It's Cider Day here on Dr. Homebrew! Listener Bill sent us four different versions of his cider, each with a different yeast. Our goal? To pick the cider we liked the best. Bill was having a hard time choosing which version to enter into competitions, so he somehow thought we'd have some insight on that for him. Sucker.

In order to lead us more effectively through these ciders, we brought experience Cider Judge Hirendu back on the show!

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We've had lots of unintentionally themed shows in the past, but never one like this ... it's the Smoke Beer Show! Two very different smoked beers, one a Belgian IPA and the other a Cherry Porter. We realize smoked beers aren't for everyone, but man they sure do make for good judging comments!

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(George Costanza voice) Mead is back, baby!

Ashley joins the show again and allows us to judge her Pomegranate Mead, which was big and syrupy. Then we run through two commercial examples of Mead - including one that was in a can, of all things! Mead seems like it's seeing a resurgence, and we love it.

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We had two unique beverages on this week's show - a Mead and an ice cream-inspired Porter. The Mead was a sack-strength style mead, made with Blackberry Blossom Honey, and at 14%-ish, was very drinkable. A Salted Caramel Porter was in the second segment, based on the brewer's love of trying new styles and adding his own flair to them. For having just learned how to brew ten months ago, this was a bold move!

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We have been overly distracted by non-alcoholic beers as of late, and we show no signs of slowing. In fact, we brought Jamil on the show to talk to us about how NA beer is made, and some general rules of how we can make it at home. Then we talked with Jason, who sent in an American Brown Ale, and we convene the first ever Council of Jasons.

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We talk a lot about competitions, but not much about some good rules and guidelines to follow when planning one. Our first guest is Justin, and he's throwing a homebrew competition for his friend who passed away last year. Called, "Kunklefest", Justin wants a bit of help and reassurance from the Brians about planning something great. Then we have Robbie from Club DOZE on to talk about organizing Tasty's Tasting Room this year at Spring Brews Fest.

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How serious are you about competitive homebrewing? Do you do just enough to ensure your beer tastes good at the judging table, but beyond that, who cares? Are you interested in upping your medal count in the years to come? Andy and Matt run a Facebook group called "Competitive Homebrewing", and they are fanatics about one thing - winning. And sharing information. So, that's two things, really. We chat with these perennial winners about data collection, and how to ensure that you win more than you lose. Plus, we have another NA beer to try!

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Not only did we have some Hazy IPA talk to open the show, but we opened a triple IPA, as well. That's what happens when you have 4 BJCP beer judges on one show, I guess. after the break, Brian and Brian - along with guests Jon and Hirindu, talked about the Mead Judging program and their experiences with it. Hirindu runs the educational arm for Mead in his homebrew club, D.O.Z.E., and was able to shed some light on just what it takes to be proficient in mead, how to become a judge, and what to expect at the judging table.

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It's the Mead Show on today's Dr. Homebrew! Our first guest is Michael Fairbrother of Moonlight Meadery, who heard we were going to be using his meads as judging fodder and hacked our internet stream to sit in with us. He talked about styles of meads, how he approaches the ones he makes, and if judges perception matters to him.

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Taking up a sour beer project is never easy - just ask Neriah. He crafted a base beer to sour and age, then one to blend back as a young beer, all while splitting the batch and fruiting it two different ways. One entry had Sauvignon Blanc grape juice added and the other had Malbec grape juice. That's a lot of work! Did it pay off for him? Find out!

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