The Weekend That Was...

After having some time to digest this weekends experience, both mentally and physically, here are some thoughts:

The competition on Sunday was far superior to what we judged on Saturday. On Saturday the KCBS portion of the battle was held. Teams submitted Chicken, Pork Shoulder, Pork Ribs, and Brisket for blind judging. At our table the Ribs and Shoulder was just not that good - dry, lacking taste. The chicken and brisket however pleasantly surprised us. For those that have judged KCBS before, this is fairly rare, it is usual that the easier things to cook - ribs and shoulder - usually end up being the best. While brisket and chicken end up falling to the way side. Needless to say that the consensus at our table of six, including a cook for a competitive team (not participating) who was pretty tough, that there was no "wow" moment at our table that day. This happens sometimes, luck of the draw.

The tide turned on Sunday. We've found in the past that the teams step their game up on Sunday for the Memphis in May (MiM) formatted competition. This year was no different, and we came away happy. First, the MiM competition is different from KCBS in a couple ways - different scoring system and they do on-site judging for all the categories in addition to the blind judging going on in the tent. We both did the blind judging for whole hog, where I'm sure I had the winning hog - it was delicious and cooked perfectly with some great sauces (a nice ketchup based sauce and a great honey based sauce). We both then went out for on-site judging for both ribs and shoulder. We overlapped on a few teams and it was interesting to share notes.  Doing on-site is a great experience. Having the teams attempt to sell you on their product, and getting the royal treatment is fun, and is a good reminder how serious the teams take what they do. That is one down side we see to KCBS, there is not a lot of judge-team interaction and thus you tend to see more judges acting as executioners in KCBS. The teams deserve thoughtful and supportive judging that is constructive. The MiM format builds a stronger understanding for judges to do just that.

Aside from the BBQ some of the best things about the battle is getting to speak with the teams (many of which are big time competitive teams like Jack's Old South, Yazoo's Delta Q, Pellet Envy, Cool Smoke, Smoked Encounters of the Third Swine, etc, etc.)  and checking out all the different rigs and set-ups the local teams and national teams have. There is a great sense of community at these events, all the while holding up a very competitive edge.

The best stuff we had all weekend was whole hog and shoulder on Sunday. Thank you to all the teams that came out and cooked in the sweltering DC heat. It was a great event and we can't wait to do it again next year. Check out the RESULTS!

Safeway's National Capital Barbecue Battle XVIII

Two days of BBQ and Summer in the heart of D.C....

That's right folks, next weekend June 26th & 27th the annual  National Capital Barbecue Battle is back in town. The event shuts down Pennsylvania Ave from 9th Street to 14th Street with BBQ Teams, Live Music, and other entertainment and food for the whole family. Now while most folks coming to the battle will only be able to get BBQ from the vendors selling it, you can see all the teams and interact with them...and maybe get some delicious extras when they are all done.

Once again we will be judging both the KCBS Competition on Saturday and the Memphis in May Competition on Sunday. It's a great couple days filled with some amazing BBQ that teams from all over the country come to battle with, we're honored to be a part of it again.

Come on down next weekend and enjoy some 'Q, get some ideas, listen to some music, and maybe get the BBQ competition bug.