A taste for judging
With 35 years of palate-pleasing
experience behind her,
a Town of Saukville woman has
established herself as fairest of the fairs,
culinary authorities




Raspberry cream pie worthy of a blue ribbon
was made by Marlene Barber, a foods and clothing judge
at the Wisconsin State, Ozaukee County and other fairs.
Photo by Sam Arendt

CAROL POMEDAY
Ozaukee Press staff
Posted 7-23-08

In the 35 years she has been a judge at the Wisconsin State, Ozaukee County and other fairs, Marlene Barber of the Town of Saukville has tasted thousands of cookies, cakes, muffins and preserved foods.

If judges were awarded ribbons, she should get a blue ribbon, said Port Washington baker Linda Gottlieb, who has won more state and county blue ribbons than she can count and has been at Barber’s mercy many times.

“She’s a wonderful judge. She’s very fair and she’s kind,” Gottlieb said.

“She’s also a good teacher. As a competitor, you want to know how to be a better baker. Without spotting out someone, she will say, ‘If you over stir your muffins, you’ll get high peaks.’ And she’s not afraid to use the microphone. The whole point of going to the fair is to hear what the judges have to say.”

On Saturday, Gottlieb will await Barber’s decision again when the judge decides the winners of the State Fair specialty food contests that award money and prizes, such as Kitchen Aid mixers and sterling-silver butter dishes. Last year, Gottlieb garnered the most blue ribbons and won a set of cookware. She plans to enter the maximum 35 items again this year.

“Linda’s the person to beat,” Barber said. “You see many of the same people each year, and they all want to compete against Linda.

“I enjoy judging that day because you see really nice baked goods. You do see the best, and I learn a lot.”

On Thursday, July 31, Barber will be at the Ozaukee County Fair, where she will judge entries at the other end of the spectrum when she evaluates foods prepared by 4-H members. For some youngsters, this is their first fair entry.

Barber takes her 4-H judging just as seriously as she does the State Fair contests. The 4-H member faces the judge as the entry is inspected. Barber not only tastes and assesses the food’s appearance, but asks questions about the preparation.

“You don’t know if mom or dad did the cooking,” Barber said. “If they made it, they know how they put it together. Sometimes, they look at mother or grandmother first.

“When they’re 9 or 10, they need help and that’s fine, but they have to know how it was put together.”

Barber always finds something to compliment the youngster about the entry.

“I like to tell the young people something positive before I tell them what’s wrong,” she said. “I can remember judges not doing that when I was in 4-H. They were very critical, and that was very discouraging when you worked so hard.

“We can educate while we’re judging and that’s what I like. We can help them improve, and that’s what the fair is all about. I want to give them positive feelings so they will want to come back next year. I always encourage them to try again.”

She just hopes they don’t cry.

“I haven’t had anyone cry, but sometimes they look sad,” she said.

Gina Freitag, who supervises the Ozaukee County 4-H foods and clothing building at the fair, said Barber is a wonderful judge who listens to and encourages the youngsters.

“She draws them out,” Freitag said. “She always looks for something that they can do to make it better, even a blue-ribbon entry. If the cookie has spread, she’ll tell them in warmer weather they should add a little more flour so the cookie stays together better. Or she may tell them to spread the cake batter to the corners of the pan so the cake doesn’t dip down at the ends. That’s what makes it rewarding for the kids.”

Kay Schroeder, retired University of Wisconsin 4-H agent who hired Barber for many years, said Barber’s versatility in judging clothing and home environment entries as well as foods makes her a valuable judge, but her best attribute is the way she works with children.

“I think they think of her as a favorite aunt, someone who is easy to talk to,” Schroeder said. “She has a nice way of teaching as she judges.”

Barber tastes the foods she judges and cuts open baked items.
“I don’t think you can accurately judge when you don’t taste it,” she said.

The only items she doesn’t taste are preserved foods at the Ozaukee County Fair because the product would spoil during the four-day run of the fair. At the State Fair, contestants bring two jars of a preserved food — one for judging and tasting that the entrant takes home and one for exhibiting if it wins a ribbon.
At the State Fair, only items awarded ribbons are exhibited, but all entries are displayed at the Ozaukee County Fair.

State Fair contestants are not allowed to talk to the judge until after the judging is done. Barber explains to the audience why she chose the ones she did and why some did not make the grade.

“It’s very competitive and you only give one blue ribbon. You might have 30 chocolate chip cookies and you have to pick out the best one, so you have to get real picky,” Barber said.
The blue-ribbon winners are introduced and stand up, and people often ask questions.

Men and women have argued with Barber over the merits of their cakes or cookies, but no one has succeeded in getting a blue ribbon she didn’t believe they earned.

Preserved foods must be disqualified if USDA guidelines are not followed in making them. That includes sealing jams and jellies in a hot water bath and adding lemon juice to tomato products.

Barber follows the rules in the premium book and disqualifies a product if it doesn’t fit the description, noting every fair has its own rules.

She once disqualified a yeast bread at another county fair because it wasn’t baked in the required size pan. The baker turned out be on the fair staff and Barber wasn’t invited back.

But that’s rare. She is busy during the fair season judging food, clothing and home environment entries.

“A lot of fairs don’t want judges to judge the same items every year. It’s good for judges to alternate. I do whatever they need,” said Barber, who judged clothing reviews for Washington and Sheboygan counties earlier this year. She was a 4-H clothing leader for many years.

“The styles have really changed. There were so many dresses this year. With all the different fabrics, your skills have to change with the fabric,” Barber said.

Barber would like to see more creative entry classes at the Ozaukee County Fair, such as adapting ready-made clothing, which she judged at the Washington County Fair.

She also judged a healthy snacks category at the Sheboygan County Fair.

“They need to think about color and appearance, not just the nutritional value, because the eye plays a big part in what you want to eat,” Barber said.

Some fairs have categories for enhancing ready-made or convenience foods, which Barber said fits today’s lifestyle.

“People don’t have time to make things from scratch anymore, and we need to recognize that creativity at the fair,” she said.

Barber, who has been involved with 4-H since she was 10, said the county and state fairs are highlights of her year.

“My summer wouldn’t be complete without fair judging,” she said.