Just how many beers can you taste in one day?

I recently was invited to judge the Canadian Brewing Awards, the ones sponsored by Taps Magazine that are held annually up in Toronto.

There were 18 of us, seated in panels of three who worked (yes, it is work) from 10:30in the morning til about 8 pm judging flights o f different style brews from all over Canada.

It was all done blind, so I have very little idea of what actual brand I was judging. One thing I can say, is that if I never have to taste another honey-brown ale again, I won't complain.

The experience was a fun one - I have judged many beer competition before, but they were mostly homebrewing competitions, including two final round sessions at the American Homebrewers Association annual competition. But only three commercial beer comps. In homebrewing, my most recent judging experiences have been best of show rounds, where I am judging beers that have already won a class. So I have been spoiled a bit - the homebrews are simply better at that stage. The judges were all BJCP Certified or better. BJCP Website

This competition was special, in that there were over 300 entries, and they came in 26 styles. I judged North American Premium Style Lager, European Style Lager, Bock, North American Style Wheat Beer, North American Style Red Ale, North American Style Pale Ale/Bitter, Strong or Belgian Style Ale, and Special Honey/Maple Lager or Ale, and the final round of the Fruit and Vegetable Beer categories. A lot of work, especially the 12 Honey Browns that all tasted pretty much the same. Many of the categories were large enough to be split up between two tables.

It was fun, in that I got to see several old friends who I used to judge with, and drink with, back in the old days. And after the judging was done, we got to tie into the remnants of the competitions to check out some beers with the labels on.

I know that the Phillips Brewing Company in BC will be on my list from now on, any of their beers would be nice to have. And it was funny to see the work that the Pumphouse went to - making labels and bottling many of their brewpub only offerings for the competition. A surprise entry was a growler of The Hart and Thistle's Simcoe SmaSh Double IPA. No idea how it did, though, as I did not judge IPA's.

I'll post the results here as soon as I know them. Here they are! One thing different this year is that the judge score sheets will be sent to the breweries as feedback. All I can hope now is that I didn't slag a beer made by a friend here too bad, or worse, slag a beer I normally like to drink. Maybe there is time to put chicken wire over my windows?

Oh, and the answer? 81. That is how many I did.