Cowtown Yeast Wranglers

Tony L · February 10, 2011, 09:00:34 PM

The deadline for entries into the Cowtown Yeast Wranglers annual Roundup competition is drawing near. Entries must be received by noon Feb 19th at the Wild Rose Brewery in Calgary.

Anyone else entered?

I entered a couple of brews and a buddy who once was head brewer at the Wild Rose also entered a beer. I sent both our entries tonight.

Also as a side note, entries are being accepted for the Canadian leg of the NHC which is hosted by the ALES club in Sask. I plan on a couple of entries there also.

Richard · February 10, 2011, 09:04:37 PM

Pretty sure that legally speaking, we're unable to transport our brews to Calgary. This situation is currently being addressed

Tony L · February 10, 2011, 09:06:11 PM

Well leagally speaking, I'm probably in the same situation....

Richard · February 10, 2011, 09:12:23 PM

There was an "official" (from someone in an office) letter that one of us (Dave) received to the effect of "yes there's a law, but we don't enforce it".

Talk about confusing.

If you check out some of the other threads, some of FCBA's members (notably Dave, Kyle, and I think Thomas) have been actively trying to petition for the law to be reconciled with reality. We shall see how that progresses. In the meanwhile, it would seem you're OK (unofficially).

(This doesn't constitute legal advice; I probably have no idea what I'm talking about, really)

Personally, I only recently started producing beers which I was proud of, so had not considered entering into any competitions. (I have the palates of the FCBA to guide me in quality+technique control).

Tony L · February 10, 2011, 09:23:40 PM

Well it is always nice to win a medal, but in my case this isn't always the case.
I enter beers I am currently drinking and get some valuable feedback from experienced judges. Now not every judge that rates my beer is going to be experienced in all aspects of the brew, but I'm glad to say that out of all the brews I have entered into competiotions, I have yet to say I disagree with the senior judge. As for the other judges... they'll get better with time.

This year don't look good for the annual March in Montreal comp. Nothing on the radar yet.

Points you accumulate in regional/national comps also count toward Canadian Homebrewer of the Year awards. http://www.canadianbreweroftheyear.com/

Dave Savoie · February 10, 2011, 09:25:09 PM

Very nice tony I would like to start doing this once I am able to set up better brew area (my sis is donating her garage when i move !!!!

Richard · February 10, 2011, 09:26:26 PM

We're gunning for being able to hold competitions more locally. Whilst I am not by any means criticising the experience of other Province's judges, it follows that breadth of locality and prestige of competition be related... if not for practicality's sake than anything else.

Tony L · February 10, 2011, 09:39:17 PM

Quote from: "Dave Savoie"Very nice tony I would like to start doing this once I am able to set up better brew area (my sis is donating her garage when i move !!!!

It would be nice to see more Maritimers enter and win medals at Canadian competitions. I know there is great beer out there. All you have to do is tear yourself away from a couple of bottles of brew and enter.

Richard · February 10, 2011, 09:39:42 PM

Not that I'm suggesting that this is deliberately biased, but:

http://www.canadianbreweroftheyear.com/history.htm

"The idea behind the Canadian Brewer of the Year award initially started floating around at executive meetings of the Edmonton Homebrewers Guild in 2008"

and the top 10 by clubs from http://www.canadianbreweroftheyear.com/oldwinners.htm

Edmonton Homebrewers Guild (EHG)    188
Ale and Lager Enthusiasts of Saskatchewan (ALES)    139
Cowtown Yeast Wranglers (CTYW)    119
Lethbridge Werthogs    79
VanBrewer    48
Beershack Brewers    29
MontreAlers    19
Biergotter    4
Institut De La Biere    3
Bierophlie    3
Would suggest that unless we are to believe that proximity to Edmonton is key to being worthy of competition, locality (and hence accessibility) of competitions has a large part to play in success.

Tony L · February 10, 2011, 09:46:21 PM

Richard it is hard to disagree with you, but I think it is due to the fact of a strong homebrewing community out west that is more organized with talented judges and a large memberships.

Some of these guys win medals in the US comp, like Mark Heise who won a silver in the final of the NHC last year.

I have never won a medal west of Toronto, but the scores I get are really up there. The more people who enter a particular catagory, the harder it is to medal. A difference of 1 point could mean a medal or just a good score.

Richard · February 10, 2011, 09:55:34 PM

Quote from: "Tony L"Richard it is hard to disagree with you, but I think it is due to the fact of a strong homebrewing community out west that is more organized with talented judges and a large memberships.

Agree 100%. The "scene" out here is weak (individuals are not, but we are weak in number).

Quote from: "Tony L"Some of these guys win medals in the US comp, like Mark Heise who won a silver in the final of the NHC last year.

And we need a similarly strong base. Whilst it is easy to pick paragons from a numerous base, the same is not true of a fragmented and largely self-unaware base as exists in the Maritimes. It is my hope that technology (the internet) fixes this, and I'm personally willing to throw in my technical weight to help this happen. With the passion of those I have met in and around the FCBA and related groups, I am certain this effort can only grow.

Quote from: "Tony L"I have never won a medal west of Toronto, but the scores I get are really up there. The more people who enter a particular catagory, the harder it is to medal. A difference of 1 point could mean a medal or just a good score.

I was only commenting on the locality of the points tracked for the "Canadian Homebrewer of the Year". I don't personally believe that saturation in a particular domain is indicative of mediocrity. Moreso that true excellence is harder to achieve, meaning that excellence itself is a greater goal... More people means setting the bar for greatness higher: this does not diminish anyone except in title.

I'll shut up now

Richard · February 10, 2011, 10:06:12 PM

Please do not think I missed your point that experienced judges are an excellent resource for the teaching and greater experience of others... I just mean that this is a skill-set we should be looking to cultivate locally, probably with influence from those further afield.

Kyle · February 10, 2011, 10:28:51 PM

Legally, we can't do it.... but Public Safety is supporting our attempt to get this rule changed.

Jmac00 · February 10, 2011, 10:57:49 PM

isn't it also illegal to send alcohol in the mail? curious how you shipped your entries? loop hole?

Shawn · February 11, 2011, 09:46:59 AM

I agree with Tony here as well; there wouldn't be a bias at any competition if they're done correctly. They ARE done blind, after all. Each sample would be assigned a random ID number; there wouldn't be any names, locations, etc. noted on the sample to bias the judges.

As for the shipping, is it 100% legal? Probably not, but as you've all mentioned, a blind eye is turned. How do all these Canadian samples make it to the NHC in the U.S. (which is a whole other ballpark as opposed to shipping within Canada)? Everyone claims that the item is either "Collectable glassware" or "Live yeast samples".

And there ARE Atlantic homebrew clubs that have SOME points for the Canadian Brewer of the Year last year... and I'm sure these points will increase as more people start to homebrew.