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Beer Judge Certification Program

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The Beer Judge Certification Program or BJCP is a non-profit[1] organization formed in 1985 "to promote beer literacy and the appreciation of real beer, and to recognize beer tasting and evaluation skills." It has been described in the press as a "hands-on ... study program designed to teach aspiring beer enthusiasts about the essence of any kind of beer".[2] The BJCP certifies[3] and ranks beer judges through an examination and monitoring process.[4] Membership is limited to beer judges who have taken the BJCP exam.[5]

Purpose

The BJCP has three functions within the US beer community. First, it provides a standards-based organization supplying qualified judges to both amateur and commercial brewing competitions designed to promote the appreciation of beer styles and their accurate production by brewers. The BJCP tracks members' participation as judges, organizers, or stewards in BJCP-sanctioned brewing competitions and awards continuing education units for participation.

The BJCP also publishes style guidelines categorizing beer, mead, cider, and perry into twenty-eight style categories. These guidelines are used in both the examination of Beer Judges and Mead Judges by the BJCP and, voluntarily, by brewing competition organizers; the BJCP also encourages prospective test-takers to study the available literature on styles and brewing. The most recent revision of the style guidelines was published in February 2008, a relatively minor revision to the 2004 style guidelines.[6]

In April 2012 the BJCP introduced a new exam structure where all new judges will complete the Beer Judge entrance exam (online) rather than taking the legacy exam (in person). The Legacy exam consisted of ten essay questions and blindly judging four beers. With the new exam structure judges must complete the Beer Judge entrance examination (200 questions, 60 minutes) which is pass or fail. After passing the Beer Judge entrance examination a new judge needs to complete the Beer Judging examination (blindly judge 6 beers) within one year. A judge can only obtain a rank of Apprentice, Recognized or Certified with the combination of these two exams. In order to obtain a rank of National or Master a judge must complete the Beer Judge Written Proficiency examination. In order to move up in rank from Master to Grand Master a judge must earn more experience points and also must complete Grand Master service requirements. Each additional Grand Master rank (I, II, III, etc.) requires more experience points and more Grand Master service requirements.

Organization

Judges are ranked within the certification program based upon a combination their score on a standardized certification test and experience points received for participating in sanctioned competition program events, in BJCP exams, or continuing education program events.[4] The ranks include "apprentice", "recognized", "certified", "national", "master", several levels of "grand master", and "honorary grand master".[7] The BJCP also certifies judges in mead. Cider certification is being considered. New judges that have passed the online entrance examination are Provisional judges but are not considered BJCP-ranked judges. Provisional judges have one year to take the the Beer judging examination which consists of blindly judging 6 different beers. Upon completing the Beer judging examination their score plus any experience points will determine their rank (Apprentice, Recognized or Certified). In order to achieve a rank of National or Master a judge must complete the Written Proficiency examination which consists of 20 true/false questions and 5 essay questions. In order to be eligible to take the Written Proficiency examination a judge must have a Beer judging score of 80 or higher and have at least 10 judging experience points.

Influence

Its standards for beers have been cited by the Wall Street Journal[8] and by Zymurgy, the journal of home beer brewing,[9][10][11][12] among others.[13][14][15]

History

The BJCP was founded in 1985, when the first exam was given at the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) annual conference in Estes Park, Colorado. During its formative years, the program was jointly sponsored by the AHA and the Home Wine and Beer Trade Association (HWBTA). Both organizations sanctioned local homebrew competitions, and each had a national competition. Consequently, both were interested in fostering the improvement of judging skills and building up a pool of experienced beer judges. The program was administered at the AHA offices, and there were two Co-Directors, one from each association. Jim Homer was the AHA Co-Director, and Pat Baker served the same role for the HWBTA.[16]

In August 1995, after a successful ten year history, support was withdrawn by the AHA, which had intentions of starting its own beer judging program. The HWBTA was unable to continue operating the program by itself, so the BJCP was expected to simply fade away. However, a considerable number of judges had been built up by this time, and many of them were quite active. A small number of these activists decided that the program could be operated solely by volunteers from among themselves, and decided to attempt the continuation of the BJCP as an independent entity.

The effort was coordinated in a haphazard fashion, mainly through e-mail, but a consensus gradually emerged and the program was able to continue its growth. A Board of Directors was established to guide the program, composed of six (currently seven) Regional Representatives elected by members from each of seven geographical regions throughout North America. The U.S. was divided into geographic regions, and an election for the Board of Directors was held by mailing ballots to members.[17]

Assisting the Board was program administrator Russ Wigglesworth, who remained in his post and assumed the duties of maintaining the database of members, sending program materials to competition organizers, providing certificates and pins to new and newly promoted judges, and performing other essential administrative tasks. Wigglesworth remains in his position, but began to transfer his duties to other members in 2004 and as of 2006 this transfer is nearly complete.

In the early years, there were regional elections for the Board, conducted entirely by postal ballot, and a newsletter was published for several years to inform the membership. An annual letter was also sent by the Program Administrator to each member, listing the experience points earned from judging in various competitions. These activities are now done electronically, with the BJCP website serving as the repository of information including a password-protected section where members can check their personal record, and website voting, competition registration, and point reporting.

In 2007, former BJCP Treasurer William R. Slack was indicted for mail fraud in the District Court of the District of New Hampshire.[1][18] Slack later entered a plea agreement. Mr. Slack admitted that he misappropriated BJCP funds steadily during his tenure as BJCP Treasurer.[3] Mr. Slack was sentenced to (1) restitution of approximately $43K, (2) five years probation, and (3) incarceration of one week per month for twelve months.[19]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b http://www.bjcp.org/docs/indictment.pdf
  2. ^ Roberts, Jim (August 28-September 3, 1997). "Enhance Your Beer Smarts: The rigorous training of a beer judge (as archived by www.webarchive.org on Feb 18, 2005)". Anchorage Press. Archived from the original on 2005-02-18. Retrieved 2008-03-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ a b Wolfe, Andrew (December 27, 2008). "Man says he stole from beer judges". Nashua Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-02-16.
  4. ^ a b Mullen, Katherine (September 11, 2008). "Trained judges determine best home brews at fair". Gazette.net. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  5. ^ Athens News Staff (May 11, 2008). "Brew Week preparations include sudsy training for beer judges". The Athens News. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  6. ^ Frequently Asked Questions About The BJCP
  7. ^ "BJCP Membership Guide". Beer Judge Certification Program. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  8. ^ Wells, Ken, "Weekend Journal; Eating & Drinking: The Pursuit of Hoppiness; Seeking the Bitterest of Beer, We Try India Pale Ale; Why Bigger Brew Is In," Wall Street Journal. (Eastern edition). New York, N.Y.: August 13, 2004. pg. W.6
  9. ^ "Irish red ale." Anonymous. Zymurgy. Boulder: January/February 2005.Vol.28, Iss. 1; pg. 13
  10. ^ Strong, Gordon, "So you want to be a beer judge." Zymurgy. Boulder: July/August 2004.Vol.27, Iss. 4; pg. 44
  11. ^ Glass, Gary, "Club finds better brew through judging." Zymurgy. Boulder: November/December 2002.Vol.25, Iss. 6; pg. 11
  12. ^ Wolfe, Edward W. and Leith, Thomas R. "Calibrating judges as remote locations: The palate calibration project," Zymurgy. Boulder: November/December 2000.Vol.23, Iss. 6; pg. 39
  13. ^ Talbot, Chris (April 28, 2010). "Muskoka Cottage Brewery launches Mixer 5 Pack, new Pilsner". Examiner.com. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  14. ^ "New Samuel Adams LongShot Variety Six-Pack Hits Shelves Nationwide Featuring Winning Brews From 2009 American Homebrew Contest". PRNewswire. April 8, 2010. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
  15. ^ Sixpack, Joe (April 30, 2010). "This contest beckons brewers who walk on the wild side". Philly.com. Retrieved 2010-05-02. [dead link]
  16. ^ The BJCP's Birth Revisited
  17. ^ Beer Judge Certification Program Reorganizes (originally appeared in Brewing Techniques, Vol. 3, No. 3, May/June 1995)
  18. ^ http://www.bjcp.org/docs/AH_Slack.pdf
  19. ^ http://www.bjcp.org/docs/Slack_Judgment.PDF
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