Happy Brew Year! Calendar items for pouring and competitions were discussed. Check the calendar link for more information. Presentation by Rich on Fast Fermenting, all beer types, even lagers! He described the importance of what is essentially a feedback loop of temperature and specific gravity. It helps to "know your yeast." Dan mentioned a new bluetooth device to get temperature and gravity readings on your phone! Beer Tastings: Joe - bret saison 1.01 5.5% and bret flanders brown, Dean - lager 1.12 4.5%, Brian - schwartzbier, and Mary - hoppy bret experiment and the barrel aged stout club project. I did a quick demonstration of my portable glass rinser invention. Our "shark tank" was pleased. We will use it at Hops for Heros. This month’s meeting was well attended and included a presentation on Hops and 14 beer tastings!
The word of the day is Smash beer. What’s that, you may ask? Well, it’s an acronym, as in SMaSH, or Single Malt and Single Hop. “SMaSH brewing is a way to cut down on various brewing ingredients and appreciate what each aspect of a recipe brings to the table. There really is no better way to get to know your ingredients than using one at a time.” - American Homebrewers Association (www.homebrewersassociation.org) The 14 tastings included everything from the simple SMaSH recipes to complex ingredients consisting of 4 or 5 hop varieties and multiple hopping methods to aged beers of a year or more! The Hops presentation led by Dean provided some excellent information on what to consider when growing, selecting, and using hops in your home brew. Did you know about dwarf hop varieties that you could grow in limited spaces? Interesting. For more info about hops… https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/news/10-facts-ych-hops-hop-brew-school-2016/. And while you’re there, why not join! Members should expect a followup email with a link to a survey that will determine what we’ll do next month as a special meeting/party. Look for it and respond right away. And be sure to check the calendar for opportunities to share your beer and compete for awards! Awards - Closed Transfer - Beers!
Welcome to our new members Andrew and Rachael Parke, and the crew of the new Bullfrog Creek Brewing Co. who are just starting the process of building a new brewery on Lithia Pinecrest in Valrico! Our award-winning brewers continue their winning streak! George and Mary won both gold and silver awards for their chocolate peanut butter stout and cider respectively. Jay ? was also a winner. Congratulations to them as they encourage more of our club brewers to enter competitions. It really is the best way to find out what you’re doing right! President Joe demonstrated a closed transfer process. He connected CO2 to a plastic carboy to a carny keg to a homemade spunding valve to show us how oxidation can be minimized. And what do we love most of all? Beer! We tasted samples from Dean, an IPA; Brian, his rye IPA; and Mary, a Berliner and her award winning Stout! Reposted from 7/19/2017
Brew Tastings - DIY Equipment - Vocabulary Tastings included George’s American Pale Ale and Mary’s Ginger Cider, our President’s Watermelon Gueuze, Ryan’s two Red Ales, and my own Whiskey Barrel Stout, Midnight Delight! Joe demonstrated his do-it-yourself project for stirring up his yeast hydration solution. He used a small job box to house a computer exhaust fan with a couple of earth magnets attached, placed a flask on top of the box, dropped in a small magnetic capsule, turned it on, and voila! Some vocabulary used during the meeting; attenuation, cold crash, hop schedule, and pellicle (https://beerandbrewing.com/what-is-a-pellicle/). These are just a few of the terms and words you’ll learn along the way to becoming a craft brewer! Explore and learn. Brew Tastings - National Homebrew Conference - Member’s New Brewery
Tastings included Mary’s award winning Berliner and Strawberry sours, David’s first brew Belgian Tripel, Bob’s Barleywine, Ray’s Meed, Tom’s stout, and Stephen’s pils IPA. Bob talked about his travels to the annual National Homebrew conference which was attended by 2600 home brewers this year! He participated in the beer judging, and attended several of the seminars. One seminar on the topic of Oxidation was of particular interest, and he shared the details of what he learned. There were parties as well, like the beer, bacon, and cheese fest. Next year’s conference is in Portland, so save up, and save the date! One of our members is now in the process of building a new brewery in Sylva, NC. It opens in August on Main Street and will have 24 original recipe beers on tap! Our new President put fourth several new ideas for club presentations and development such as DIY Equipment Demos, Mentor Brewing, Book and Equipment Exchanges, New Member Ambassador Pairing, and Hosting New Club Events. Recommended Reading: Brew Like A Monk, check out our members' book exchange. |
PeteNew to brewing. So much to learn. Grateful to have this club's help! Archives
January 2022
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