 4.

Do you really think Tennessee Red is a spicy sauce??
Click to expand...

I love Tennessee Red and used it alot.. however I think it can hit you with a fair dose of heat IMO...it doesn't take much.
 
I love the comment cards. I never have a problem with the opinion of a judge. You missed my point about a judge being too sensitive to spicy food. BBQ does have a tendency to be a tad bit spicy and If you know that spice is sensitive to your pallet, then maybe BBQ Judging is not for you.

Sawdustguy said:
This is why I think the KCBS should do away with the comment cards. Generally people don't like criticism and when the get a comment card they have a tough time with it because they fail to realize that it is only one persons opinion and doesn't mean much in the scheme of things. People fail to realize that opinions are like a$$ holes, everyone has one, and have a difficult time dealing with opinions that do not not agree with their own.
Click to expand...
 
Good point....well taken. However, I think most people's translation of the word “Spice” usually refers to the heat of a spice. Most spices like cinnamon do have a heat level to them, some being stronger than others.

I get where your coming from though…


Rub said:
Technically spice does not equal heat. It is a flavor enhancer. Maybe the judge thought you had too much seasoning on the pork.
Click to expand...
 
As Rub mentioned above, the comment card didn't say the pork needed less heat, in their opinion, it needed less spice. Maybe their piece(s) had too much rub on them?

Regardless, your comment that "I usually ignore stupid comments..." in reference to this judges feedback seems to contradict your statement that "I love the comment cards. I never have a problem with the opinion of a judge".:wink:
 
I said I only ignore the stupid ones.....:wink:


Smokedelic said:
your comment that "I usually ignore stupid comments..." in reference to this judges feedback seems to contradict your statement that "I love the comment cards. I never have a problem with the opinion of a judge".:wink:
Click to expand...
 
I've gotten scores and comments that baffle the mind. It's usually the one score that differs completely from the rest of the table that makes me scratch my head. Many a long drive home wondering what person they pulled off of the street that morning and sworwe them in. Anyone who's taken the judging class knows what's out there. There's no rhyme or reson to it, nor anything we can do about it. Look at this way, the 4 got dropped anyway and you rtook second in pork out of almost 60 teams. You had a great weekend.
 
You are so right CM….That is probably the real reason why I’m so baffled, how different it was from the 8’s and 9’s.

I hope I didn’t come across as a sore winner either, because I was really just trying to get the opinion of others that may have shared my frustration. We are so very pleased with our results from this weekend….

CMALANGA said:
I've gotten scores and comments that baffle the mind. It's usually the one score that differs completely from the rest of the table that makes me scratch my head. Many a long drive home wondering what person they pulled off of the street that morning and sworwe them in. Anyone who's taken the judging class knows what's out there. There's no rhyme or reson to it, nor anything we can do about it. Look at this way, the 4 got dropped anyway and you rtook second in pork out of almost 60 teams. You had a great weekend.
Click to expand...
 
I've seen what you're referencing more often in chili cookoffs than in BBQ. It always amazes me how many people who choose to judge chili a) dont really like chili to begin with and/or b) dont like spices (heat or not) much at all. To me it's like: Why the heck would you want to judge in the first place?

It happens... Perhaps that one rib did have a few pepper flakes. Perhaps the judge did just fall of the short bus. Either way, dont read too much into one score. And, I disagree with ditching all feedback. This one is classic as to why. At least you know why they gave you the 4; they articulated it. Was it worth a 4? No, probably not, but at least you know vs. having no clue and wondering if that one rib was skunky or something...
 
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