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Maybe I will join one of these when I at least have a red that has two years under it's belt. My first will hit two years in March, but in truth. I think that is my least favorite that I've made thus far.
 
Maybe I will join one of these when I at least have a red that has two years under it's belt. My first will hit two years in March, but in truth. I think that is my least favorite that I've made thus far.

I thought the same exact thing. But wanted to do it anyway just for the fun of it. It’s only 12 months. And at the very least I’ll have some notes from people who’s opinion I value highly.
 
Maybe I will join one of these when I at least have a red that has two years under it's belt. My first will hit two years in March, but in truth. I think that is my least favorite that I've made thus far.

David,

If you're on the fence, just do it (although I think the tasting is in two days). The last one they did, they tried to take into account the wine's age (IIRC).
 
David,

If you're on the fence, just do it (although I think the tasting is in two days). The last one they did, they tried to take into account the wine's age (IIRC).

It's probably too late get the bottles there in time for this one.

That said, when they say a split. They are talking about 375ml? Speaking off, I need to buy some more as I always bottle a couple for age tasting along the way.
 
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This year, we had a light turn out of 19 entries that were organized into 5 different flights and were rated by a panel of 6 judges using the UC Davis scoring method. Over-all, the wines were very well received by the judges.

The accounting firm of DOWE, CHEATEM, and HOWE are currently tabulating the result. I will post them shortly.
 
Competition summary.....

Saturday morning was spent getting ready for the competition: general cleaning, straightening up, washing and hand polishing tasting glasses, and preparing a meal (for 12) to be eaten afterwards.

The competition began at 2:30pm and lasted approximately 2 ½ hours. The entries were divided into 5 flights, with a 10 minute break in between flights to rest the pallet and empty the spit buckets. The judges used the sip/swirl/spit method of tasting to avoid getting destroyed.

The judges were largely impressed with the wines that were presented. They did comment on a trend toward the use of dark toasted oak during the aging process, and that in some cases seemed to be a bit overpowering.

After the competition, we all had a chance to relax over some appetizers and wine (sans the spit bucket). We all then sat down to a dinner of my version of beef bourguignon followed by apple pie. It was a nice hardy meal for those that have been tasting wine all afternoon.

Once dinner was over, those of us that remained settled into a viewing of “bottle shock”.. (Yeah, I know, a little hokey, but it was what they wanted to watch) and of course a little more wine.

By 10pm, it was all over and the last of the judges had gone home.

Folks, I am truly grateful for the honor and privilege of tasting your wines. I know the work, dedication, and passion it takes to make a good wine and that has definitely shown in the wines that we tasted.

In the next several weeks, I will be sending out the awarded medals and original scorecards. I again say congratulations to all of you
 
A Final confession

A week ago, I was talking to my younger brother who suggested that I enter a bottle of my wine into the competition. I told him that this would be unethical, since I am a judge.

But, this got me thinking. I have known most of the judges for quite some time and have only received positive feedback from them when they have tasted my wines. If I were to enter one of my wines as a last, final entry (so to not influence anything), while making sure that no one knew it was mine (keeping it blind), I could get a more honest and critical review. This was too good of an opportunity to pass up!

So, welcome new fictitious member @welches11. He entered just a single wine, a 2014 barrel reserve cabernet.

The other judges did not suspect a thing. Taking only the scores from the other 5 judges, my entry ended up with a score of 17.85. This would have qualified me for 4th place and a silver medal. The judges felt my wine was a little too sharp/acidic. OK! Alright! An honest assessment. I will have to remember this the next time I do my acid trials.

Then came the fun part, letting the judges in on the fact that they had evaluated my wine. When I told them that I would have placed forth, they roared with laughter.
 
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