My score from Home-brew Alley XII

[FedoraDave]

My smoked amber ale scored a 28.

Disappointing, but not surprising, given the residual acidity nesting in my carboy. I haven't seen the judge's sheets yet, but I expect the usual comments about the sourness getting in the way of the malt.

The good news is that I have new carboys now, and I've already found a competition nearby being held mid-May. So I have time to brew another batch of both the smoked amber and the California Common and enter them.

And I chalk these competitions up to experience and move on.

[FedoraDave]

I was able to print out the judges' scoresheets last night. As I expected, most of the comments were about the acidic taste, as I figured, and suggestions for better cleaning and sanitation. Again, I knew about this, and I've got new carboys now, which I'll be a lot more careful with.

Some comments mentioned not enough hops, but that's a subjective opinion, and one I'll have to live with for those particular judges in this particular competition. According to BrewToad's analysis of the recipe, everything conforms to the ranges for an American Amber Ale. I didn't want it to be very hoppy. For the most part, I used milder hops, and/or small amounts. Brief mention of the smoke not being strong enough, but as I drank this beer, I felt the smoke was masked by the acid sour. The previous batch I'd made had no acidity, and the smoke aroma and flavor were spot-on. I say this recognizing that, since I smoke the grains myself, the influence is going to be inconsistent and vary from batch to batch, but I doubt it would be enough to make a big difference.

Well, I knew going in that this wasn't going to be a stellar competition for me. A 28 is the high end of "good," bordering on "very good." So I'll be making a new batch in a couple of weeks and entering it in a competition to be held in May. I'll report on that when the time comes.