This past weekend, March 2 – 3, was the third annual Sip & Swine BBQ Festival at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville. Sip & Swine is a Kansas City Barbecue Society-sanctioned BBQ competition and festival. The event was a lot of fun – there was a delicious barbecue, live music, and vendors selling all manner of wares.
But the best part is that Sip & Swine is a fundraiser for The Home of Hope at Gwinnett Children’s Shelter.
Home of Hope at Gwinnett Children’s Shelter is a local nonprofit. The goal of the organization is to help homeless children and their young mothers by providing a safe, nurturing home and life skills training. The moms work with the staff to create an individualized life plan so that they can gain independence and get back on their feet. The nonprofit also helps young women who age out of the foster system when they’re 18. Home of Hope @ GCS has touched many lives, and we’re so pleased to support them by being a part of Sip & Swine 2018. (All the profits from the Sip & Swine BBQ Festival go to the nonprofit.) You can find out more about the nonprofit at the Home of Hope @ GCS website.
It was an absolutely beautiful weekend for the outdoor barbecue festival – thankfully the rain that we’ve been having lately took a break! We basked in warm sunlight under a bright blue sky. Tons of people came out; attendance this year was between 10,000 and 12,000 people over the course of the two days. That’s the best turnout we’ve had in the three years we’ve done Sip & Swine. We’re very thankful to all who came out to support Home of Hope @ GCS – and all who partook of the fantastic barbecue!
From the live music to the lemonade and funnel cakes to the wares from the vendors, there was something at the festival for everyone, even those who aren’t barbecue lovers. But of course, a barbecue festival wouldn’t be complete without the friendly competition – the goals of Sip & Swine are to fundraise and find the best BBQ out there! Both professional and amateur teams competed to see who could create the best barbecue. There were three different categories: Chicken, Pork Ribs, and Pork (though the Pro teams competed in all of those categories plus Beef Brisket.) By the end of the competition, the judges had crowned the victors.
And the winners are…
- Grand Champion: The Pit Crew GA
- Reserve Grand Champion: Who Cares BBQ
- Backyard Overall: Bite Me BBQ
- Anything But Overall: Extra Mile BBQ
- Dessert Overall: Nice Rack BBQ
*View a full list of the scores and victors on the KCBS website.
Aside from the official judges, there was also a People’s Choice competition, where the event attendees could purchase a Taster Kit of samples and vote on which one they felt deserved to win. (Those were available Saturday afternoon.)
Here are the victors of the People’s Choice Competition, with the cup number from the Taster Kit included…
- First place went to … E.T.’s BBQ (Cup #19)
- Second place went to … FYC BBQ (Cup #50)
- And there was a three-way tie for third place between … Roast Beast BBQ (Cup #13), Slow Smokin’ BBQ (Cup #7), and Sweet Smoke BBQ (Cup #11)
Congratulations to all this year’s victors and a big thank you to all of the teams who came out to compete in Sip & Swine 2018! (These aren’t the only winners, however – the winner of the Primo Grill giveaway was James Amatriain.)
We’re so thrilled that the barbecue festival was such a success in raising money for a great organization. Again, we want to say thank you to everyone who came out to support this great cause!
2018 PEOPLE’S CHOICE TEAM NUMBERS
Did you vote in the Sip & Swine 2018 People’s Choice Contest on Saturday? If so, check the numbers below to find out which team cooked your favorite BBQ.
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Read more about Sip & Swine 2018 in the Gwinnett Daily Post.