For Kansas City foodies, barbecue isn't just something you eat for dinner. It's a way of life.
Judges tasted more than 450 sauces.
"It hits a primal nerve. It's in our DNA," said Ardie Davis, who founded the World Series of Barbecue Sauce contest. "Once you smell a meat fire, you have to have some of it. It's just an attraction to it."
READ: American Royal BBQ moving to Kansas Speedway
The contest involved nearly 60 taste-testers sampling more than 450 barbecue sauces from three countries and 36 states.
Up 1st - mild tomato. It's the biggest category. #bbq @AmericanRoyal pic.twitter.com/rombBnlLXD
— Terra Hall (@TerraHall) May 22, 2016
"This started in 1984 in my Roland Park backyard patio, and it grew three years later to the American Royal. This is the 29th year at the American Royal," he said.
He said the move to Kansas City, Kansas, may be a good one, and he would be the one to know: the original sauce contest became so popular that Davis had to move it to a bigger space. And the same seems to be true for the World Series of Barbecue.
For now, the sauce contest will stay put in the West Bottoms. But who knows? Organizers tell 41 Action Action News that if it ever gets as big as the main event, they may have to look for a new space as well.
It's the World Series of sauces at the @AmericanRoyal. Mild, hot, special, mustard & vinegar. What's your fav? pic.twitter.com/cHorlmCSWx
— Terra Hall (@TerraHall) May 22, 2016
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Terra Hall can be reached at terra.hall@kshb.com.
You can also follow her on Twitter.
