it is totally subjective and the same teams do win over and over and show good in most events.. but why? is their food that good? I dont know if i believe that.. i think they might just know what the judges want..
Yeah.. i think u got it..
It IS THAT GOOD... AND they are not going to wreck the judges taste buds with wasabi.. or licorice, or to much of or to prevelant of anything.
the products of the top teams like Cool smoke, I-que, I smell smoke, Mike Davis, Scotty J, PelletEnvy, JOS, etc ..
is so good that no matter where they go, they win or place. They have honed their products to the point where
based on the judging criteria of appearance/tenderness/taste, they will score 7-8-9s consistently. You do NOT have to place in the top to win, but u have to have consistency and a product that
will not bottom out(try wasabi, just once and you'll see what I mean).
On a side note regarding the concept of trained palletes from CIA..
Case in point.. At guitarbeque one year, we had a new team next to us.. The pitmaster was a professional chef, 20 years restaurant and catering and CIA grad.. he was convinced that his homemade sauce was the best thing since sliced pineapples. He called me over to taste it as it was boiling away on the stove. He had beef and pork bones in there and a load of other colorful things. Plan was, once it reduced he puts in in the blender and makes sauce. Ok.. fine.. i tasted it and it was great..
for a wedding
maybe a graduation
or a confirmation party/bah-mitzvah
but NOT BBQ..
It was
loaded with black bean/or anise/or 5 spice... something along that licorice profile. I told him its good stuff, but its not BBQ, and the judges will trash him.. he declined my advice and came in DAL. Was the food bad..NO.. was it BBQ NO.. there ARE
expectations in this sport, not rocket science
IMO, fulfilling those expectations is part of the challenge and yeah, they vary. Having the ability to produce a consistently good product, regardless of the judges palette and preferences its what makes those top teams stand out and what we are trying to archive. Regardless of all the containers on my prep table labeled secret stuff and super secret stuff, there is no secret ingredient, no secret technique.. its all consistency and attention to detail and a little bit of luck.
Blaming the judges is just a cop out.. i did it once(happened to be ribfest 05 or 06) and got lectured by the good doctor.. he made me realize it wasn't the judges.. they liked my stuff, i got 7-8-9.... and some 5-6... what it was was that someone else got more 9's more 8's and more 7's and less 5-6s. My stars were not in alignment that day. Its that simple.. Your not competing alone, your competing against other pitmasters and without being compared to them, you have to beat them... and it has to be done blindly.. so its not the judges that make you loose.. its the teams around you.. (<-- I Blame I Smell Smoke and I-Que. Its ALL their fault)
Its a sport, its supposed to be fun and when it stops being fun, and you start to over analyze, its time to take a break.
