On Judging Cake Shows
One point that I sometimes found difficult as a competitor in cake shows was to agree with the judges’ decision on a winning cake. Now that I am on the other side of the turntable, I understand things in a different light. Even as a judge, the cake that first appears as the “obvious” winner is not always the correct choice.
Case in point, this past weekend I was one of three judges to consider entries in a Marie-Antoinette themed wedding cake competition in New York City. At first glance, I was drawn to a particular cake with a certain prominence; I thought “well, this will be an easy task”. Not so fast. Upon closer inspection, and conference with the other adjudicators, it was discovered that the work on another cake was a better representation of the theme: the color palette was spot on vis-a-vis Marie-Antoinette and her era, details coincided with Marie-Antoinette’s wardrobe, her Austrian heritage, and French lifestyle. Some details on the first cake were out of sync with the period. And as an overall piece, there seemed to be two incongruent styles represented in two portions of the cake that did not work well together. After comparing each individual element on each cake to the rules the appropriate cake was selected as the higher scoring cake, without diminishing the many merits of the other entries.
One of the greatest characteristics of a cake show is that it gives all of us a place to learn. Whether you are a beginning cake decorator learning the basics of what it means to compete, or a professional designer who is looking for ways to take your own designs to the next level, judged shows provide the venue. For judges the learning comes from conference with other judges whose perspectives and experience bring new light to details in each cake. I have spent as much as 3 hours discussing and comparing three professional wedding cakes in tough competitions.
At the conclusion of a competition, I encourage all show competitors and spectators to discuss choices with the adjudicators…not in an attempt to alter the outcome of the show but to simply learn more about the process through which the judges went in order to arrive at their conclusion. Through such conversation, we all go home with some new ideas, new perspectives, and hopefully new tools to use at the next show.
If you are interested in upcoming competitions/shows, check out:
That Takes the Cake in Austin, TX February 27-28, 2010
National Capital Area Cake Show in Fairfax, VA March 20-21, 2010