From The Jack and Back - Tales from the Grill
I just saw my commemorative bottle of Jack Daniels sitting up there on the shelf and a flood of memories came rushing back. No, not a terrible two-day hangover or the embarrassment getting drunk and going all fist-a-cuffs, but instead the memory meat intoxication as I served as an official judge in the Jack Daniels Invitational World BBQ Championship in Lynchburg, Tennessee. Fondly referred to as "The Jack" by master barbequers from all over the planet, this event is analogous to football's Superbowl -- but instead of exhalting the "pigskin" as a piece of sports gear, they instead cook the whole pig up right fine!
Becoming an entrant in "The Jack" is no simple feat; to receive a coveted invitation, a BBQ team must win a state-level competition with no fewer than 25 teams present, win a non-state competition with at least 50 teams present, or take home top honors at another prestigious barbeque championship. Being a judge for "The Jack" is an equally serious matter; renown chefs, television personalities, food critics, semi-celebrities, and serious foodies all make up the elite team that can make or break a hardcore BBQ team's dreams. Falling into the "foodie" subgenre of judges, but not even of the "serious" persuasion, I was still required to take the oath of the Kansas City Barbeque Society (overseer of the judging) and be sworn into membership, vowing to uphold the values, ethics and so on of these char-grilled, smoked, bbq'd group of carnivores.
The first few hours of sampling meat from the various big-rig pits hauled in from around the world were fun, if not quite tasty. I noticed that the mere spectators were visibly envious of my important position or just perhaps my close proximity to the moist, meaty goodness being cooked up -- whole hogs, briscuit, tri-tips, ribs, sausages, chickens and more. While I could eat all I liked, the crowd was lucky to be flicked a spare scrap. However, there is something about three days of gorging on BBQ that makes one need a break from the love-- however, I'm glad to report that after my 2 year moratorium on smoked meats and such, I am back! Had a good BBQ dinner from the Salt Lick, a famous place down in Texas, last night, along with a little Jack and Coke for the memories. If you don't have Father's Day plans yet, you really should take Dad out to chow down carnivore-style. Better yet, hold a backyard cookout in his honor and pull out all the stops, including some great guy gifts like a grilling apron, grilling cookbook or other fun BBQ accessory.
