On Saturday, October 27, I had the honor of judging the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue in Lynchburg, TN, my sixth time judging this highly prestigious competition.

The weekend began on Friday as I made my way through a contest site that was knee deep in mud thanks to heavy rains throughout the week leading up to the event. Despite the cold and mud, I enjoyed catching up with countless teams that I only have the opportunity to see in person a few times each year, if even that. The afternoon was marked as always with a parade of teams through downtown Lynchburg, each one showcasing their team banners while tossing candy and beads to the crowds.

Following the parade, the teams gathered for a party on the hill featuring live music, a few cocktails, and a ton of great food. The party is a chance for team members to socialize and catch their breaths before firing up their cookers for the main event.

Early Saturday morning, I joined the other invitational judges in the main pavilion to prepare for tasting and scoring some of the best competition BBQ in the world. Prior to the first entires, judges enjoy a few Jack Daniels traditions including having fellow judges sign their aprons; the pardoning of a pig, chicken, and cow; and the official swearing in by Remus Powers.

From there, the judging kicks into high gear as we make our way through a total of 7 categories including sauce, chef’s choice (or food from the homeland for international teams), chicken, ribs, pork, brisket, and dessert. All told, I judged approximately 35 truly amazing entries including the weekend’s top dessert pictured below!

Once judging was complete, all that was left was the awards ceremony. I cheered as countless familiar teams were called to the stage while also doing rough math in my head trying to determine who might walk away as the weekend’s top BBQ competitor. In the end it was a familiar name — Dave Bouska of Butcher BBQ!

Enjoy the video below and check out the overall results below.

Grand Champion: BUTCHER BBQ
Reserve Champion: IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ

OVERALL

1) BUTCHER BBQ (700.5372)

2) IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ (700.5256)

3) THE PIT CREW BBQ OF AZ (700.0344)

4) SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ (698.8688)

5) SHIGGIN & GRINNIN (697.0740)

6) TheAmericanDreamBBQTeam (696.5140)

7) GETTIN' BASTED (695.3944)

8) GRILLIN' BEAVERS (694.3084)

9) PORKY BUTTS BBQ (694.2284)

10) WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ (690.7768)

11) CLARK CREW BBQ (688.4796)

12) ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN (688.1028)

13) BIG RAZ BBQ (687.9312)

14) Little Pig Town (687.3828)

15) GREY STREET BBQ (685.6912)

16) ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE (685.6224)

17) 501 BBQ (685.0856)

18) KISS MY RACK (685.0856)

19) RHODE HOG BBQ (685.0856)

20) HOT COLE'S BBQ (685.0740)

21) WHEN PIGS DIE (685.0512)

22) THE SMOKING HILLS (684.4684)

23) FAT BOYS BBQ - TEMPLE, TX (683.3256)

24) PADDY MCQ'S (682.7656)

25) DR. PEARL'S MEDICINAL SMOKE BBQ TEAM (682.7196)

26) B-S BBQ OUTLAWS (682.2168)

27) HOGLINE (681.6684)

28) SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA (681.6340)

29) BOOMERANG BBQ (681.6112)

30) BLUE CHIP BBQ (681.0744)

31) Swamp Boys (681.0740)

32) SERIAL GRILLER (680.4912)

33)INSANE SWINE BBQ (679.9772)

34) FARMER'S RETREAT SMOKIN BARBEQUE (679.9540)

35) Big Bear BBQ (678.8000)

36) WHO CARES BBQ (678.7540)

37) Buns~n~Roses Cook Team (677.7260)

38) SMOKE ME SILLY (676.5828)

39) FIRE DOWN BELOW (676.4688)

40) iBQ'n@TheBBQSuperStore.com (675.9656)

41) GOOD SMOKE BBQ (675.8628)

42) BBQ+ (674.8000)

43) BBQ Wiesel (673.0972)

44) SWEET SMOKE Q FLORIDA (672.5600)

45) THE SPECIALISTS (670.2284)

46) Schluchtengriller BBQ (670.2172)

47) TURNIN' UP THE HEAT (669.6456)

48) KILLER B'S BBQ (669.6228)

49) HEATH RILES BBQ (669.1088)

50) SPITTIN' FEATHERS BBQ (668.5488)

51) Bohemian BBQ (668.5028)

52) BBQ Freaks (668.4688)

53) SON OF SMOKE (667.9312)

54) Team Eatapedia (667.8968)

55) BONE TO BARK BBQ (667.8968)

56) Prairie Smoke & Spice BBQ (667.3828)

57) SPITFIRE (666.1712)

58) PAVONE BROTHERS BBQ (665.1084)

59) BIG BOB GIBSON BAR-B-Q (665.0052)

60) BURNT FINGER BBQ (664.5028)

61) THE TWISTED TAIL (664.5028)

62) BBQ Symphony (663.9200)

63) TOOT & STINKY'S CALI-Q (663.9084)

64) B & R SMOKE (662.7652)

65) GOT SMOKE BAR-B-QUE (662.1600)

66) ELEGANTLY VIOLENT BBQ (658.7884)

67) KGB - Katka Gergo Barbecue (658.7656)

68) MONTANA OUTLAW BBQ (658.6972)

69) Droptine cookers (658.1828)

70) PIGGIN' WHISKEY (658.1256)

71) LAKE HOUSE BBQ (657.5884)

72) WEEKEND SMOKERS (657.0740)

73) BAD BONES BBQ (657.0284)

74) SPENA BBQ (656.9712)

75) BACKDRAFT BBQ (655.9544)

76) VALLEE AC COLD SMOKE (655.3600)

77) Rooftop Barbeque (654.6968)

78) Drilling & Grilling BBQ Team (653.6228)

79) The Smoking Joint (652.5144)

80) Smoking Finns (650.7540)

81) FIRE AND SMOKE SHAK (650.2172)

82) SOUTH SIDE BBQ (650.2172)

83) Big Daddy's Pitbull (650.1484)

84) CHANNABILLY BBQ (646.6284)

85) Rokende Regahs (644.4456)

86) Polish BBQ King-Smoker (643.8168)

87) Grill Team Gut Glut e.V. (643.3144)

88) BBQ Team Laurentius (642.7424)

89) Angus & Oink (641.6344)

90) Mad Cow Barbeque (640.4912)

91) SQUAT AND GOBBLE BARBEQUE (639.3028)

92) Uncle Tony's Q (638.1716)

93) Friuli Violent Grillers (638.0568)

94) Rum And Que (634.0684)

95) The Shed BBQ and Blues Joint (632.4576)

96) Black Forest (629.5084)

97) TEXAS PEPPER JELLY (627.9200)

98) Salzburger Barbecue Bulls (622.1256)

99) BBQ Costa Rica (619.8740)

100) The Crazy BBQ Team Denmark (618.6972)

101) Grill Ueli BBQ Team Switzerland (612.9140)

102) Swinefellows (595.8516)