Last night's class was a good experience, it was more of a planning class than digging down into the study guide but with almost 6 months until the exam we aren't in a rush. It started out with a local who has given the exam and judged it giving his perspective on things that are important to study for. This was important because rather than just the 'you do things this way' it gave me a better understanding of the whys. It also gave me chance to see how the exam has changed the last few years. When I tested before it was on the cusp of the change so we had the new style exam but had not been told about them so we walked in a bit blindsided. Not that I am complaining it was just we didn't have experienced locals active in the BJCP at the time of the exam so we didn't have the best study prep.

The group is a good mix of beginners, brewers, and experience folk so it should be a well rounded group. Rather than self study it was decided to do more of a combined group study with some homework. Tastings are part of the program, but the process understanding of brewing should be the part that I expect to be the most beneficial. We will be combining some class elements with the local homebrew club events which will get a more social atmosphere to the studies and keep the class energized I suspect. All and all it looks like a great start to the classes.