ALPINE SMOKE WORKS

ALPINE SMOKE WORKS is a competition barbecue team with 25 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2024 and 2026. They have won 3 Grand Championships, most recently at the Big BBQ Bash (2026), and finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #1150 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “AlpineSmokeworks”.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,150

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1590

peak 1590 · rated over 20 contests3 invitational or side-series contests not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Mar 1, 2024

latest Sep 25, 2026 · 2.6 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#72

Master 2026 · every season

Grand champs

1 reserve · wins it all 12% of the time

Category wins

15 podiums

Overall top-10s

28% of 25 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s, still running · 2 straight GCs

Avg finish

top 48%

overall standings

Best overall

707.4056 / 720

Master · Big BBQ Bash

Perfect 180s

4 🔥

Current form

694.33 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 676.05 (+18.28)

Walk rate

64%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Brisket · Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship

Consistency

±38.36

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 172.88 · weakest Brisket (169.35)

Road miles

4,500

across 25 mapped stops · furthest 476 mi

Schedule strength

80%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1604)

Purse competed for

$210K

listed at 20 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

3 🏅

won from 20 state-championship entries

Master avg

676.05 / 720

22 Master contests · 3 GCs

Storylines (15 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

Riding a hot streak

4 straight overall top-10s

Currently on a 4-contest overall top-10 run — including 2 straight Grand Championships.

career best 4
2 straight GCs

Perfect scores on the board

4 perfect 180s

4 perfect 180s in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, across 2 different meats.

Pork Ribs ×2
Brisket ×2

Against the odds

8-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 92 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Big BBQ Bash (Jun 20, 2025) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 8-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN.

On the rise

+96 rating points in a year

Their power rating has climbed 96 points across 9 contests since Oct 24, 2025 — from 1494 up to 1590.

9 contests since Oct 24, 2025
now 1590

Giant slayer

30 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 30-team field at Big BBQ Bash.

Sep 25, 2026

They almost always walk

64% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 16 of 25 contests

A top-10 category call in 64% of their 25 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

707.4056 career-best overall

98.3% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 707.4056 at Big BBQ Bash — 98.3% of a perfect 720.

Master
Jun 20, 2025

Show 8 more storylines

State champions

3 state championships won

They've taken 3 state championships from 20 entries at contests carrying the title.

20 state-championship entries

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

BAD ROOSTER BBQ has finished one call ahead of ALPINE SMOKE WORKS 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2026 2 Grand Championships

2026 was the year it came together: 12 contests, 2 Grand Championships and 3 category wins, at an average finish in the top 29%.

12 contests
5 overall top-10s
3 category wins
average top 29%

A tough matchup

12–5 behind in the head-to-head

SMOKIN SKULLIES ahead in 71% of their meetings

SMOKIN SKULLIES has come out ahead in 12 of their 17 shared contests.

A strong matchup

7–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Big Alz BBQ in 7 of their 7 shared contests.

They cook the hard rooms

1604 average field rating faced

A tougher draw than 80% of rated fields

The fields they enter average a 1604 power rating — a tougher draw than 80% of every rated contest in the data.

20 rated contests

A September team

Top 35% average finish in September

Something about September: average finish in the top 35% across 5 contests, versus top 48% the rest of the year.

5 September contests
top 48% the rest of the year

The long haul

4,500 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 4,500 miles across 25 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 476 miles to Bear-B-Q.

25 mapped stops
furthest 476 mi

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026 ↗	Master	#72 (1,567 pts)	#93 (1,487 pts)	#69 (1,612 pts)	#93 (1,372 pts)	#82 (1,437 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#247 (896 pts)	#168 (1,256 pts)	#274 (931 pts)	#301 (771 pts)	#216 (1,026 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#773 (175 pts)	#547 (360 pts)	#683 (275 pts)	#731 (220 pts)	#786 (185 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to ALPINE SMOKE WORKS, each with one reason worth a look.

33 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

Sermerstout BBQ

#1,153 of the rated field

1590 power rating

Contests: 27
GCs: 3
Top-10s: 52%
Peak: 1590

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to ALPINE SMOKE WORKS)

One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team ALPINE SMOKE WORKS has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 25 contests
last seen Sep 19, 2026
on a 4-contest top-10 run

⚔ Head-to-head

I.B.O.K. HOLY SMOKERS

#1,152 of the rated field

1590 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 73%
Peak: 1594

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to ALPINE SMOKE WORKS)

Fewer contests behind them than ALPINE SMOKE WORKS has cooked, 11 to 25, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Aug 16, 2024

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKE RING AND BARK

#1,149 of the rated field

1590 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 60%
Peak: 1590

0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to ALPINE SMOKE WORKS)

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 10 contests
last seen Jul 9, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

BIG WHIT AND THE BOYS

#1,151 of the rated field

1590 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 39%
Peak: 1590

Their last contest in the data was back in 2016, 10 years before ALPINE SMOKE WORKS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 18 contests

⚔ Compare careers

Bourbon Barrel BBQ

#1,146 of the rated field

1591 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1592

16 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 38% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 16 contests
last seen Jan 22, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Woodquarter Smokerheads

#1,154 of the rated field

1590 power rating

Contests: 28
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 82%
Peak: 1612

Level with ALPINE SMOKE WORKS on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 26 contests
last seen Sep 26, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	17	6	11	35%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN SKULLIES	17	5	12	29%	⚔ compare
HalaQyah BBQ	14	8	6	57%	⚔ compare
MAYA JANE BBQ CO.	13	4	9	31%	⚔ compare
ZIPS BBQ	13	4	9	31%	⚔ compare
BAD ROOSTER BBQ	13	2	11	15%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' SWEETMEATS	12	6	6	50%	⚔ compare
HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ	12	2	10	17%	⚔ compare
ELITE BBQ SMOKERS	11	4	7	36%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
SWIG-N-PIG	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
JL Smokers	10	5	5	50%	⚔ compare
Casual Smokers SC	10	4	6	40%	⚔ compare
Glamping Grillers	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	24	11	2	6	178.8572	162.8000	172.88	top 38%
Pork Ribs	22	7	1	4	180 🔥	159.3600	171.20	top 41%
Pork	22	6	0	1	177.7144	156.5028	170.51	top 47%
Brisket	22	6	1	4	180 🔥	155.3600	169.35	top 51%

“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.

By field size and state

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Medium (20–39)	14	3	top 41%
Large (40+)	8	0	top 61%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
NC	7	1	top 51%
TN	6	2	top 41%
VA	3	0	top 61%
GA	3	0	top 58%
SC	2	0	top 41%
WV	1	0	top 24%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Pigmaster's BBQ Challenge	2	1	1	top 31%	Sep 18, 2026
Smoke on the Mountain	2	26	0	top 81%	Jul 25, 2025
Sip & Swine BBQ Festival	2	38	0	top 76%	Mar 7, 2025

More numbers

Busiest season 2026 12 contests · 2 GCs

Contests a season 8.3 across 3 seasons in the data

Most contests held in TN 9 of 25 contests · 6 states in all

Contests visited 19 3 of them more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 24 entries · 2 wins · 11 calls

First title Jun 20, 2025 Big BBQ Bash

Opponents faced 533 finished ahead 522 times, behind 703

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

20265 milestones

May 1 First Reserve Championship Bear-B-Q
Sep 25 25th tracked contest Big BBQ Bash
Sep 25 Biggest field won (30 teams) Big BBQ Bash
Sep 25 Peak power rating (1590) Big BBQ Bash
Sep 25 Most recent contest Big BBQ Bash

20258 milestones

May 16 First category win (Chicken) Bloomin' BBQ Music & Food Festival
Jun 20 First overall top-10 Big BBQ Bash
Jun 20 First overall podium Big BBQ Bash
Jun 20 First Grand Championship Big BBQ Bash
Jun 20 First state championship Big BBQ Bash
Jun 20 First perfect 180 (Brisket) Big BBQ Bash
Jun 20 Career-best overall score707.4056 Big BBQ Bash
Sep 5 10th tracked contest Uniquely Union Festival

20243 milestones

Mar 1 First tracked contest Sip & Swine BBQ Festival
Mar 1 First overall past 90% of a perfect score672.9940 Sip & Swine BBQ Festival
Sep 20 First call Pigmaster BBQ Challenge

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+20.5	Big BBQ Bash	Jun 20, 2025
+17.2	Bear-B-Q	May 1, 2026
+16.6	Pigmaster's BBQ Challenge	Sep 18, 2026
+14.9	Big BBQ Bash	Sep 25, 2026
+13.4	Chillin & Grillin in the Glades	Jul 17, 2026

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-12	Eastern Carolina BBQ Throwdown	Oct 24, 2025
-9.5	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival	Mar 7, 2025
-7.6	Smoke on the Mountain	Jul 26, 2024
-6.6	Smoke on the Mountain	Jul 25, 2025
-6.1	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival	Mar 1, 2024

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — tap a meat to add it)

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Season by season

Season	Contests	GCs	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	12	2	5	3	67%	top 29%	97.6%	96.3%
2025	10	1	2	1	70%	top 57%	98.3%	92.1%
2024	3	0	0	0	33%	top 74%	93.8%	92.8%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 25, 2026	Big BBQ Bash 🏅 Townsend, TN	1 / 30 (701.1088)	2 (176.5716)	16 (167.9772)	2 (177.7028)	1 (178.8572)
Sep 18, 2026	Pigmaster's BBQ Challenge 🏅 Rutherford College, NC	1 / 29 (701.6572)	1 (178.8572)	5 (176.5600)	5 (175.4056)	13 (170.8344)
Jul 17, 2026	Chillin & Grillin in the Glades 🏅 Wise, VA	7 / 35 (692.4800)	10 (174.2744)	15 (169.6916)	9 (173.1084)	4 (175.4056)
Jun 19, 2026	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash (OPEN FORMAT) 🏅 Buckhannon, WV	7 / 29 (690.2172)	14 (171.4172)	4 (175.4172)	6 (175.4056)	22 (167.9772)
May 24, 2026	8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: Master Series Invitational and the Backyard Series Invitational (Sunday, May 24, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN	64 / 82 (686.2056)	24 (176.5600)	20 (176.5600)	51 (171.9772)	79 (161.1084)
May 23, 2026	8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: Wells Cup, Cocktail Ancillary, Dessert Ancillary (Saturday, May 23, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN	59 / 117 (684.5028)	71 (171.9656)	74 (170.2628)	14 (177.7144)	104 (164.5600)
May 22, 2026	8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: World Chicken Finals (Friday, May 22, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN	—	42 (171.9656)	—	—	—
May 1, 2026	Bear-B-Q 🏅 New Bern, NC	2 / 26 (702.8460)	3 (177.7028)	2 (176.5716)	12 (171.4172)	4 (177.1544)
Mar 20, 2026	Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship 🏅 Lebanon, TN	51 / 125 (687.8740)	69 (170.8228)	84 (167.3828)	79 (169.6684)	2 (180)
Mar 20, 2026	Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Lebanon, TN	—	51 (167.3712)	—	—	—
Mar 20, 2026	Smoke on the Shores BBQ Championship (ONE MEAT RIBS) Lebanon, TN	—	—	1 (180)	—	—
Feb 27, 2026	Mission Farms - King of the Farm 🏅 Iron Station, NC	12 / 33 (690.7772)	3 (177.7144)	22 (167.3828)	4 (175.4172)	21 (170.2628)
Nov 14, 2025	Atlanta BBQ Store Classic 🏅 Cumming, GA	12 / 56 (696.4912)	34 (170.8228)	2 (180)	27 (171.9656)	17 (173.7028)
Oct 24, 2025	Eastern Carolina BBQ Throwdown 🏅 Rocky Mount, NC	45 / 45 (511.3484)	7 (174.2628)	—	28 (167.3828)	16 (169.7028)
Sep 19, 2025	Pigmaster's BBQ Challenge 🏅 Rutherford College, NC	21 / 36 (673.5772)	8 (172.5716)	14 (169.6800)	28 (165.0856)	24 (166.2400)
Sep 5, 2025	Uniquely Union Festival 🏅 Union, SC	9 / 25 (685.0400)	16 (168.5372)	5 (173.1200)	12 (169.6800)	3 (173.7028)
Jul 25, 2025	Smoke on the Mountain 🏅 Galax, VA	30 / 37 (670.1256)	33 (162.8000)	21 (167.3828)	18 (169.1200)	17 (170.8228)
Jul 10, 2025	South Carolina Festival of Discovery 🏅 Greenwood, SC	30 / 66 (683.9084)	19 (173.1200)	14 (175.4400)	54 (163.3828)	27 (171.9656)
Jun 20, 2025	Big BBQ Bash 🏅 Maryville, TN	1 / 26 (707.4056)	3 (177.7028)	3 (176.5600)	8 (173.1428)	2 (180)
May 16, 2025	Bloomin' BBQ Music & Food Festival 🏅 Sevierville, TN	22 / 33 (668.9944)	1 (178.8572)	19 (168.5372)	24 (166.2400)	28 (155.3600)
Mar 28, 2025	Smokin' in the Pines 🏅 Carthage, NC	16 / 22 (672.4112)	10 (170.8344)	20 (163.9428)	12 (170.8112)	14 (166.8228)
Mar 7, 2025	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival 🏅 Lawrenceville, GA	39 / 45 (660.9484)	35 (167.3828)	42 (159.3600)	28 (169.6800)	37 (164.5256)
Sep 20, 2024	Pigmaster BBQ Challenge 🏅 Rutherford College, NC	25 / 33 (675.2684)	4 (176.5600)	18 (167.3944)	16 (170.8228)	31 (160.4912)
Jul 26, 2024	Smoke on the Mountain 🏅 Galax, VA	26 / 32 (657.0060)	18 (169.1200)	19 (165.6916)	31 (156.5028)	23 (165.6916)
Mar 1, 2024	Sip & Swine BBQ Festival 🏅 Lawrenceville, GA	38 / 59 (672.9940)	26 (171.4172)	18 (171.4172)	27 (169.6684)	52 (160.4912)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

ALPINE SMOKE WORKS

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (15 found in their record)

Riding a hot streak

Perfect scores on the board

Against the odds

On the rise

Giant slayer

They almost always walk

High-water mark

State champions

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

A strong matchup

They cook the hard rooms

A September team

The long haul

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — tap a meat to add it)

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Season by season

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)