# Cellarmasters 40th



## dangerdave

Cellarmasters of LA announce their _40th Annual U.S. Amateur Winemaking Competition._

http://cellarmastersla.org/us-amateur-wine-competition/

This was the first competition I ever entered, so I'm going to make it a tradition for me. They are in for a treat this year!


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## Boatboy24

Sounds cool.

Who are the judges - are they certified in any way?


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## joeswine

*Cellarmasters*

_CELLARMASTERSTHIS WILL BE THE FIRST CONPETITION I WILL ENTER THIS YEAR......................_
_ 1,COFFEE PORT_
_ 2,SANGIOVESE_
_ 3,ALMOND WINE _




_ thanks Dave for the info._


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## dangerdave

The coffee port is a sure winner, Joe. Good luck---ziff yule need it!


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## Runningwolf

Folks I entered this competition for several years taking home golds and best of shows. Of all the competitions in the country this is the first one I would enter again if I was entering wines. Since I went professional I no longer enter. I not only entered their competition I joined their club for the newsletter. This club is a class act and the entry fees are reasonable. I absolutely endorse this competition!!!!!!!


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## Pumpkinman

This might be one that i'll enter.
Thanks guys.


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## joeswine

*wolfman*

what would be the best categories to enter the almond wine in and the coffee port in your oppion?


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## dangerdave

I see they have added more classes of wine this year, making it easier to classify your beverage.

Joe, if the _almond wine_ is dry (I presume it is), it would fall under Class 4: Dry Other and letter 'c' (other). So, it should be labelled *4 - c - Almond*.

The _coffee port_ is an after dinner wine (aperitif), no? That's Class 7, and since it's made from grapes, it's subclass 'a'. So, label it as *7 - a - Coffee Port*.

That should get them to where they belong. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.


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## WI_Wino

I found it interesting that they group all kit/concentrate wines into one and not by the varietal. I've never entered any competition, is that normal?


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## joeswine

*Almond wine//coffee port*

_THE almond wine is definitely sweet, would you not to expect the coffee port to be a desert wine also? I'm confused just don't want to place it were it shouldn't be, what do you think?_


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## Simpsini

Dave - Thanks for the info


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## dangerdave

joeswine said:


> _THE almond wine is definitely sweet, would you not to expect the coffee port to be a desert wine also? I'm confused just don't want to place it were it shouldn't be, what do you think?_


 
Ok, my mistake.

Sweet Almond Wine: *5 - f - Almond*

The Dessert and Aperitif wines are in the same catagory, so keep it: 
*7 - a - Coffee Port*

That should do it, Joe! Good luck, my friend!


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## joeswine

*Cellarmasters*

thanks Dave ,they'll go out oct.1st.


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## jswordy

Hmmmm... might be worth a bottle...


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## joeswine

*On there way*

* SENT* three off today hope these make it there in tact, almond wine,coffee port and sangiovese best of luck if your in also.


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## hobbyiswine

Last year this was the first competition I ever entered. Time flies. Guess I need to see what's on the shelf that...
A) is competition worthy
B) is still on the shelf

Seems most of the good ones have a habit of disappearing but I will find a few bottles to send in. Best of luck to all. I enjoyed the notes, medals, etc from last year and will be supporting this contest again.


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## dangerdave

FYI---Judging is this Saturday! The web site says the results will be posted "promptly".

I wonder how long _that_ is!


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## joeswine

*cellarmasters*

* ME TOO..................................* IT'S NOW THE 25TH.


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## jswordy

Joe, you got two bronze medals for your sangiovese and coffee port! Congratulations! PLUS an honorable mention for the almond!

As for me, two entries and two silver medals! My Moonshiners Muscadine and Blues Brothers blueberry muscadine were all I entered and took the medals.

I didn't see other names I recognized on first perusal of the list but that doesn't mean we don't have winning members. I don't know everryone's last name. Going through it again now!


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## tonyt

Congrats Y'all. Looks like I pulled a silver for my Mosti Renaissance Nero D'Avola. I am very proud, to me this one of the most challenging competitions.

Edit: I forgot that I also entered a RJS Valpolicella. Went back through the list to find it received a bronze. So that was two for two, silver and bronze.


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## Brew and Wine Supply

I got a rock


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## Fabiola

Congratulaton to all the winners!!!


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## sour_grapes

Congrats to all WMT medal winners, and, for that matter, to all the WMT entrants who took home honor, if not hardware.


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## tonyt

Now for the judges comments. Always a time for reflection.


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## jswordy

The judges' comments were a reason I entered.


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## dangerdave

I pulled down a Gold this year for my German Muller-Thurgau. This was a slightly tweaked Vintner's Reserve World Vineyard kit I made early last year. It aged beautifully in the bottle. A crisp, delightful, off-dry white. Thanks to my wonderful wife for suggesting I send that one in!

I also got a Bronze for my black currant infused Cabernet Sauvignon, made from a Chilean juice bucket I got from Luva Bella in this past spring. It's yummy!

Congrats to all the entrants who won medals! Great job, everyone!


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## Crinton

I was lucky enough to get two silvers: one for a Cellar Craft Showcase Old Vine Zinfandel and the other for a RJS coffee port.

I must thank Joeswine (again) as one of my wine making heroes. I used his suggested tweaks to improve the coffee port. They improved it a lot. 

Joe: did you put your coffee port through a barrel? I used a 3 gallon Vadai and think that may have helped (degassing, rounding out flavors, additional oak, etc.). I have the Black Forest port fermenting now and plan on doing the same.


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## sour_grapes

Crinton, may I ask what tweaks (if any) you did on the CC Showcase OVZ? Thanks!


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## Crinton

Sure thing. I checked my notes and made the following tweaks:

- swapped out the yeast for Wyeast's bordeaux wet yeast slap pack (I don't think this made a big difference)
- added 2 tsp of tannin
- used a 3 gallon Vadai barrel. Each half of the 6 gallon batch saw two months of barrel time as I was still breaking it in. This made the biggest difference. My wife and I had to stop drinking directly from the barrel since it was so good! (topped up with other wine)

I know a lot of people are on the fence on getting a barrel as they might not make enough wine to keep a barrel full. One solution to that is using barolkleen to strip it and start with a neutral barrel. Some consider this sacrilegious, but I like managing oak & micro-ox separately. I didn't do that with my first barrel, but did do it with barrels #2 & #3.

Hope that helps.


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## sour_grapes

Dear Crinton, thank you for taking the trouble to pull out your notes. So far, I used RC212, and 1 tbsp tannin, and it is aging in a carboy. I may yet add some oak cubes, based on your comments. Thanks!


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## jswordy

Congrats to the winners who have more recently posted! WMT was well represented!


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## Runningwolf

Jim I couldn't agree more. Great Job everyone. In my opinion this is the best competition in the country when you consider the cost and all. This is also an awesome wine club and well worth joining for there newsletter and your support.


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## dangerdave

Once again, Congrats to the medal winners.

And I've tried Joe's award winning coffee port. I gotta make me one of them!


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## joeswine

*A Win by Any Other Name*

* Well guys, the truth is*, I wasn't happy with the results may be its because both the sangiovese and the coffee port have both done well on their own, in other places however with that being said a win is a win no matter what, I've read these findings before and sometimes they don't make any sense, but that's the way it goes there is always next contest. Right now looking towards Hammonton or the greater Kansas City that was the one where my bottles were crushed before they got there, maybe that was an omen?

*Once again congratulations to all , *But a win is a win regardless of the ranking and I'm truly glad to see* that winemaking talks, showed up and showed to **win, and on to the next. *


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## jswordy

That's what makes for motivation, Joe. The whole reason I entered in LA is because I felt my wines were better than one disqualification due to a rule not yet in the rulebook until 2014 and one third place, which is what I got at the county fair locally. That motivated me, even though I had not been much of a contest enthusiast. I have just enough 750 ml bottles of muscadine now for two more contests.


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## joeswine

*competitions*

I understand what your saying ,yet, at this venue I can't get beyond 3rd place, I entered in 2008 and 2009 ,finished all three wines in third. If you notice not to many people don't finish? that can be a good thing or not, I'll keep on pushing my fare and see what happens, there's always another contest.


 the other factor is I don't like being in third....................


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## Crinton

Hey Joe,

Once the judges' scoring sheets arrive, let's post them to this thread. It would be good to compare notes on the same kit. Others might also want to see them.

In the mean time I'll make some predictions:

- I'll bet your coffee port just missed the cutoff for a silver. I still think of your coffee port as the gold standard. 
- Some of the lowering of scores are from areas I wouldn't consider a defect. I tend not to filter my wines, so clarity may have taken a hit.

Care to make any predictions?


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## joeswine

*Criton*

I have always shared my scores in the past and will do so again it's good to see how different judges qualify and disqualify you in different areas but remember it's all subjective not personal even though you could take it that way and sometimes I do because it isn't about me and my product but a vessel makes me what I yes I will post them I did last time and so investors it would be good to see what others have to say.


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## joeswine

*scoring????????????????*




 has any one gotten any info back yet?


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## tonyt

Not yet Joe.


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## dangerdave

The Cellarmasters of LA web site says, "Medals and judging sheets will be sent via US mail after the January 9th Cellarmasters meeting."


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## jswordy

Got home tonight and was delighted to find my medals and judges' comments in the mailbox. Overall, the comments were very encouraging. I laughed heartily when I actually got dinged several points for having a "musky" taste to my muscadine wine! 

I have to make some allowances, though, since they probably don't get to taste muscadine all that much out there and are highly attuned to viniferas. But seriously, the comments are going to be very, very helpful in my future winemaking. They are brief but educational. It looks like my wines scored mid-field for silver medal on average (17 of 18), which I think is pretty solid for a wine being tasted outside its native region by a longshot and a winemaker who never before entered a contest outside his own county.

I'll enter again. I await the impressions of some others as they come in...

Time for a glass to celebrate!


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## Brew and Wine Supply

waiting for mine.


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## jswordy

One judge awarded my blueberry muscadine a perfect score. That was fun to see, that somebody that far away got the message.


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## sour_grapes

Hearty congratulations! That is great. 



jswordy said:


> It looks like my wines scored mid-field for silver medal on average (17 of 18), which I think is pretty solid for a wine being tasted outside its native region by a longshot and a winemaker who never before entered a contest outside his own county.



I am not sure what that phrase means. I suspect you are making a modest-sounding statement, but I think clarity is getting lost in the modesty! What is 17 out of 18?


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## vernsgal

Congratulations guys!


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## jswordy

sour_grapes said:


> Hearty congratulations! That is great.
> 
> 
> 
> I am not sure what that phrase means. I suspect you are making a modest-sounding statement, but I think clarity is getting lost in the modesty! What is 17 out of 18?



The range for silver in the contest is 16-18 points. Gold is 18-20 points. Say you score an 18.25 averaged score for example - you are gold! There are three judges. They add up all their points totals and divide by 3 to get the average and that's your medal.

So I'm saying my wine was right in the middle of silver at an averaged 17 points. Except for the one outlier judge who gave my blueberry muscadine a top 20-point score, *God bless her*, my individual scores were all in the 16.5-17.5 range.

It was neat to know that one judge "got" the wine.

Still waiting for the others' results. I expect a lot will get their medals in the mail today and tomorrow.


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## tonyt

That's funny jim. I received the highest score that I have ever received from a single judge on one of my wines. Not the perfect score but it was a 19.5. That particular judge also made very helpful comments on both of the ones that I submitted. I just mailed off to the Missouri competition yesterday we'll see what they have to say. funny thing is on the same wine one judge gives me a high scoring gold and another judge gives me a low scoring Honorable Mention. Oh well.


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## jswordy

HA tonyt! I need to PM you her name when I get home and we'll see if it's the same person.

Like I said, one judge knocked off 3.5 points total because of "musky" taste in my muscadine wine. Uh, yeah! That's how they taste all right. LOL.

Did you medal in LA? If you did, let's hear about it!


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## tonyt

I got a bronze for MMR Nero d Avola and silver for RJS Cru Vapolicella. I was pleased but hate when a judge doesn't give any comments at as ll. Thats not helpful.

Sent from my SCH-i705 using Wine Making mobile app


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## jswordy

I had a blank sheet judge, too. I know they have a lot of forms to fill out, but the comments are really what I am after, moreso than awards.


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## joeswine

GOT MINE TO DAY,I WASNT HAPPY WITH THE PRIMARY RESULTS AND THE COMMENTS YET STILL ARE CONTRADICTORY UNTO THEMSELVES.
ON THE COFFEE PORT:
THE FIRST JUDE STATEMENT WAS THIS ,*NOTHING==*ON THE PAGE EXCEPT AT THE VERY BOTTOM,OVERALL QUALITY VERY ,VERY,VERY,NICE.
16/18 POINTS

THE SECOND JUDGE/ BEAUTIFUL DARKCHOLACTE COLOR,BURNT COFFEE NUANCE OVERPOWERS THE REST OF THE BOUQUET,_BALANCE IS NICE_, BODY AND TEXTURE VERY NICE BALANCE,(FINISH ) HARSH

NOW MY QUESTION IS THIS:

HOW CAN THE FINISH BE HARSH ,IF THE BALANCE IS NICE,BODY /TEXTURE IS VERY NICELY BALANCE.

SO IF THE WINE IS BALANCED IN SWEETNESS ,ACIDITY AND BITTERNESS????????
THE STATEMENT,*WAS AS FOLLOWS:AS A PASSIONATE COFFEE DRINKER THE BURNT COFFEE NOSE FLAVOR SHOULD NOT HAVE OVERTAKEN YOUR PORT.*
POINTS*+12.5*

THE LAST JUDGE WAS AT 14.5

I GUESS THAT'S HOW IT GOES ,BUT THERE'S ALWAYS THE NEXT ONE,SO ON THE COFFEE PORT SAME BATCH I'VE RECEIVED //A *BEST OF SHOW/*2 _*GOLDS*_ AND A *THIRD*,GO FIGURE.........................*IT'S ALL SUBJECTIVE ,,,,,,,,,,,I STILL DON'T LIKE THIRD PLACE.BUT THAT'S JUST ME.*


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## Crinton

As promised, the judge's comments for my coffee port were:

Judge 1: coffee scent overpowers the wine. Would be nice to get some port in there. Finish is a bit astringent. Will mellow with age. 

My thoughts: I agree with the scent/flavor. I don't see the astringency, since the port is very sweet. I also doubt it will mellow with age per Joe's comments that these ports don't change much with aging.

Judge 2: overroasted beans over powers nuance of coffee. Nicely made port but if made with roasted beans - should have state style. Would be good with dark chocolate.

My thoughts: This one confused me. I didn't use any coffee beans. I did use some oak cubes (highly recommended), but that was to tame some of the edges on the F-pack.

Judge 3: no comments except at the bottom: "loved it almost the best"

My thoughts: I love you too Judge #3.

Overall a silver medal. More importantly, my wife and I love the wine and don't have much left.

On my Cellar Craft Showcase Old Vine Zin, the judge variability was greater.
1: detected slight rubber, slightly cloudy (I did not filter), harsh finish, off balance
2: burnt rubber with floral component, tannic balance & finish
3: slight sulfurous note, velvet mouthfeel, fruit/oak/floral/leather 

I don't detect the rubber, though can't disagree with it since 2 judges picked it up. I also don't see the tannins, since it is a kit wine.

This one was also a silver...and more importantly my wife & I have consumed most of it...


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## Runningwolf

Folks a few notes and my personal opinion from reading above.

1. port wine kits do get better as they age
2. Obviously wine tasting is very subjective. Along with many of you, I also have wines that took best of show in this very competition and others but then didn't even place in another competition.
3. The wine glass you're drinking from has everything to do with what the judges smell and you do not. I've made this mistake in the past and I just did it again this week. Making a blend for a new batch of wine, I was trying to match it as close as I could compared to last years. I had the taste and sweetness but not the aroma. Not even close. Then all of a sudden it hit me, my control (fresh bottle from last year) was in a different glass then my bench trials. When I made the adjustment I was right on. Same thing if you're doing a copper test you have to use all the exact same style and size of glass. Incidentally I always work with exactly 100 ml in each glass.
4. It sounds like the judges are judging wines made from kits as if they were made from scratch. Why wouldn't they if they are all in the same class? Maybe there should be different classes for kit wines. 

All in All I think this is a great competition and very inexpensive to enter. You always have the option to enter Winemakers or the AWS competition at $25 for each entry.

Accept your ribbon and medals, you earned them. If the judges mention wine faults, take it serious they just might be on to something you did not detect. If you just didn't place and nothing really bad noted in the notes, try another competition and see what the results are if it's important to you. We all know the most important judge of all is our spouse, who supports our hobby. If they don't like it, forget about that extra carboy that you feel you really need.


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## tonyt

Very well said Dan Runnongwolf. Add that Callarmasters is a very tough competition and I for one am extremely happy and proud of all of our results.

Sent from my SCH-i705 using Wine Making mobile app


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## dangerdave

I did get my notes and medals in the mail. Unfortunately, I left for work this morning without them, so I'm unable to share right now. I'll give the notes for my gold and bronze medal winning wines tomorrow. Sorry for the delay. And thanks, guys, for sharing yours!

Gold Medal: Vintners Reserve World Vinyard German Muller-Thurgau (Rivaner) Kit. Aged about a year.
Bronze Medal: Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon Juice Bucket from Luva Bella, infused with black currants and oak, and aged about six months.


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## jswordy

joeswine said:


> GOT MINE TO DAY,I WASNT HAPPY WITH THE PRIMARY RESULTS AND THE COMMENTS YET STILL ARE CONTRADICTORY UNTO THEMSELVES.
> ON THE COFFEE PORT:
> THE FIRST JUDE STATEMENT WAS THIS ,*NOTHING==*ON THE PAGE EXCEPT AT THE VERY BOTTOM,OVERALL QUALITY VERY ,VERY,VERY,NICE.
> 16/18 POINTS
> 
> THE SECOND JUDGE/ BEAUTIFUL DARKCHOLACTE COLOR,BURNT COFFEE NUANCE OVERPOWERS THE REST OF THE BOUQUET,_BALANCE IS NICE_, BODY AND TEXTURE VERY NICE BALANCE,(FINISH ) HARSH
> 
> NOW MY QUESTION IS THIS:
> 
> HOW CAN THE FINISH BE HARSH ,IF THE BALANCE IS NICE,BODY /TEXTURE IS VERY NICELY BALANCE.
> 
> SO IF THE WINE IS BALANCED IN SWEETNESS ,ACIDITY AND BITTERNESS????????
> THE STATEMENT,*WAS AS FOLLOWS:AS A PASSIONATE COFFEE DRINKER THE BURNT COFFEE NOSE FLAVOR SHOULD NOT HAVE OVERTAKEN YOUR PORT.*
> POINTS*+12.5*
> 
> THE LAST JUDGE WAS AT 14.5
> 
> I GUESS THAT'S HOW IT GOES ,BUT THERE'S ALWAYS THE NEXT ONE,SO ON THE COFFEE PORT SAME BATCH I'VE RECEIVED //A *BEST OF SHOW/*2 _*GOLDS*_ AND A *THIRD*,GO FIGURE.........................*IT'S ALL SUBJECTIVE ,,,,,,,,,,,I STILL DON'T LIKE THIRD PLACE.BUT THAT'S JUST ME.*



I am sitting here reading this with a glass of your coffee port in hand, and wondering how you managed to wind up where you did with this wonderful wine. As you know, it's been in my Vinotemp a couple months. There is no harsh finish I can detect at all. My impressions are in the "Other People's Wines" thread. I am sure you will see different results as you progress through other competitions, Joe. This one was wrongly overlooked in LA! 

As far as places go, a bronze medal still indicates the wine was superior to the field.


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## jswordy

Runningwolf said:


> Folks a few notes and my personal opinion from reading above.
> 
> 1. port wine kits do get better as they age
> 2. Obviously wine tasting is very subjective. Along with many of you, I also have wines that took best of show in this very competition and others but then didn't even place in another competition.
> 3. The wine glass you're drinking from has everything to do with what the judges smell and you do not. I've made this mistake in the past and I just did it again this week. Making a blend for a new batch of wine, I was trying to match it as close as I could compared to last years. I had the taste and sweetness but not the aroma. Not even close. Then all of a sudden it hit me, my control (fresh bottle from last year) was in a different glass then my bench trials. When I made the adjustment I was right on. Same thing if you're doing a copper test you have to use all the exact same style and size of glass. Incidentally I always work with exactly 100 ml in each glass.
> 4. It sounds like the judges are judging wines made from kits as if they were made from scratch. Why wouldn't they if they are all in the same class? Maybe there should be different classes for kit wines.
> 
> All in All I think this is a great competition and very inexpensive to enter. You always have the option to enter Winemakers or the AWS competition at $25 for each entry.
> 
> Accept your ribbon and medals, you earned them. If the judges mention wine faults, take it serious they just might be on to something you did not detect. If you just didn't place and nothing really bad noted in the notes, try another competition and see what the results are if it's important to you. We all know the most important judge of all is our spouse, who supports our hobby. If they don't like it, forget about that extra carboy that you feel you really need.



This is very well said and I think it points out the value of a repeatable result, which is a good reason to enter the same wine in a few contests in various regions of the country. People have different experience levels with different wines regionally. I just took another sip of Joe's coffee port. Wow. But then, perhaps in California they are making a regional style in which coffee informs the wine and not defines it. The same wine might fare better in the Midwest, or Seattle.


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## dangerdave

I believe Joe already won a medal elsewhere for his coffee port. I, and a few others lucky enough to be nearby, loved it!


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## jswordy

dangerdave said:


> I believe Joe already won a medal elsewhere for his coffee port. I, and a few others lucky enough to be nearby, loved it!



Yes, he says he's won a Best of Show, two golds and a third.


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## Runningwolf

Jim, in addition to what you said the judge my have tasted another coffee wine or port and based it off of that. How may coffee wines are out there, dam few. So if a judge tasted only one and liked it, now they're basing this one on the previous. Is this possible? Not likely but it's possible.

I use to enter wine years ago I thought was young, too old, or just not good in my opinion in competitions that only cost few dollars or less. Yeah I was shocked when they were coming home with ribbons.


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## cmason1957

In the wine club I belong to, we have an internal wine competition every month. A few months ago was ports. There was a coffee port (probably the same kit, but with no tweaks entered), also I have made the toasted Caramel port. I didn't enter it, as an aside. Both of these kids have about the same issue, in my opinion and some others I have talked with. They are both wonderful, very balanced kits. However, neither of them have much grape taste that comes through, as a result, I bet they don't do very well in competitions with professional judges. That is just my $0.02.


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## jswordy

Yeah, I had thought about that, too, that perhaps because of the fact that it is an outlier, it got dinged. Next year, that style may be all the rage. I've seen this a lot in farm animal judging. In some animal shows, what's blue ribbon now would not have placed 5 years ago. 

That port sure tasted good to me!


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## dangerdave

Ok, here we go!







On the right is the Gold Medal Winning 2012 German Muller-Thurgau (kit contained elder flowers). Four (4) judges, and their notes.

1) No faults; brilliant clarity; flowery aroma, clean, pleasant, delicate, fleeting, "honey mead"; smooth texture; simple taste, "sugar snap peas"; good lasting finish; 18 points; Gold recommendation.
2) No faults; "nice light yellow" color; bouquet of "warm honey" and "the smell of stir fry before you cook it"; "sweet & balanced to itself, almost desert without the heaviness"; texture "very smooth & buttery, Fat"; taste of "some honey, very nice & simple"; "nice ligering" finish"; "nice wine, good job"; 18.5 points; Gold recommendation.
3) No faults; brilliant clarity, "beautiful golden color"; "floral, fruity aromas, sugar peas"; balance sugary, "good acid, sugar laced"; "nice body"; complex, mulit-layered flavor; lingering finish, "would go great with Thai food"; "Very Nice, Yummy! Good Job!"; 18 points; Gold recommendation.
4) No faults; "bright delicate look"; "flowery scent after openning up, and a hint of vegetable but not bad"; "sweet sugary taste, low acid"; "smooth rounded and pleasant" body; "robust sweetness"; "nice pleasant finish, lasted well"; 18 points; Gold recommendation.
My comments: _Notice that several of the judges used the word "simple" while one saw this wine as "complex and multi-layered". I knew this was a good white wine, and expected a decent score._

The red wine is from a Bronze Medal Winning 2013 Chilean Juice bucket of Cabernet Sauvignon. After this wine was fermented dry and stabilized, I added one cup of medium toasted French oak and 2.5 lbs of dried black currants. I racked it three weeks later, and topped it off with a half gallon of dry blackberry wine. I knew this one would be a challenge for the judges, trying to figure out the complex fruit flavors blended with the cab sauv. Three judges and their notes:

1) No faults; "great color"; "tropical, pineapple" aroma; "sweet!!! acid it is a bit low"; "thin" body; "very fruity" flavor, "residual sugar"; "not lingering" finish; "interesting taste, tastes like atropical wine"; 14.5 points; Bronze recommendation.
2) No faults; "nice, clear" color; fruity "pineapple, banana"; "interesting balance, fruit aroma and flavors"; "good" body; "blueberry" taste; "lasting" finish; overall "not appropriate for catagory but very drinkable"; 14.5 points; Bronze recommendation.
3) "Maybe has ascetic taste"; attractive, typical for type, "great purple color"; fruity, essence of "blueberry, pineapple, very tropical"; smooth, sweet edge, low acidity, "sweetness not appropriate for varietal, nice flavors"; "very nice body"; "fruity tropical flavors"; "soft finish"; "very drinkable"; 13.5 points; Bronze recommendation.
My comments: _Interestin indeed! Amazing that you can produce a wine consistantly labelled as "tropical, pineapple, and blueberry" out of grapes, blackberries, and currants. At the most, the wine is slightly off-dry (sweetened by the dried currants alone), as I added no sugar to back sweeten._

Over all, I am pleased with the information provided by the judges. Very close to what I expected.


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## tonyt

Great report DD.

One trend I have noticed on judges score sheets on my wines is that the score for clarity (judges first impression)seems to influence the rest of the scores. I have for the most part stopped filtering my red wines thinking there's no need to do so if it's decently clear. Crystal clear is not necessary for me and actually not even desirable. I seem to prefer my reds (mostly Italian) dark, no haze but not see through clear. So I guess it will be near impossible to gold regardless if it doesn't sparkle. I guess I could filter a bottle or two for competition but that would just be to please someone who is just going to take a sip and spit. Woe is me!

Has anyone else noticed such trend? Any comment/suggestion Dan?


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## jswordy

tonyt, I never filter, preferring instead to use a clarification process I worked out. The scores were nearly unanimous on both my wines. One judge dinged my blueberry muscadine for a "trace" of astringency. He said that would age out and he'd love to taste the wine in a year. Sorry, it is now all gone but for a small sampling. Very popular with the friends.


That judge gave an overall score in the middle of the 3 for that wine.

They all seemed to like the appearance of both wines. "Clear RED with rusty hues." "Star quality." "Beautiful and rich." "Beautiful!"

The places where I did not score at the top (except for the one 20-point judge) were subjective nose and taste areas where a person not accustomed to anything but vinifera wines might struggle in judging. It'll be interesting to see what comments I get from contests within the region where these grapes are grown.


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## joeswine

*Coffee port*

THANK YOU AGAIN *JS AND DD*,WHAT I THINK IS THE REALLY DOWN SIDE TO THIS WINE IS WHAT IT IS TITTLED AS TO WHAT IT REALLY, IS.
 I STATED THIS BEFORE IN MY OPPION IT'S NOT A TRUE PORT AS PORTS GO, BUT A *WINE* STYLE PORT IF YOU DO IT* AS IS* AND WITH A FEW* PROFILE TWEAKS*, WITH OUT THE *ADDED ACHOLO BOOST*,SO IT IS REALLY GOING TO BE UP TO A JUDGES TASTE BUDS AND PERCEPTION ON WHAT A COFFEE PORT SHOULD BE LIKE AND FROM WHAT I'VE READ I'M NOT SURE THEY THEMSELVES KNOW I CAN TRULY SEE IT BEING CONFUSING TO THEM,BUT WHAT I'M GOING TO TRY IS INFUSING A BOTTLE OR TWO WITH A BRANDY AND SEE HOW IT TRANSFORMS THIS BATCH,THANKS FOR YOUR THOUGHTS..................JP


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## dangerdave

tonyt said:


> Great report DD.
> 
> One trend I have noticed on judges score sheets on my wines is that the score for clarity (judges first impression)seems to influence the rest of the scores. I have for the most part stopped filtering my red wines thinking there's no need to do so if it's decently clear. Crystal clear is not necessary for me and actually not even desirable. I seem to prefer my reds (mostly Italian) dark, no haze but not see through clear. So I guess it will be near impossible to gold regardless if it doesn't sparkle. I guess I could filter a bottle or two for competition but that would just be to please someone who is just going to take a sip and spit. Woe is me!
> 
> Has anyone else noticed such trend? Any comment/suggestion Dan?


 
I'm with you, Tony. I never filter my reds. Just the whites, myself.


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## Gwand

I joined a wine making club in September. The person who runs it is John Dimeo. He is a great teacher. John won 9 medals this year at Cellarmasters for following wines:

2012 Cabernet Sauvignon : Gold
2012 Reserve Cab. Sauv. : Gold
2011 Shiraz : Silver
2012 Rose Cabernet : Silver
2011 Ext. Aged Cab. Sauv. : Bronze
2012 Zinfandel : Bronze
2012 Super Tuscan : Bronze
2011 Reserve Cab. : Bronze
2011 Zinfandel : Bronze

I can't wait to taste some of the wines I made with him in 2013. This club and of course this forum are great places for a newbie like me to start.


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## jswordy

That is an awesome haul, Gary!


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## Gwand

jswordy said:


> That is an awesome haul, Gary!



No bragging rights for me. I am a new member of the wine club. Most interesting is that John entered 9 wines and all nine took a medal. Let's hope I am not too dense too learn from him.


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## Brew and Wine Supply

Just got my results back, and inclosed was a silver medal for my Chardonell! Yea!
Had checked the website for winners and did not see my name, may have to go back and check.
My three scores were an 18 16 and 14 1/2. Mostly good comments.


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## joeswine

*Cellarmasters*

CONGRATES DOUG WAY TO GO..


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## jswordy

YAAAAY DOUG!!!!


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