This is the eighth year for the cheese competition at the Eastern States Exposition (known as the Big E). The Big E starts in September, but the judging for the competition is always in August. (If this feels like deja-vu to you, it’s because I posted articles about this competition in 2014 (click here) and in 2016 (click here).)
I helped out with the judging, along with a whole crew of dedicated volunteers. Last year and this year, I was a steward. There were 4 of us, each assigned to a table of 2 judges. One was a “technical” judge and the other was “aesthetic.” Our job was to give the judges at our tables anything they needed throughout the day. We replenished their palette cleansers, replaced their spit cups, and cleaned their knives between cheeses.
Judgement Day
The judging segment of any cheese competition is always the most important. Some cheese makers submit their entries because they will potentially sell more blue ribbon cheeses than any others. (The general public tends to leave it up to the experts to tell them which cheeses to buy.) Others submit their cheeses because of the written evaluations they receive, whether their cheese wins prizes or not.
Every cheese is tasted and analysed by judges who have qualifications “you read about.” (In fact, you can read about them at the Big E website (click here).) Every cheese submitted gets 2 evaluations-one from each of the judges who scored it. This is a great opportunity for licensed cheese makers to get feedback from the experts.
Bob Albers says
Wonderful article. Lots of great photos but incomplete. There isn’t a picture of you working behind your table.
Jeri Case says
I know, I should have someone take a pic, but I’m always too busy!