I like them all--a lot. Would score them 8+.
(I am FBA Judge-not KCBS. Same basic rules except "no garnish")
For appearance I see organization, balance, creativity, imagination, and a lot of attention to detail. And, they all make me "want to try these"! Those are the keys for me.
Well Done.
Some side notes/observations. These are just opinions and thoughts!
On the chicken--
We are not brave enough to turn in both white and dark meat. Almost like begging for scores "all over the place". He did get 10 peices in there--different. We use thighs. Simple, easy, consistant, moist, and predictable. But, that is just us.
On the ribbies--
We would have placed the 2 side ribs turned/rolled the same way as the center 6. By that, I mean "meat side up", but still oriented vertically. That would eliminate the color and texture contrast between the required 6 and the 2 added extras.
Secondly, we lay the ribbies with the cut side and smoke ring showing forward. Yeah, I know judges are not supposed to consider the smoke ring. But, judges are "almost" human and smoke ring is KEWL. Now, "meat side up" is a great display when you have ribs cut from different slabs that do not have similar bone curves. Helps to hide the differences and balance the display.
Finally, the ribs are not fully trimmed to St Louis style. Grissle is still there. Many judges do not like the grissle, so we trim it all off to avoid any problems. I know that full slab, trimmed slabs, and baby backs are all allowed--just avoiding any "thoughts" by a judge here.
Use all of this as you wish--or ignore it--just some thoughts and opinions.
Chad will correct anything I have mis-stated here.
I would be proud of any of those presentations :lol:
TIM
