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Is this for KCBS? I think that muchs sauce on brisket isn't the way to go, you'd be better served using a jus or just a quick finishing sauce to give it some sheen. Brisket more than the other meats is focused on the meat itself, rather than the interplay of meat vs sauce.

Other posters nailed it and you knew as well that the brisket was overcooked. For presentation purposes you probably want to make sure that the brisket is trimmed slightly wider than the box when it goes on the smoker, so that all slices will be the width of the box when it is sliced.

Other than that it looks delicious! Was it slightly dry due to being overcooked, or did the phosphates in the Butchers injection keep it moist for you?

Easy guys. It just brisket. And not that good of one at that!

WD - Yes its for KCBS. I am starting a team this year. Will be my first attempt. I'm not sure that Im totally ready (as you can see) but what the hell. Got to learn somehow. It why I posted this one. I knew I'd get good tips. I'm sure it was a little dry due to overcooking but I would think the butchers helped. I really have not cooked enough brisket to know for sure. I think this is my 4th brisket. Of the 4 meats we need to cook this is the one I need the most work on.

Solar - Im looking for sliced brisket but the slices should pull apart fairly easily. That is what I was asking about your posted link.

I've only got a few years of competing under my belt but brisket remains a mystery to me.

From reviewing the score reports from my limited competitions, brisket especially is what you need to carry to win a GC, because if you nail brisket you can get the really big scores i.e. 175+ or even 180 perfect. I think there's a bit more wiggle room with ribs and chicken, even though you need to pull 9's to win either.

Just for example, in one competition here are the winning weighted scores in each category.
Chicken: 173.71
Ribs: 175.4
Pork 172.8
Brisket: 176.0

The spread between 1st and 10th place is 10 points in brisket, and 5-7 points in the other categories.

Hope this makes sense, I wish I had more constructive feedback to offer. I do like the Butchers' injection, and use it myself. I really really don't like the Butcher's pork injection.

Also it's tough to practice brisket unless you're a big fat F*** since it's fairly expensive and generates so much meat. It's easy to practice chicken thighs 6 at a time for a family dinner...

If you want the best brisket and you want to win a competition with brisket then you are going two different directions. KCBS judges like sweet injections and things that are glossy and don't really taste like beef.

You can't beat the 3-2-1 method for getting a brisket to the table on time with a decent chance with the judges. But, that isn't any brisket I would want to eat.

I don't know any competition guys that that win that would cook the same at home for their family. Kinda puts up a good point as to the pointlessness of competition BBQ, if it is supposed to be the best BBQ.

I say go the route of paying attention to times, follow the winning recipes, and overall, have a good time.

salumi512 wrote:If you want the best brisket and you want to win a competition with brisket then you are going two different directions. KCBS judges like sweet injections and things that are glossy and don't really taste like beef.

You can't beat the 3-2-1 method for getting a brisket to the table on time with a decent chance with the judges. But, that isn't any brisket I would want to eat.

I don't know any competition guys that that win that would cook the same at home for their family. Kinda puts up a good point as to the pointlessness of competition BBQ, if it is supposed to be the best BBQ.

I say go the route of paying attention to times, follow the winning recipes, and overall, have a good time.

I agree with this. KCBS competition is entirely different than making a good brisket. They are looking for specific flavor and texture profiles which is disappointing. Flavor should be king in my opinion.

I agree somewhat with the comments about KCBS judging and brisket. That said it still really come down to what judges you get and what they like. What good to me might not be good to you. KCBS can try to make guideline for the judges but in the end its all about their tastes.

I think who you get for judges can change thing a bit. There's some luck involved. We'll see how it goes. I'm must looking to have 4 meats done on time with a box to turn in. Starting simple. I'm sure we wont place well at first but if its fun and we keep doing it we'll get better.

Thanks for all the help. I'll post up my next one and it should be better.

Vindii wrote:I agree somewhat with the comments about KCBS judging and brisket. That said it still really come down to what judges you get and what they like. What good to me might not be good to you. KCBS can try to make guideline for the judges but in the end its all about their tastes.

I think who you get for judges can change thing a bit. There's some luck involved. We'll see how it goes. I'm must looking to have 4 meats done on time with a box to turn in. Starting simple. I'm sure we wont place well at first but if its fun and we keep doing it we'll get better.

Thanks for all the help. I'll post up my next one and it should be better.

Good luck! I hope you do well.

We've done 5 KCBS contests now. Its fun to look back at this post to seehow far Ive come. I can cook briskets without even thinking about it now. Heres our first palce brisket from a month or so ago. Was 33 teams and we finished 1st in brisket and 2nd overall.

This is awesome Vindii nice progress and congrats! Your brisket practice is really paying off it sounds like.