<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by PeterD:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by paul h:
Peter, if you want to sample Competition Q then consider being a KCBS judge. You'll have all the access til your heart and belly are content.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I'd love to...if there were any KCBS-sanctioned events near me! My wife and I are pretty well stuck in the North Jersey area due to on-call work requirements. Even getting into Manhattan is a stretch some days. If there were comps nearby, I'd have either been lined up to judge a long time ago or I'd have been cooking in them!
But to go back to the thread, the only real option around here are NYC-based Q-joints, which cater to NYC's "upscale" tastes and are at NYC prices. Two beers, 4 bones and a side worked out to $45, and it was awful.
Kevin, you bring up an interesting connundrum, and I'm interested in how others view it. If comp Q is that over-the-top and artificial ("not something one wants to eat more of") and restaurant Q is more often than not a saucy slab of poorly prepared pork products, then where is the "benchmark" barbecue to be had? Where are the real "standards" to be had?
We can ooh and ahh at the scrumptous pics on TVWBB (and I do, oh, I do--y'all make some awesome lookin' food here folks). However, where does one find ribs, brisket, pulled pork and chicken done in a way that serious barbecue fans would say " that is the best slab-o-Q I've ever et?" </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I don't necessarily share Kevin's opinion of comp que. It has a lot to do with personal taste. Sure, some entries can be over the top, but many aren't. What you do get out of comp entries, at least the good ones, is very-well cooked barbecue. The flavors may be geared to make that one bite "pop," but that doesn't mean it's "not something one wants to eat more of." In fact, competition chicken is probably the only grilled/smoked chicken I like any more. The best brisket I've ever had came from a comp.
From my perspective, I think a lot of competitors latch on to an idea of what they think competition que has to be and the result is a lot of similar-tasting entries. I can't tell you how many pieces of chicken or ribs I've had that taste like a friggin candy apple! However, I've had plenty that were well-balanced, perfectly cooked and just amazing.
Your point about "standards" is a very sticky one. If you look at the sanctioning agencies like KCBS and MBN, you'll get different opinions. So the "standard" is subjective. If you think your que is better than any you've tasted, who can argue with you? They might not agree, but that doesn't mean you're wrong. Just reiterates the fact that there are a lot of tastes out there.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by paul h:
Peter, if you want to sample Competition Q then consider being a KCBS judge. You'll have all the access til your heart and belly are content.
I'd love to...if there were any KCBS-sanctioned events near me! My wife and I are pretty well stuck in the North Jersey area due to on-call work requirements. Even getting into Manhattan is a stretch some days. If there were comps nearby, I'd have either been lined up to judge a long time ago or I'd have been cooking in them!
But to go back to the thread, the only real option around here are NYC-based Q-joints, which cater to NYC's "upscale" tastes and are at NYC prices. Two beers, 4 bones and a side worked out to $45, and it was awful.
Kevin, you bring up an interesting connundrum, and I'm interested in how others view it. If comp Q is that over-the-top and artificial ("not something one wants to eat more of") and restaurant Q is more often than not a saucy slab of poorly prepared pork products, then where is the "benchmark" barbecue to be had? Where are the real "standards" to be had?
We can ooh and ahh at the scrumptous pics on TVWBB (and I do, oh, I do--y'all make some awesome lookin' food here folks). However, where does one find ribs, brisket, pulled pork and chicken done in a way that serious barbecue fans would say " that is the best slab-o-Q I've ever et?" </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I don't necessarily share Kevin's opinion of comp que. It has a lot to do with personal taste. Sure, some entries can be over the top, but many aren't. What you do get out of comp entries, at least the good ones, is very-well cooked barbecue. The flavors may be geared to make that one bite "pop," but that doesn't mean it's "not something one wants to eat more of." In fact, competition chicken is probably the only grilled/smoked chicken I like any more. The best brisket I've ever had came from a comp.
From my perspective, I think a lot of competitors latch on to an idea of what they think competition que has to be and the result is a lot of similar-tasting entries. I can't tell you how many pieces of chicken or ribs I've had that taste like a friggin candy apple! However, I've had plenty that were well-balanced, perfectly cooked and just amazing.
Your point about "standards" is a very sticky one. If you look at the sanctioning agencies like KCBS and MBN, you'll get different opinions. So the "standard" is subjective. If you think your que is better than any you've tasted, who can argue with you? They might not agree, but that doesn't mean you're wrong. Just reiterates the fact that there are a lot of tastes out there.
