[theDarkSide]

Also - this is a great resource put together by Thomas Barnes in New York. He's an exam grader.

http://unyha.com/index.php/competitions/bjcp-judge-training/217-bjcp-exam-resources.html

Thank you for this...what a great collection of information.  The WAHA site is great too!!

[dkfick]

By the way I just got my provisional certificate. Woo hoo!

Good job Jim.

[james]

Well, that exam is only for people enrolled on his class.

I've sent an email to the Richland guy. If that falls through I am giving up. I'll take it as an indication that they already have plenty of judges.

I'm the Richland guy, added you to the list and replied to your email.

It's not till September so you've got time to practice.  Try to get some judging experience in that time, should be plenty of opportunities in Portland and Seattle

[klickitat jim]

Awesome possum James! Thank you tons!

[Jimmy K]

Try to get some judging experience in that time, should be plenty of opportunities in Portland and Seattle

Good advice. I took the exam one day and judged for the first time the day after. I immediately wished I could retake the exam.

[dsmitch19]

If you are taking the exam this weekend, you really don't have time to do anything other than cram and use your current knowledge.

Amanda gave great advice, and I can't stress how important it is to practice the answers ahead of time. Getting a mentor like David also helps a lot if you have more time to study and work with them (David is awesome!) You need to have an idea of what you want to write for each question and how long it takes you to write them. Time management was the problem I saw/heard most from other exam takers. Writing a 7 page novel for one question will not get you extra credit and you'll not have enough time to answer the other questions adequately.

While the exam guide for dummies is an OK resource, it was really written to get people into the 70s in the old exam format IMO. With the new written only exam with more time for each question, I've heard the graders expect a little more from your answers than regurgitating what is in a study guide. They are also very familiar with seeing answers copied from the for dummies guide and might not be too willing to score those answers too highly.

If you are aiming for a score in the 80s/90s, I would recommend using all the resources out there to create your own study guide. Create an outline for what you want to write for each question and then practice writing them out. The graders can be impressed with original answers that show independent thought. Not sure you have much time for this type of study though with under a week until your exam.

Also, make sure you actually answer what is being asked of you. Look at the % breakouts for each question and use that as a guide. Don't spend more time on part of a question that is only with 10% of that question when you could be adding more to a part of that answer worth 30%. Don't loose silly points. Know your commercial examples and know the TF questions.

Finally, from what I have gathered, the usual question breakout for the written is: 2 style comparison questions, 1 recipe question, 2 technical questions. Some of it is also luck on what questions you draw. Getting the water question can take a lot of your time to answer well, as can some more complicated styles like stouts.

Hope that helps. Good luck! Let us know how you think you did.

[udubdawg]

very good advice here from dsmitch19.  I hope everyone studying reads it.

as said previously, "...for Dummies" helps you pass.  It can help with your organization and with answering all aspects of the question.  but without going beyond what Al says you won't get a great score.

I grade these things, and see people spent maybe up to 70% of a full page writing A/A/F/M for "three styles" questions, and then barely say anything in the distinguishing characteristics section.  The former is 40%, the latter 25% - use your time wisely.  Along with a classic example, everyone should be able to come up with a unique and meaningful sentence describing every substyle from the Overall Impression, History, Comments, and Ingredients sections of the Style Guidelines.  And no, saying BoPils was created in 1842 is not enough. 

On a similar note, don't expect a lot of help from your grader if the only thing you wrote for "similarities" between Munich Helles, Octoberfest, and Vienna was that they were "all German lagers."
(however, noting they are all lagers as a similarity and the two different countries of origin as a difference would get you some credit.  but give me more! - It's 25% and you can get it quickly!)

[dkfick]

Thanks for the tips guys.  I'm pretty confident on my knowledge.. Just more worried about time management and specifically the recipe formulation stuff since I don't hand calculate anything in 'real life' I just use BeerSmith for all that lol. udubdawg gave me some good advice that I'm going to follow through on after work tonight.  Keep the tips and tidbits coming.  I am your sponge lol.

[denny]

Thanks for the tips guys.  I'm pretty confident on my knowledge.. Just more worried about time management and specifically the recipe formulation stuff since I don't hand calculate anything in 'real life' I just use BeerSmith for all that lol. udubdawg gave me some good advice that I'm going to follow through on after work tonight.  Keep the tips and tidbits coming.  I am your sponge lol.

Quick tip...at 75% efficiency, you can plan on 5 GU from each lb. of grain in a 5 gal. batch.  I used to know a trick like that for hops, too, but it's slipped away...

[AmandaK]

very good advice here from dsmitch19.  I hope everyone studying reads it.

as said previously, "...for Dummies" helps you pass.  It can help with your organization and with answering all aspects of the question.  but without going beyond what Al says you won't get a great score.

Agreed. Independent thought, not regurgitating the guidelines or study guides, not contradicting yourself and showing depth of knowledge will get you an excellent score in my book (another grader here). I referenced the Dummies pdf because it has all of the questions in it. Teckam made sure that I knew everything outside of the usual study guide information that I could and my exam score reflected that.

90+ isn't the goal for everyone though, for some people good enough is just good enough. And that's just fine too.

[klickitat jim]

90% might effect my astringency and produce a big head. I'm more of a 70% and happy to be here kinda guy

[MDixon]

Be sure to answer each part of every question to maximize your score. For the style sections describing the AAFM of the three styles earns you a maximum of 40% for the question, 25% is identifying and aspect of the ingredients or style, 10% is the three classic commercial examples, 25% is the similarities and differences of the styles.

So what I see many people do is spend an enormous amount of time on the AAFM, write incorrect classic examples, skip the aspect, and briefly describe sim/diff. At best one would earn a 60 for such a response. Pay attention to each part.

For the recipe:
Stats for the recipe - 10% (make those stats meet your recipe)
Batch size, etc - 20%
Mash, boil, etc. - 35%
How recipe meets style (suggest to discuss AAFM in depth) - 35%

What I see people do here is write recipes which would not even make the style queried or the stats they state are impossible. Then things like fermenting a lager at 70F.

The last two questions vary, but pay attention to what is asked and the response percentage values. Put SOMETHING close to correct in every area. You cannot earn partial credit if you did not answer the question.

Time management is key. There are 20 T/F which can only count against you and 5 questions in 90 min. Let's say you do the T/F in 5 min (15 seconds per T/F), then you have 17 minutes for each of the 5 questions.

Good luck!

[dkfick]

Thanks. 
I need to get cracking for sure.  Last 2 days I had exactly 0 studying.  Though I have alot of time carved out in the next few days.

[klickitat jim]

Be sure to answer each part of every question to maximize your score. For the style sections describing the AAFM of the three styles earns you a maximum of 40% for the question, 25% is identifying and aspect of the ingredients or style, 10% is the three classic commercial examples, 25% is the similarities and differences of the styles.

So what I see many people do is spend an enormous amount of time on the AAFM, write incorrect classic examples, skip the aspect, and briefly describe sim/diff. At best one would earn a 60 for such a response. Pay attention to each part.

For the recipe:
Stats for the recipe - 10% (make those stats meet your recipe)
Batch size, etc - 20%
Mash, boil, etc. - 35%
How recipe meets style (suggest to discuss AAFM in depth) - 35%

What I see people do here is write recipes which would not even make the style queried or the stats they state are impossible. Then things like fermenting a lager at 70F.

The last two questions vary, but pay attention to what is asked and the response percentage values. Put SOMETHING close to correct in every area. You cannot earn partial credit if you did not answer the question.

Time management is key. There are 20 T/F which can only count against you and 5 questions in 90 min. Let's say you do the T/F in 5 min (15 seconds per T/F), then you have 17 minutes for each of the 5 questions.

Good luck!

Great reply! Thanks for taking the time. Achieving this knowledge is a goal for me by next winter.

[Jeff M]

I just got my copy of the BJCP Style Guidlines in the mail from Cafepress.  Now i can study in the car and other places:)