• PATRONS: Did you know we've a chat function for you now? Look to the bottom of the screen, you can chat, set up rooms, talk to each other individually or in groups! Click 'Chat' at the right side of the chat window to open the chat up.
  • Love Gotmead and want to see it grow? Then consider supporting the site and becoming a Patron! If you're logged in, click on your username to the right of the menu to see how as little as $30/year can get you access to the patron areas and the patron Facebook group and to support Gotmead!
  • We now have a Patron-exclusive Facebook group! Patrons my join at The Gotmead Patron Group. You MUST answer the questions, providing your Patron membership, when you request to join so I can verify your Patron membership. If the questions aren't answered, the request will be turned down.

Mead Free or Die '17

Barrel Char Wood Products

caduseus

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Aug 20, 2016
675
2
18
Cincinnati
I got to steward this weekend including the best of show.
Lots of good and great meads.
I got to taste the top 3 for BoS. Top 2 were both really high scores and awesome.

If you don't live far away I recommend going next year to volunteer. Great experience even if you are not judging.
 

darigoni

Got Mead? Patron
GotMead Patron
Jun 4, 2016
945
63
28
Brookline, NH
I got to steward this weekend including the best of show.
Lots of good and great meads.
I got to taste the top 3 for BoS. Top 2 were both really high scores and awesome.

If you don't live far away I recommend going next year to volunteer. Great experience even if you are not judging.


Are you still living in Ohio? If so, did you come for the show or combine it with something else?
 

caduseus

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Aug 20, 2016
675
2
18
Cincinnati
I killed 2 birds with one stone. I visited some old friends in Boston I have not seen in years and then came to competition. But the event was the motivation to go.

Yes still in Cincinnati.
 

jeffvenuti

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jan 26, 2015
48
0
6
Bedford, MA
Caduseus, I totally forgot to try to tag real names with GM names, and I thought this morning Darn, I don't know if I met Caduseus, because there were a few people there I didn't get to talk to. But I know who you are now, and glad we met!

I agree, awesome experience. Had intended to steward but wound up judging and got paired with some people with loads of experience that I could learn from. With two of the judges I was paired with we were spot on, never more than 3 points apart which I though was pretty amazing, seeing how that can work, and really helped give some validity to the judging exercise for me and demonstrate that there can be consistency and consensus. With another judge we had to work a little harder to bridge the gap between what we thought of the mead a few times, but for the most part we were taking away the same things and making the same observations, just assigning different numerical values and weights to them.

All in all I think I judged 40 meads, and enjoyed a few more than that. Took home a few real crowd pleasers as parting gifts to enjoy later. And I won my first medal, Gold in Tradition - Dry!

To answer Maylar: Pro BOS winners were a wonderful strawberry mead (semi/sack/still), a very smooth orange blossom with 3 different oranges (semi/standard/still), and a Chambourcin pyment (semi/sack/still)

I'll let caduseus talk about the Home BOS because he was right there taking notes and keeping track of the discussion. He was even able to remind the judges a couple times where they were with their opinions of a some meads that were discussed earlier but had to come back to. He did awesome. And it was a real battle for the judges for the top two placers.

Jeff
 

caduseus

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Aug 20, 2016
675
2
18
Cincinnati
It was nice to meet you too Jeff. Other than Vicky I didn't get to match any GM names with people there. Congrats on gold. That goes double since you did it in a dry category. Not an easy accomplishment.

Honestly the top 2 home were insanely close and scored very high with initial judging.
They tossed around the idea of two first places but ultimately settled on 1st and second.

1st was a peach mead-still,sweet, sack
2nd was a dvoriak (sp?) aged 7 years with walnut flavor-still,sack, sweet

Personally I liked 2nd place better than first. For me that is saying a lot because I prefer dry and the Dvorak was slightly sweeter. That walnut flavor was subtle but awesome.
 
Last edited:

Squatchy

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Nov 3, 2014
5,542
261
83
Denver
That's great you guys were able to experience this. It does make you walk away with more confidence in your own ability. And, I'm sure your really amazed of just how damn good some peoples meads are.

I'd like to encourage you guys to become a certified judge. I'm happy to help both/any of you. Knowing some things about the test and how to set yourself up to take the test would help a lot. I didn't have that kind of help. If I had I would have been less intimidated by the very difficult test.
 

caduseus

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Aug 20, 2016
675
2
18
Cincinnati
That's great you guys were able to experience this. It does make you walk away with more confidence in your own ability. And, I'm sure your really amazed of just how damn good some peoples meads are.

I'd like to encourage you guys to become a certified judge. I'm happy to help both/any of you. Knowing some things about the test and how to set yourself up to take the test would help a lot. I didn't have that kind of help. If I had I would have been less intimidated by the very difficult test.

I may have to take you up on that. I have to take the written first which I wanted to hold off on until I had steward with at least one experience.
 

Squatchy

Lifetime GotMead Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Nov 3, 2014
5,542
261
83
Denver
Caduseus, I totally forgot to try to tag real names with GM names, and I thought this morning Darn, I don't know if I met Caduseus, because there were a few people there I didn't get to talk to. But I know who you are now, and glad we met!

I agree, awesome experience. Had intended to steward but wound up judging and got paired with some people with loads of experience that I could learn from. With two of the judges I was paired with we were spot on, never more than 3 points apart which I though was pretty amazing, seeing how that can work, and really helped give some validity to the judging exercise for me and demonstrate that there can be consistency and consensus. With another judge we had to work a little harder to bridge the gap between what we thought of the mead a few times, but for the most part we were taking away the same things and making the same observations, just assigning different numerical values and weights to them.

All in all I think I judged 40 meads, and enjoyed a few more than that. Took home a few real crowd pleasers as parting gifts to enjoy later. And I won my first medal, Gold in Tradition - Dry!

To answer Maylar: Pro BOS winners were a wonderful strawberry mead (semi/sack/still), a very smooth orange blossom with 3 different oranges (semi/standard/still), and a Chambourcin pyment (semi/sack/still)

I'll let caduseus talk about the Home BOS because he was right there taking notes and keeping track of the discussion. He was even able to remind the judges a couple times where they were with their opinions of a some meads that were discussed earlier but had to come back to. He did awesome. And it was a real battle for the judges for the top two placers.

Jeff

Great job Jeff. Congrats
 

jeffvenuti

Worker Bee
Registered Member
Jan 26, 2015
48
0
6
Bedford, MA
I'd like to encourage you guys to become a certified judge. I'm happy to help both/any of you. Knowing some things about the test and how to set yourself up to take the test would help a lot. I didn't have that kind of help. If I had I would have been less intimidated by the very difficult test.

Okay Squatchy. I'll take you up on that. I've had been looking at the BJCP Mead list of relevant material, and have actually read or skimmed most of it over the past couple years, but have no idea what kind of focus areas an exam would hone in on.

Jeff
 
Barrel Char Wood Products

Viking Brew Vessels - Authentic Drinking Horns