October 2002

 Home Imbrewment

 

The Official Newsletter of the Hampton Roads Brewing and Tasting Society

 

Newsletter Editor:   Pat Dabbs   mailto:dabbsp@cox.net

The President's Corner – Mike Pensinger

Well looks like September has come and gone... brewing season is right around the corner!  We had a great competition this month in the form of the Club recipe month.  For those of you that are new or have been living under a rock, we all brewed essentially the same recipe and then compared the results.  The recipe was a Tuppers Hop Pocket clone from the North American Clone Brews book by Scott Russell.  While I am not sure I agree with the results of the recipe as a clone of the real thing, the product is very good.  We had five entries and the competition was great. Congratulations to the winners!

Some of you may have noticed that we made a change in the clubs website.  It has officially been moved to its own web server and has a permanent domain name.  The new address is www.hrbts.org . This has allowed us to do a couple things.  One, there are not any more of the annoying pop up windows anymore. Two, it allows us to host a much more robust discussion forum.

While we are on the subject of the discussion forum we I have posted some information concerning BOTM schedule and Briess cup rule changes that were discussed at the last judging/officer meeting.  Check them out and make some suggestions.  There are also other forums for discussions concerning equipment, procedure, brewing schedules, and meeting places.

Well, we have some great competitions coming up so I better get back to brewing!  See you all at the party this weekend and at the meeting next week.

Mike Pensinger

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The Meeting Place  - Diane Catanzaro

The HRB&TS Oktoberfest meeting will be October 2 at 7:30 p.m. at Will and Jonna Walker's home, Please contact an Officer for address and directions.  Will and Jonna have are actually in Munich doing research on Oktoberfest as I write this....you will save money on airfare by simply coming to the October meeting and celebrating with the HRB&TS.....and when Will and Jonna share their tales of the real deal you will experience ONE DEGREE OF SEPARATION from Oktoberfest!!!  How cool is that?  Of course, bring any homebrew and commercial beers and/or a food item to share if you wish.  If you haven't tried the Boca Sausage - Bratwurst style, they are as close to the real thing as you can get, minus the fat globules and guilt about eating Arnold the Pig or Babe.  They are "sehr gut" and with less fat you have more room for your dopplebock!  By the way, if you have lederhosen or those cool German hats with the feather (not the helmet type), this is the time to wear them!
 

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3700 Shore Dr.  Suite #101
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Phone: (757) 318-7600
Fax:     (757) 318-7605

Competition Connection  - Tom Byrnes

 

This month we judged the. Tupper’s Clone contest which featured 5 entries. The scores were close with most winners being in the Very Good to Excellent category. Our club members continue to brew quality beers. The winners are listed below:

Club Recipe Contest: Tupper’s Clone

First Place: Victor Perrotti.
Second Place: Mike Pensinger
Third Place. Pat Dabbs

Thanks to all who entered this contest.

Remember any member is welcome to come to the judging’s. This is a way to learn about the styles and help your brewing. Besides you get to drink good homebrew two days per month. We do, however, ask members to be sure their entries conform to the BCJP guidelines. These can be accessed at www.beertown.org. If you would like to hold a judging meeting at your house, please let me know.

You will notice that the BRIESS CUP continues to be close. Six points continues to separate the top three candidates but the range between first and second has narrowed. Remember our club picnic is approaching and the club gives 4 Briess points to all members brewing the equivalent of 5 gallons of beer (kegs or bottles). This offer is limited to 2 brews per member for an 8 point maximum for 10 gallons of beer. To help plan your brewing the Bitter Pale Ale contest, to be judged, December 18,2002 will be the final contest for this round of the BRIESS Cup.

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BRIESS CUP 2002 STANDINGS

BREWER

CUMULATIVE POINTS

CJ/Diane

29

Victor Perrotti

26

Doug Boyd

23

Tom Byrnes

14

Mike Pensinger

13

Pat Dabbs

8

Wes Mc Gibney

5

Dodge Hickman

5

Will Walker

3

Mike Marshburn

2

Sammy Samoluk

2

Tony Miller

2

Doug Hollingsworth

2

Jennings Lyon

1

Mike Allain

1

Remember next month’s officers meeting is designated to finalize proposed rule changes for Briess Cup 2003. If you have any suggestions you may email me (kmstfb2@exis.net) or any other officer. So far we have had the suggestion of changing the point system to correspond to the AHA Homebrew Club of the Year format. This would widen the margin between third place and the entry point. This point system would be 12,8,4,1 for first, second third and entry respectively.  There was also some discussion regarding multiple entries needing to be in different categories. These proposals will be discussed and finalized at the October 23rd meeting and judging.

As we begin to develop our brewing schedule for next year. We are looking for suggestions regarding creative contests to supplement the typical style oriented beauty contest. In the past we have done extract only, strange-brew, dead beers and the club recipe. So get those creative juices flowing and submit your ideas.

Tom

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BREISS CUP RULES

The cup, sponsored by Briess Malting Company, will run from January through December of a given year. Members will accrue points from entering and winning the contests sponsored by the club. The only criterion is that multiple entries in the same contest must be different recipes. Points are as follows: 4 points for 1st place, 3 for 2nd, 2 for 3rd and 1 point for entry. The entry point is not awarded if the beer places in the contest. It is intended to encourage entries.  The club officers may also award Breiss points for members brewing for special events. The Competition Coordinator will keep the points. The club president will be the final arbiter of any disputes.

Briess Malting has been kind enough to sponsor this award, so please look for their products at your local homebrew retailer.

http://www.briess.com/

Upcoming Beers of the Month

Month

BOTM

AHA Style Category

Judging Date

AHA Club Only Date

BOTM

Brewer

October

Tuppers Hop Pocket Ale (Club Recipe)

 

September 25

 

Pat Dabbs (G)

November

Fruit/Spice Beer  *

21/22

October 23

November/December

Mike Pensinger (G)

December

Stout

16/12C

November 20

 

Rich Sens (X) (Imperial Stout)

January

Bitter & English Pale Ale  *

4

December 18

January/February

 

* Winner goes to AHA Club  Only Contest                    ** Wheat Beer Club only Competition
(X) Extract Brew                     (G) All Grain Brew

 Visit our website, www.briess.com, to see our new, fresh look

For the first time since its launch in 1997, our website will be sporting an entirely new look. The updated website is scheduled to launch in May and we invite you to visit .

While its appearance will change,  the content will remain essentially the same—lots of it! All of the previous issues of Brewing' With Briess will remain on the site; product information will be available for every product in a printable pdf format; and fun features like our photo gallery remain intact.

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Editor's Notes – Pat Dabbs

We welcome all news items, original articles, business notices, and letters to the editor. Submittals for publication in the Home Imbrewment must be send to us as an e-mail or an e-mail attachment in any version of MS-Word or WordPerfect. Mail to dabbsp@cox.net.

Deadline for November’s Newsletter is Monday October 28th 

 

 

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About the HRB&TS

The Hampton Roads Brewing and Tasting Society is dedicated to promoting the enjoyment of homebrewing. The annual dues are $15 per individual and $20 per family. Members are encouraged to support the responsible enjoyment of beer and observe the beverage laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Persons attending HRB&TS meetings and events are solely liable for actions attendant to their participation. HRB&TS Maintains a NO SMOKING policy at all meetings so that members may better enjoy fine beers. Smoking is permitted during restaurant meetings in designated smoking areas.

Visit the HRB&TS on-line at: http://www.hrbts.org