Is this a rum competition or investment strategy?
Well, it ain't the Olympics (where only one athlete wins the Gold). But it should be.
By now the advanced idiots in the crowd know that almost all of the "competitions" are highly commercial endeavors, with everything for sale - tables, displays, goodie bag - even the toilet paper is sponsored. The spirits pay to compete, with the understanding that the competitors will not be listed, nor will any comparative tasting notes be published.
Nope. All that will be published are the "winners" and a keen certificate, suitable for framing and promotion. With this in mind - the result as I count em, in this order:
Bronze - Silver - Gold medals:
Flavored rums: 1 - 2 - 2
White rums: 1 - 3 - 4
Dark rums: 1 - 3 - 2
Premium rums: 0 - 4 - 7
Overproof rum: 1 - 3 - 2
Total:
Bronze: 4 rums
Silver: 15 rums
Gold: 17 rums
Notice anything? Of course you do. That's a lotta friggin medals, and is exactly what the distillers hope and pay for - a promotable awards, eg "Batshit Dingleberry - Gold Medal Winner, 2011". Second, the medals are heavily weighted to the highly desirable Gold medalsl.
Gold dominated more than any other medal, and was "earned" by 17 rums?! Yup. Even worse, in the Premium category there wasn't even a single Bronze - just Silvers and Golds - 11 of em! My, my. When there are seven Golds awarded in this desirable premium category, something is amiss with either the judging, the entries, or with the scoring. You decide. But I can tell you one thing...
The distillers aren't complaining...
Competition: Ministry of Rum, 2011
-
Capn Jimbo
- Rum Evangelisti and Compleat Idiot
- Posts: 3550
- Joined: Mon Dec 11, 2006 3:53 pm
- Location: Paradise: Fort Lauderdale of course...
- Contact:
Competition: Ministry of Rum, 2011
Last edited by Capn Jimbo on Wed Nov 09, 2011 8:32 am, edited 9 times in total.
-
Capn Jimbo
- Rum Evangelisti and Compleat Idiot
- Posts: 3550
- Joined: Mon Dec 11, 2006 3:53 pm
- Location: Paradise: Fort Lauderdale of course...
- Contact:
It's your call...
So just what makes a real competition?
You won't have to attend many "rumfests" to learn that the "competitions" are loaded. Other than a few specialty categories like "flavored" or "overproof", the rest are based on color or such vague concepts as "premium". This is done to accomodate the distillers.
The categories - though meaningless in terms of comparing rums - are made narrow to accomodate the highest number of rums/distillers and to provide a maximum number of marketable awards. The Ministry took this one step further and awarded multiple bronzes, and especially silvers and golds in each category.
I'd venture to speculate that more rums won awards than did not.
You never learn just what rums competed in each "category", so you'll never know who "lost". Just the "winners" are announced, without tasting notes or comments. The judges are typcially "in-the-biz", buds of the promoter, prospective clients, customers and web/industry contacts. You almost never see a top taster. The relative scoring is never, ever published, and they are calculated in secret by the promoter or his/her designee.
Completely opaque and commercial. But I digress.
So just what does constitute a real competition?
1. It should be free or at a cost designed to simply defray the costs. Distillers can donate rum, missing rums should be purchased to complete categories.
2. The categories should be meaningful, primarily divided into recognizable rum styles (and still include specialty styles - overproof, flavored, spiced, liqueurs, Navy).
3. It should be broad. No more only one rum entered in the category winning the gold. All competitors should be named. All scores should be publicly posted, so that both the winners and losers can be viewed. Tasting notes, judging comments and summaries should be provided.
4. There should be just one Bronze - Silver - Gold in each category. It would only be fair for the organizer to charge for the commercial use of any award (it's just the opposite now - the distiller, in effect, pays to get an award, which is then published freely).
5. I'd also love to see a controlled, blind public tasting (again by style), and again with the results and scores publicly posted.
Will this happen? Will Catholic priests leave choirboys alone? You decide...
You won't have to attend many "rumfests" to learn that the "competitions" are loaded. Other than a few specialty categories like "flavored" or "overproof", the rest are based on color or such vague concepts as "premium". This is done to accomodate the distillers.
The categories - though meaningless in terms of comparing rums - are made narrow to accomodate the highest number of rums/distillers and to provide a maximum number of marketable awards. The Ministry took this one step further and awarded multiple bronzes, and especially silvers and golds in each category.
I'd venture to speculate that more rums won awards than did not.
You never learn just what rums competed in each "category", so you'll never know who "lost". Just the "winners" are announced, without tasting notes or comments. The judges are typcially "in-the-biz", buds of the promoter, prospective clients, customers and web/industry contacts. You almost never see a top taster. The relative scoring is never, ever published, and they are calculated in secret by the promoter or his/her designee.
Completely opaque and commercial. But I digress.
So just what does constitute a real competition?
1. It should be free or at a cost designed to simply defray the costs. Distillers can donate rum, missing rums should be purchased to complete categories.
2. The categories should be meaningful, primarily divided into recognizable rum styles (and still include specialty styles - overproof, flavored, spiced, liqueurs, Navy).
3. It should be broad. No more only one rum entered in the category winning the gold. All competitors should be named. All scores should be publicly posted, so that both the winners and losers can be viewed. Tasting notes, judging comments and summaries should be provided.
4. There should be just one Bronze - Silver - Gold in each category. It would only be fair for the organizer to charge for the commercial use of any award (it's just the opposite now - the distiller, in effect, pays to get an award, which is then published freely).
5. I'd also love to see a controlled, blind public tasting (again by style), and again with the results and scores publicly posted.
Will this happen? Will Catholic priests leave choirboys alone? You decide...