Stem, NC: A Barbecue Scene Suitable for a Wedding

All judging activities for the cookoff took place in the party barn.

A wedding venue makes a great choice as the site for a barbecue cookoff. The scenery is typically extraordinary, a large hall with extra side spaces is often available, and parking is more than adequate with overflow grounds for large crowds. The Barn at Vino in Stem, NC, is a popular choice for weddings and special events, and now it is also where BBQ teams and judges will convene each spring for a contest sanctioned by Kansas City Barbecue Society. 

The rolling green fields at the Farm included lots of spaces for vendors and activities.

Located on a 95-acre property with two large ponds in rural Granville County, the farm is a clear favorite of local brides. The landscape includes rolling green fields and almost three acres of vineyards, and the drive leading to the barn is charmingly tree-lined. That scenery notwithstanding, it was even more amazing as smoke spiraled from cookers that 46 professional teams and 24 amateur teams were tending for Jimbo’s Annual BBQ Competition.

Cooking teams are set up in assigned spaces near the barn.

The contest attracted some of the top teams in the Southeast, and the top-placing teams were familiar names. The event was also a fundraiser for Wreaths Across America, a charity organization that coordinates wreath-laying ceremonies at 2,500 locations to honor fallen military veterans. In addition to watching the BBQ teams compete, the spectators also enjoyed the scene with live music, an aerial display, 30 vendors, and food trucks. 

Live music was part of the entertainment for the day.

The contest marked a renewed interest in BBQ competitions as the effects of the pandemic seem to be under control and more events are being planned. For quite a few judges, this event was the first one for them in more than a year, and it was also the first event for several new judges. 

The scenery at the Farm at Vino made the weekend special/ The cookoff in future years will be just as successful as the one this year.

   

When there's a party, the Stem Fire Department comes too.

Oinktoberfest Again

The most family-friendly barbecue cookoff that I’ve ever attended is Oinktoberfest, held annually in late September in Clarence, NY. It’s held at the Great Pumpkin Farm that conducts a fall festival more than a month long with a full schedule of activities, events, entertainment, and contests, including the cookoff. The farm is one of “America’s top pumpkin patches,” according to several travel and media organizations.

The Great Pumpkin Farms hosts Oinktoberfest each September during its fall festival.

On one weekend during the seven-week festival, Oinktoberfest brings in cooking teams and judges for a contest sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbeque Society. The cookoff, the longest running barbecue competition in New York, has grown from 10 teams in its first year to more than 90 in some years from throughout the United States and Canada.

Some teams, such as this one, came across the border with Canada -- and even had signs in French.

Two years ago, the first time that I was a judge at Oinktoberfest, 54 teams participated. This year 51 teams, including 9 from Canada, competed for the prize money and trophies. So many teams require a lot of judges, and they take full advantage of the large space available at the farm. Many judges have been certified for years but judge at only a few events each year, and a few judge only annually at the Oinktoberfest.

Cooking teams set up in open areas of the farm among festival activities.

Before and after the judging activities, the judges wandered among the farm’s festivities. The huge display of pumpkins, gourds, hay bales, cornstalks and mums was the most popular attraction for the young and young at heart. Musical groups also performed at the outdoor stage, which was next door to the events building where the judges met.

Judges relax in the events building before their activities begin.

Although the people who attended the festival were interested in the barbecue contest, the pumpkin displays definitely captured more attention than anything else at the festival. The cooking teams unquestionably prepared competition-worthy entries, which I enjoyed judging. However, the festival activities made being at the contest that much more enjoyable.

Displays of pumpkins capture more attention than BBQ signs.

Improving an Agricultural Celebration by Adding a Whole Hog Cookoff

Homegrown in the Park, an annual festival in Burlington, NC, was begun by the Farm Bureau of Alamance County as a way to “bring the farm to the city” by holding a farm day in a city park. Previously, the bureau had offered tours of neighboring farms to educate the public about local agriculture.

Several teams created an inviting atmosphere at their cook sites that added to the ambiance of the festival.

The county has become increasingly urban, led by the growth of Burlington, its largest city, and Graham, the county seat. In recent decades, the population of the county has grown by as much as 20 percent. Farms have been lost as new residential areas have been created. Because many residents live in the county but work elsewhere, it is often described as a “bedroom community,” and appreciating its agriculture is important because the number of its farms have declined by 70 percent over the last century.

Impressive trophies were taken home by the finalists.

In its first three years, the festival drew increasingly large crowds by offering educational exhibits and displays to celebrate local agriculture -- music and free food were additional enticements to attend. For its fourth year, the festival was expanded to include a whole hog cookoff, and sanctioning by the N.C. Pork Council was obtained so finalists could advance and compete in the state championship, the culmination of the Whole Hog Barbecue Series.

Barbecue chopped by a team after being judged was served on plates to the public.

The whole hog cookoff seems to be exactly what the festival needed to complete its celebration of the county’s agricultural traditions and heritage. Barbecue from the cookoff is served to the public, and nothing brings out a crowd like excellent barbecue cooked by competitive teams. For its first cookoff, the festival attracted 14 teams. Although several had not competed in the Whole Hog Barbecue Series before, they all produced superior barbecue. The three other judges and I were impressed with how most pigs were scored high in areas of skin crispness, brownness, moisture, and appearance.

The pig cooked by Blue Pig BBQ, now in shambles after being judged, took home first-place honors.

With a whole hog cookoff now a major part of the festival, Homegrown in the Park is guaranteed to continue to grow and attract large crowds as its organizers and sponsors celebrate local agriculture.

Celebrating Oinktoberfest

For my first contest in New York, I ventured to the town of Clarence, a suburb of Buffalo in the western part of the Empire State, where Oinktoberfest has been held for 15 years. The longest continually running barbecue competition in New York, Oinktoberfest has become a premier event to celebrate the arrival of fall as well and, of course, excellent barbecue.

The entrance of the Great Pumpkin Farm is all about the pumpkin.

Oinktoberfest is held at the Great Pumpkin Farm. The main attraction at the entrance is a pumpkin “patch” where children can wander through creative pumpkin displays. The fall decorations and pumpkin-themed exhibits make the farm an annual destination for many families.

Pumpkins greet the public on arrival at the Great Pumpkin Farm.

The weekend of Oinktoberfest is one of six weekends when the farm holds a fall festival and charges admission ($7 for ages 2 and up). Many attendees are families with young children who are entertained more by the carnival rides, farm activities, and Halloween-type attractions such as the “Boo Barn” than by the barbecue scene.

Teams set up for the competition; most participate in cookoffs on both days.

Most cooking teams set up in a back area away from festival activities, and some attendees might not even realize how many cooking teams are competing in the contest sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society. Most of the 54 cooking teams competing this year were from New York. An incentive for competing is that Oinktoberfest is the final event for determining the Empire State Champion. A few teams from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Ontario (Canada) also joined in the competition. The table where I was the captain included judges also from Ohio and Ontario. 

At least one judge wants everyone to know his hobby.

Oinktoberfest is actually a three-day event, beginning on a Friday night with music and family entertainment and attractions. On Saturday is the KCBS contest with the usual categories of chicken, ribs, pork, and brisket.

An early crowd lines up to enter the festival grounds at Great Pumpkin Farm.

For 2016, the theme of Oinktoberfest was “East Meets West” to recognize how Asia-inspired barbecue (such as Korean bulgogi, Chinese char siu pork, and Japanese yakitori) is becoming a part of barbecue’s growing popularity. As a result, Oinktoberfest included an optional fifth category of “Asian pot luck.”

Family activities attract a lot of attention at Oinktoberfest.

Oinktoberfest has firmly established itself as a premier barbecue competition. Being there was an enjoyable experience, and Oinktoberfest has definitely expanded the popularity of barbecue in western New York.