The Brewsletter
Okt-uber 2007
The
Official Newsletter of the
The
President’s Podium – Jason Kuller
Ahhhh…I just love this time of year , the first gust of fall breeze, the leaves dazzling us with beautiful colors, my favorite bands on fall tour and oh yeah, the resurrection of our favorite hobby all come with the transition from oppressive heat to cooler weather and higher spirits. Before I go any further though, we must all take a moment and raise our glass in a huge heartfelt cheers to one of the most pioneering and groundbreaking beer prophets we will ever know.
As many of
you know by now, The Beer Hunter, aka Michael Jackson, passed on to what I am
sure will be infinite beery pleasures on
With that said, we are eagerly anticipating the fast approaching Octoberfest party at the home of Will and Jonna Walker. This year will bring the 3rd annual silent auction to benefit our club, featuring great beer related items to bid on. The meeting is also sure to have lots of great authentic German food and beer (with some excellent brews coming from our members that made lagers for the last competition, let’s just hope Tim has saved a couple of his fantastic Dopplebocks to share with the group). The Octoberfest meeting is sure to be a blast and you do not want to miss it.
Well, September sure was an eventful month with lots of beer related activities to entice our tastebuds and bring out the party animals in all of us. From what I hear, the Ales for Archeology event was a great success, with many fine brews to sample and Fat Tony tearing up the stage to keep everyone entertained. We also had the first annual Capitol City Carnival which was absolutely amazing.
We had a stellar selection of tasty brews, incredible entertainment ranging from The Avett Brothers to an irrestible magic/comedy/burlesque show of the Yard Dogs Road Show to none other than George Clinton and P-Funk. Not to mention a live brewing demonstration by yours truly and even a parade featuring none other than our own Diane Catanzaro carried around the whole festival on a chariot for her adoring fans. Hopefullynext year these events won’t be on the same weekend and we can all take advantage of the various festivities.
Finally, the beer that I brewed at the festival went very smoothly, especially considering the conditions I was working under, and is fermenting quite nicely at this point. I used a yeast strain that I have never even heard of before called Cry Havoc (a specialty strain from White Labs). Apparently it is the proprietary yeast from acclaimed homebrewer and beer dude Charlie Papazian. It is said to ferment well at Ale and Lager temperatures so I started at ale temps and am slowly dropping the temperature so we will see what happens. On a final note, Tom was kind enough to let me borrow his converted cooler /fermentation vessel which worked amazingly well (ask either of us for more details) Thanks, Tom.
Happy Fall everyone and make sure not to miss the Octoberfest meeting this month at Will and Jonna’s home.
Cheers - Jason
Oktober
Meeting Location – Diane Catanzaro
HRB&TS
2007 Oktoberfest Party!
October 3 at
The annual HRB&TS Oktoberfest party at the home of Will and Jonna Walker is almost here! Oktoberfest is a good reason to party….when else can you wear leiderhosen and knee socks, show lots of cleavage, stuff your face with sausage and sauerkraut and boogie down to polka music? Sadly, these things are not part of our daily lives but at Oktoberfest you can do all of these things and seem perfectly normal. Beginning at 6:30, we’ll have extra time to peruse the silent auction offerings and dig the spirit of Oktoberfest in a way that would do Koenig Ludwig and his bride Theresa proud!
The party often spills out of the house into the lake-lined backyard, so do bring a sweater or light jacket to ward off the festive autumnal chill. A thank-you beer to leave with our kind hosts is a well-deserved gesture of appreciation for Will and Jonna’s generosity in once again hosting the club Oktoberfest party.
German food and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided by the club and YOU are invited to bring beer!!!! Oktoberfest style beers of course are welcome, but feel free to bring any style of homebrew (you brewers out there) or commercial beer (tasters… bring something fun and exotic!). Food provided by the club will include German sausage (wurst), smoked trout, sauerkraut, potato salad, German chocolate, and apple struedel…. If anyone prefers a delicious Boca veggie sausage (the tastiest faux weenie out there, IMHO), Chris and I will bring extra, just ask!
I’m thinking a German rausch beer, Old Chub, or a German bock would be fantastic with the sausage and trout, while Harpoon Winter Warmer, a pumpkin ale, or an Oktoberfest would pair well with the streudel. What beer to pair with polka music? I’ll leave this to your imagination.
Hope to see you there!
Competition Corner October
2007 – Patti Messier
Our monthly judging took place on September 26, at the home of Shana Pribesh and John Johnson. It was nice of them to offer up their lovely home and provide a new judging location! This month’s category was European Amber & Dark Lager, Bock, categories 3, 4, and 5. Our fine judges (Tom Byrnes, Jason Kuller, Will Walker and J.P. Messier) tasted several different homebrewed lagers as well as several interesting benchmark beers!!
After the deliberations, the results were as follows:
First Place, Tim Hobbs with his Doppelbock, good for three HRBTS Cup points;
Second Place, JP Messier with his Schwarzbier, good
for two HRBTS Cup points; and
Third Place, JP Messier with his Vienna Lager, earning him one HRBTS Cup point.
Our next monthly judging will be held on Thursday, October 25. Please note that this is NOT A WEDNESDAY! This differs from our original schedule. This month we will judge Smoke-Flavored & Wood Aged beers, Category 22. Choose 2, and only 2, of your favorite brews and enter them this month! With 2 more competitions to go, it’s time for YOU to step up and brew some amazing beers! It’s still anybody’s game! Give these guys a challenge! Look and plan ahead so you too can enter these monthly challenges and join the competition!
The current HRBTS Cup standings are in the table, following
this text. Enter some beers and join the
ranks!
2007 HRBTS CUP STANDINGS (as of
|
Name of Brewer(s) |
Total Points Accumulated |
|
J. P. Messier |
23 |
|
Chris Jones and Diane Catanzaro |
17 |
|
Tom Byrnes |
12 |
|
Gus Gustafson |
5 |
|
Jason Kuller |
5 |
|
Brian Edgar |
4 |
|
Victor Perrotti |
3 |
|
Tim Hobbs |
3 |
|
This could easily
be you …. |
…. if you get brewing |
Quit
throwing away your used yeast vials! – Patti
Messier
Hey, all you brewers out there! We need you to save your used White Lab Yeast vials HRBTS will begin collecting your empty vials and redeeming them with White Labs to earn some great prizes for our raffles. JP Messier will be collecting them at the monthly meetings as well as the judgings. So gather those empty vials and hand them off to JP at the next meeting!
2007 HRB & TS Beer of the Month
Schedule – Patty Messier
|
Month |
Style |
Category |
Judging |
AHA |
|
January |
|
21B |
Dec 20th |
|
|
February |
Barleywine |
19B,C |
Jan 24th |
|
|
March |
Scottish Ale |
9A,B,C |
Feb 21st |
Y |
|
April |
Extract |
All |
Mar 21st |
Y |
|
May |
|
14A,B |
Apr 18th |
|
|
June |
German/American Wheat & Rye |
6D, 15 |
May 16th |
|
|
July |
Meads |
24,25,26 |
Jun 20th |
Y |
|
August |
Fruit Beer |
20 |
Jul 18th |
|
|
September |
Belgian Strong Ale |
18 |
Aug 15th |
|
|
October |
European Amber & Dark Lager, Bock |
3,4,5 |
Sep 19th |
|
|
November |
Smoke-Flavored & Wood Aged |
22 |
Oct 24th |
|
|
December |
Spice, Herb, Vegetable Beer |
21 |
Nov 21st |
|
|
January |
Stouts |
13A,B,C |
Dec 19th |
|
|
February |
Strong Ale & Russian Imperial Stout |
13F, 19 |
Jan 23rd |
|
Recipes
of the Month – Tim Hobbs & J.P. Messier
Timinator Doppelbock (adapted from the book: Beer Captured):
Grains to Steep in 1½ Gallons of Water at 150
degrees F for 30 minutes:
1 lb Belgian Cara-Munich malt
½ oz British Chocolate malt
18 oz German Munich malt
4 oz Belgian Aromatic malt
- Sparge with 1 gallon of 170 degree F water
Add wort from specialty grains to boil pot and add
water and the following:
5.75 lbs Extra Dry Light Malt Extract
3.5 lbs Ligfht Malt Extract Syrup
6 oz Malto Dextrin
½ oz Northern Brewer hops (60 mins)
1 oz Hallertau Herbsbrucker (60 mins)
1 tsp Irish Moss (15 mins)
Chill Wort to 60 degrees F and pitch yeast, keep at
60 degrees for 1 day, then drop temp to 52 degrees F for 7 days or until
fermentation slows. Rack to secondary and lager – gradually dropping temp
down to 37 degrees (2 degrees per day) and lager for 2 months at 37 degrees F.
Prime with ¾ cup of corn sugar and bottle (or keg). Keep bottles at
52 degrees for three or more weeks to carbonate.
|
Recipe Specifics |
|
Batch Size (Gal): |
5.00 |
Wort Size (Gal): |
5.00 |
|
Total Extract (Lbs): |
9.00 |
|
|
|
Anticipated OG: |
1.056 |
Plato: |
13.90 |
|
Anticipated SRM: |
36.8 |
|
|
|
Anticipated IBU: |
29.6 |
|
|
|
Wort Boil Time: |
60 |
Minutes |
|
|
Grain/Extract/Sugar |
|
% |
Amount |
Name |
Origin |
Potential |
SRM |
|
66.7 |
6.00 lbs. |
Generic LME - Light |
Generic |
1.035 |
7 |
|
5.6 |
0.50 lbs. |
CaraVienne Malt |
|
1.034 |
22 |
|
5.6 |
0.50 lbs. |
CaraMunich Malt |
|
1.033 |
75 |
|
5.6 |
0.50 lbs. |
|
|
1.033 |
105 |
|
5.6 |
0.50 lbs. |
|
|
1.035 |
4 |
|
2.8 |
0.25 lbs. |
Black Patent Malt |
|
1.028 |
525 |
|
8.3 |
0.75 lbs. |
Chocolate Malt |
|
1.029 |
350 |
|
Hops |
|
Amount |
Name |
Form |
Alpha |
IBU |
Boil Time |
|
0.50 oz. |
Hallertauer |
Pellet |
4.00 |
7.3 |
40 min |
|
0.50 oz. |
Hallertauer |
Pellet |
4.00 |
3.2 |
20 min |
|
1.00 oz. |
Hallertauer |
Pellet |
4.00 |
19.1 |
60 min |
|
Yeast |
White Labs WLP830 German Lager
|
Notes |
|
Calcium Chloride - 1 tsp at 30 mins. |
|
Recipe Specifics |
|
Batch Size (Gal): |
5.00 |
Wort Size (Gal): |
5.00 |
|
Total Extract (Lbs): |
8.00 |
|
|
|
Anticipated OG: |
1.053 |
Plato: |
13.10 |
|
Anticipated SRM: |
16.2 |
|
|
|
Anticipated IBU: |
26.8 |
|
|
|
Wort Boil Time: |
60 |
Minutes |
|
|
Grain/Extract/Sugar |
|
% |
Amount |
Name |
Origin |
Potential |
SRM |
|
81.3 |
6.50 lbs. |
Generic LME - Light |
Generic |
1.035 |
7 |
|
3.1 |
0.25 lbs. |
CaraVienne Malt |
|
1.034 |
22 |
|
3.1 |
0.25 lbs. |
|
|
1.035 |
4 |
|
3.1 |
0.25 lbs. |
Chocolate Malt |
|
1.029 |
350 |
|
6.3 |
0.50 lbs. |
|
|
1.034 |
40 |
|
3.1 |
0.25 lbs. |
Biscuit Malt |
|
1.035 |
24 |
|
Hops |
|
Amount |
Name |
Form |
Alpha |
IBU |
Boil Time |
|
1.00 oz. |
Hallertauer |
Pellet |
4.00 |
19.4 |
60 min |
|
1.00 oz. |
Tettnanger |
Pellet |
4.50 |
7.3 |
20 min |
|
Yeast |
White Labs WLP940 Mexican Lager
|
Notes |
|
Calcium Chloride - 1 tsp at 30 mins. |
About the HRB & TS
The Hampton Roads Brewing and Tasting Society is dedicated
to promoting the enjoyment of home brewing.
The annual dues are $20 per individual and $25 per family. Members are encouraged to support the
reasonable enjoyment of beer and observe the laws of the