They fired up the flavours on Grinsted Oval on the weekend as Forbes hosted the National Barbecue Championships. Saturday was for the grill masters, while Sunday was all about the slow burn of smoked meats, with overall winners crowned each day after preparing four meats for judging. Deputy Mayor Chris Roylance was "absolutely ecstatic" about the event, with teams from across the country turning up the heat alongside local competitors. "It's been a great event for Forbes and we're looking forward to the next one," he said on Sunday afternoon. Celebrity chef Mat Blak, flown in from the UK for the weekend, was one of the judges on grilling day and described the standard as "outstanding", praising the quality of the meat and the way it was prepared. "For me it's been an eye-opener of a weekend," he said. Mat is a New Zealand native but now in the UK and a champion of the Australia / New Zealand barbecue scene. The Forbes championships showed him it's packed with great food, great cooks and great people. "It filled me with pride because these guys can cook," he said. "They're really great, and regardless of the competition, they're just great people. "The whole thing about barbecue is it's about community and community to me is really important . "For me personally it's been really great to find people with a like minded passion for something, that can sit around, have some beers, and talk about stuff." The number of females in the competition was also impressive. "It's still sort of male dominated in the UK so having so many great female cooks coming through that just tells me the community is really strong out here," he said. "I feel like I'm very late to the party with the Australian community barbecue scene but I hope this is just the beginning for me." Grilling day winners were a thrilled Naomi Roskell and Tim Mazaraki from the Hunter Valley, who have travelled the country as well as New Zealand and the US this year competing. "It's really unexpected," Naomi said of the win. If they had one tip, it would be to buy a meat thermometer - a good one. You don't want any delay in those temperatures. Tim thanked Forbes Shire Council and all involved in the organisation. "Awesome job, we'll be back next year, bigger and better," he said. Sunday's smoking day winners were Jeff and Amanda Griffiths from Adelaide, who have won seven titles for the year and were up and cooking by 3am. They'd encourage enthusiasts to give the competition a go. "Come down here with your mates - that's what we do," Jeff said. Want to get started? Put your hand up to be a judge. "They're always looking for judges so hit the judges' queue, get inside the judges' marquee, have a taste of what's there and then you can work out what you need to do to get there," he said. "Then you can fine-tune recipes, do a few practice runs with your friends." At the end of the day, it's all about mateship - and very, very good food. Volunteer judges were trained on the day by Don Burningham from the Australian Barbecue Alliance and Cr Roylance said they had a great day. "Turn up hungry," was the deputy mayor's advice to anyone interested in that tasty task in 2025. He also encouraged more locals to enter the competition. One of the great rivalries of the weekend was between the Spice Girls and the Meat Mavericks. At the end of the day they took home the prizes for the best dressed team and the best dressed tent - everyone wins. "It was a great event, very pleased, can't wait for the next one," Cr Roylance said.
