Which BJCP style should I enter my beer?

[GloridazeBrewing]

Recently made a Vienna lager. It was intentionally hoppier than a Negra Modello. Going for more of a Brooklyn Lager. Beersmith says the IBUs were within the style guidelines. My pallet says that it's too hoppy for the style. I ended up with less beer than I should have so maybe the actual IBUs are more than the recipe called for. Any suggestions for entering into competition? Stick with Vienna Lager? Go for a Specialty Beer?

[BDawg]

I'd consider entering as a Cal Common, but it may not score well if the flavor profile doesn't line up.
Otherwise, specialty is the place for it. Be sure to be specific in the entry form how you describe it.
"Hoppy East Coast style amber lager" kind of covers both Sam Adams and Brooklyn. If you used noble-type hops, be sure to say so, as calling it "American" tends to (wrongly) lead judges to look for citrusy hops. You need to be specific in your description so that they judge it with the proper profile in mind.

HTH-

[brewinhard]

If you are unsure, why not enter it in specialty as described above, as well as in the vienna lager category. Your scores will help to pinpoint where it fits better. Who knows, by the time the judges taste it the bitterness may have mellowed out some.

[dmtaylor]

I agree with BDawg. It's a hoppy East coast amber lager ala Sam Adams. As such, per the 2008 BJCP Guidelines, it fits no style but 23 Specialty. I'm hoping there will be clear-cut guidance for these beers in the 2014 version coming out in a few months.

[GloridazeBrewing]

Thanks for the suggestions. I entered it as a specially beer but mentioned hoppy and vienna lager in the description. The description turned out to be a mistake since the Vienna malt didn't come through. I spoke with the judge after. It really didn't fit any style. He seemed to feel it was a clean beer with no flaws other than the recipe. Since the flavor itself didn't really stand out as a great beer, it only merited a 25 & 27 on the scoresheet. A little disappointed, but at least there were no process problems to correct.

[brewinhard]

Did they suggest which category it might have scored better in?

[BDawg]

In my experience, If you shoot for a "conventional" style (like Vienna Lager in this case) and miss due to out-of-balance issues (too hoppy, too malty, etc), usually (not always, but usually) the beer won't do all that well in another category either. Some targets are close enough that its ok to switch(Scottish ales, English pale ales, things like that come to mind), but usually they are very distinct. Specialty is even worse. If you think about it, that's where guys specifically target things like "coffee and chocolate American stout". A wayward too-hoppy Vienna isn't really going to be able to compete with all those beers that were deliberately brewed to compete in specialty.

Competition brewing is somewhat like archery or darts. You aim for a bullseye at one target, but if your arrow/dart lands on an adjacent target, it likely isn't very close to that other target's bullseye either. Usually its in an outer ring or stuck in the wall between them.

That said, comps are still pretty good for getting feedback, if there aren't any judges close by you that you can get to taste your beer. I know some folks enter beers simply for the diagnosis they can get. However, the best feedback for troubleshooting a problem is to taste the beer with the troubleshooter so he can ask you questions about processes and ingredients as he goes. You can't do that in a competition.

Best scenario - Study up and become a judge yourself so you can evaluate and troubleshoot your own beers without having to go out to get someone else's opinion. That's what prompted me to become a judge.

Hope all that makes sense.

[EagleDude]

Competition brewing is somewhat like archery or darts. You aim for a bullseye at one target, but if your arrow/dart lands on an adjacent target, it likely isn't very close to that other target's bullseye either. Usually its in an outer ring or stuck in the wall between them.

That said, comps are still pretty good for getting feedback, if there aren't any judges close by you that you can get to taste your beer. I know some folks enter beers simply for the diagnosis they can get. However, the best feedback for troubleshooting a problem is to taste the beer with the troubleshooter so he can ask you questions about processes and ingredients as he goes. You can't do that in a competition.

Best scenario - Study up and become a judge yourself so you can evaluate and troubleshoot your own beers without having to go out to get someone else's opinion. That's what prompted me to become a judge.

Hope all that makes sense.

I completely agree with BDAWG. I would suggest always bottling at least one extra beer of anything that you enter into a competition so that you can drink that beer while reading through the score sheets/comments. Better yet, save 2 extra bottles and fill out a scoresheet yourself prior when the judging is taking place and drink the second when reviewing results/comparing your own notes. You do learn a lot going through the BJCP process and even more when actually judging beers, so if at all interested become a judge.