We came in a respectable 25th place overall when we went up against 43 of American’s best BBQ teams at the Great American Barbeque Invitational throw-down in Kansas City.
To win in the BBQ contest capital of America, teams must achieve near perfect scores in the 98% range in chicken, ribs, pork, and brisket for appearance, taste, and texture. Although we achieved our best ever overall score of 645 points out of a total of 720 (21 points higher than our Grand Champion win in Costa Mesa two weeks earlier), it was eclipsed by the 670 points, won by the 2008 Jack Daniels Champion team, called 4 Legs Up. The Reserve Champion was won by “Munchin Hogs at the Hilton”, America’s 2008 Team of the Year. We’re happy with our overall result and I was very relieved our team didn’t come in last!
In the World Championship Brisket contest, we came in 33rd place among the 90 briskets entered. This is a unique contest in that an official comes by before you cook to put a serial numbered tag on your brisket. Once cooked, the official must inspect it and watch you slice it. Six slices go into the tray with only foil with no garnish (ala IBCA rules). If you make it to the top-ten finalists, the official will show up and you must slice the 6 slices for the finals from the same tagged brisket.