Each Newsletter the BJCP spotlights a different member of the organization. For this month we interviewed Certified Judge Caroline Van Sant-Crowle.
Please, give us a brief introduction about yourself, feel free to add anything you’d like to share.
(Caroline Van Sant-Crowle) Beer is not my life. Sometimes I say it IS my husband’s life, but more accurately I can say I have had a full life (so far) and beer has been a constant companion. I have been married for 36 years and somehow, I managed to marry an amateur beer maker who has developed into a world renowned (well, maybe) beer enthusiast. It was only a matter of time before I got sucked into the vortex of the beer world. We have 2 children and now 6 grandchildren (I consider myself a young grandma!). I got an education and had a career in medicine. For the last several years I have been tackling the Real Estate field. Through it all, I have sampled, tasted, evaluated, and judged beers from all over the world and right here in my own back yard. Relatively recently I have minimized my consumption of alcohol but am always open for a worthy beverage or a fine competition.
How and why did you join the BJCP?
(CVC) I think it just kind of happened by default. I started out at the local level with our home brew club. I helped out with whatever they needed and eventually started stewarding. Before too long, I was tasting along with the judges, and they encouraged me to start judging. I felt (like probably everyone else) that I was not really qualified but soon found that I could evaluate beer and fill out score sheets. Then I ventured out with my husband to other competitions to judge. I admit I was a bit of a pain in the (you know) because since my goal was to spend time with my husband, I did not want them to split us up. At that time, I thought I would never be ranked with BJCP (I was a member just so they could keep track of me) because I had no intention of taking the very intense written exam. My thought was that this was a hobby and I had done enough study/exam/certification in my professional life. I did enjoy the mead aspects of the organization and although the exam was still relatively intense and required lots of study, I did take this exam. In fact, my husband and I traveled out of state to attend a class and sit for the exam. Once we were certified in mead, we created and presented a class in our home state and helped to bring mead judging to Florida! Eventually, the BJCP started the tasting only portion of the exam. This meant the highest level I could become was Certified, but I was fine with that, so I became a Certified Judge for BJCP with an endorsement for Mead. Then one year while we were at NHC, they offered a new exam for Cider. I guess I was on a roll because I then added cider to my judging credentials. Granted, all this happened over several years (dare I say decades), but I managed to get lots of education, experience, and credentials! By now I have more BJCP points than I need even to get to a Master level!
What do you like about being a BJCP judge?
(CVC) I love to travel and visit new places. Every time we go to a competition that is not local, I get to meet a lot of fun and interesting people. Together, my husband and I have forged relationships with people all over the world. I am also love the regimen of following the process of judging. Doing things in the right order, in the right way, with the right documentation. Just like medicine, it is not an exact science, but there is value in using finely tuned senses in an organized and strict process.
Do you have a favorite category or style to judge?
(CVC) With age comes options! In the past, I have been happy to do whatever category needed to be done, no matter how many people did not want to do them. There are some categories of beer that are just not to my liking but I could always judge them for what they were and if they met the style guidelines. Now that I am doing less judging, I feel like I want to focus on the styles that I truly enjoy. Love me a good dark, big, barrel aged concoction! Although I am not fond of funky Brett, I do love sours. Oh, and hops … LOVE them! So I guess there are quite a few I do like ☺
Do you have any fond judging related memories to share? (optional)
(CVC) I do have lots of fond memories, but the one that I think has made the most indelible mark in my brain in when I judged at NHC in Rhode Island. It’s not a huge thing and it probably has been long forgotten by my judging partner, but I judged with Gordon Strong! I think he maybe even had a small inkling of who I was. But he was very kind and I felt like I really “held my own” judging with him. I had arrived!!
Any closing thoughts for your fellow judges?
(CVC) I feel like I kinda fell into this whole world of beer: making beer/mead/cider at home, helping teach others, judging amateur and professional brews, and being able to intelligently taste and discuss beverages in the social realm. It has been a long and (mostly) enjoyable process, but the main thing was to have more quality time with my husband. Although sometimes (not often) I have to use my Executive Powers to rein him in, it has been something that we have shared together for a long time and will continue sharing for much longer! If you’re ever in the Denver area, give us a shout and we can share a local brew together! Cheers!