So you wanna be a beer judge?

After years of reading Ron's Corner and drinking many of the beers I have talked and visiting lot of brew pubs do you feel like you know enough about beer to become a certified beer judge? If so, I'll bet you think you're a pretty good judge of beer and have some strong opinions about which beers are good and which ones are bad. If you want to take your beer evaluation skills to the next level, an opportunity is coming up next month to become a card carrying member of a very elite group, and it doesn't look half bad on a resume either.

To become a certified beer judge you need to take a test administered by the Beer Judge Certification Program of the Association of Brewers. While most beer judges are homebrewers, you don't have to be one to be a beer judge. Although it certainly helps when taking the test but you can pick all the brewing stuff through books if you dedicate yourself although homebrewing is a lot more fun. There are many beer judges who are neither home, nor commercial brewers so it can be done.
There's a lot more to judging beer than taking a few gulps and pronouncing it great or not just quite right. To become a card-carrying beer judge, you must pass the test which is a 10 question essay test about beer and you must also judge 4 beers, all in the space of 3 hours. That doesn't sound too tough does it? The truth is that it is a very hard test because there is a lot to know about beer, both in how it is made, it's history, how it is supposed to taste and what any flaws in it are. In a former life I used to be a stockbroker and I had to take tests to become a stockbroker and then to become a supervisor and options principal and I swear that the beer judging test is probably more difficult than the tests I had to take as a broker. That is kind of scary when you think about it. It is probably easier to become a stock broker than it is a beer judge. I don't know how many stockbrokers there are in the United States but there are only 2000 beer judges who have passed the test in the USA. Naturally, an exam about beer is much more interesting and fun than an exam about securities regulations though.
By now you may be thinking that this sounds kind of hard just to get that card that proclaims you're "a real beer judge." And it is. But being a BJCP judge also has its privileges. Many brewers will offer you free samples just to get your opinion of their beers and you can go to beer competitions around the country and drink beer for free. Just think of all the great beers (and yes, some not-so-great beers) that you'll get to drink for free when judging. Additionally, learning more about beer in preparation to pass the exam will enable you to have a greater appreciation for the beers you drink simply for pleasure.
If you're still interested in taking your beer evaluation skills to a higher level, you can contact Ken Saxe at the Homebrew Depot in Mesa who is putting on the test on June 5th. His e-mail is ken@homebrewdepot.net and his phone # is 480-831-3030.
Prost, Ron