The BrewsLeader January 2004 Vol. 21 No. 1 Brews Cruise Tedd Smith has set up what promises to be another grand adventure. March 6 is the date. Following is the itinerary: * 9:00 AM - Depart Richmond * 11:30 AM - Arrive Old Dominion, Ashburn, VA for Tour, Lunch and Beer * 1:30 PM - Depart Old Dominion * 3:00 PM - Arrive Starr Hill, Charlottesville, for Tour and Beer * 5:30 PM - Travel to South Street, also Charlottesville, for Dinner and Beer * 7:30 PM - Depart for Richmond * 9:00 PM - Arrive Richmond $30 per person buys the bus, continental breakfast, and a fine selection of craft brews on the bus. You pay for your own meals and beers at the breweries. Your payment is your reservation. More details to follow. ***************************** UPCOMING EVENTS Jan 14 Club Meeting Installation of Officers Brewing for Competitions Jan 21 Board Meeting Feb 11 Club Meeting -How to Judge Beer Mar 6 Brews Cruise Mar 10 Club Meeting - Club Competition - AHA Club Only - Mead (Category 25) Mar ?? St Patrick's Day Party Mar 17 Board Meeting Apr 14 Club Meeting - Brewing 101 Brewing for Novices & Intermediate Brewers AHA Club Only - Extract (Any style - at least 50% of fermentables must be from extract) Apr 17 Dominion Cup May 12 Club Meeting May 19 Board Meeting ***************************** December Meeting President Jack Jackson opened the meeting. Jack welcomed members and guests, and thanked Tom Martin and the rest of the Legend staff for their gracious hospitality. Jack noted that this was the final meeting of our 20th Anniversary Year Feature: Ralph Bucca traveled to Richmond from Maryland. Ralph has been brewing for 30 years, writes for Mid-Atlantic Brewing News and Zymurgy, is a past Mead-Maker of the Year, has judged in the National Homebrew Competition and conducts classes on making beer, wine and mead. (Ralph is certainly well-qualified to talk to us!) Ralph reviewed has plans for the current brewing season, which started in October after he had finished with his fall grape harvest and wine production. He brews into the spring, producing enough to last until the next brewing season. Then he makes mead, harvests his grapes, makes wine, and does it all over again. Ralph also shared his experiences in tracking down Ethiopian Mead, called "Tej" and his SOMD (So Others May Drink) Program to provide beer to the needy. Thanks again, Ralph for visiting with us. Elections: The following were elected to fill positions beginning January 2004: * President - Tedd Smith * Treasurer - Bobby Yenney * Asst. Competition Coordinator - Steve Severtson * Web Master - Ronnie Anderson * Directors - Woody Elliot, Jack Jackson, Steve Jarrett, Joel Trojnar, Ted Warren, Jeff York Treasurer: Tedd Smith reported a balance of $?? in the Club’s account. Brews Cruise: Tedd discussed tentative plans for the Club's upcoming Annual Brews Cruise. Raffle: Bob Henderson filled in for Dan Mouer, and ran really great one, raising $??. Prizes included cool glasses, coasters, and posters. Mike Buddle won Mystery Prize #1 - a 10-gallon corny keg, Steve Severtson won Mystery Prize #2 - a supply of rice hulls, and Mike Hinkle won Mystery Prize # - a gift certificate to Capital Ale House. Again, special thanks to Specialty Beverage for providing us with a large supply of really cool glasses for our raffle. T-Shirts and Glasses: We still have some available. The T's are $15 (new style) and $10 (old style). Old-style glasses are $2.50, with a special deal for Club members only - two for $5.00. New-style glasses, with a fancy etched logo - are $4.00. Competition: Patrick Foster won the AHA Club Only Competition for Barleywine. Patrick's brew will go off to be compared with other AHA Club winners. Good Luck and Good Brewing, Patrick. Competition The 2004 Competition Season is upon us! If you don't have anything in the works, get going! Club Competition: Our Annual Club Competition will take place during the regular March meeting. (Actually, this is the March meeting.) This competition is open to Club Members only. We will be using standard AHA/BJCP guidelines. Be sure to enter your beers. Even if you don't have a winner, you'll receive some valuable feedback. All members, including those without beer to enter, should attend and participate in the judging. (Tough work, but somebody has to do it.) The only limitation is that you cannot judge in a category that you've entered. This is a major Club event, and always a good time! Dominion Cup: We will hold our annual open homebrew competition on Saturday, April 17 at the Legend. This is another major Club event - the only competition we hold that is open to homebrewers worldwide. (Past entries have come from as far away as 5000 miles - and that's the truth!) We will need judges and stewards - more on that later. If you've never judged before, try being a steward. It's a great learning experience, and you get to taste the beer, too. If you've stewarded, then maybe it's time to step up to the judge level. BURP's Spirit of Free Beer: The Brewers United for Real Potables (BURP), based in the Washington, DC area, is the largest AHA homebrew club, with 300+ members. Their SoFB competition is usually held during May (the exact date is not posted on their website - when we find out the date, it'll be included in Upcoming Events). This is a great competition, a bit larger than our Dominion Cup. They have been great supporters of us - a number of BURP members have traveled to Richmond to judge in the Dominion Cup. If you have a few spare bottles, think about sending some up to this competition. National Homebrew Competition: The deadline for first round entries is April 16. Details, including entry forms, are available at www.beertown.org/events/nhc ***************************** AHA Club-Only Competitions From time to time, the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) sponsors competitions based on a particular style. These competitions are open only to AHA-affiliated homebrew clubs. Each club holds a competition on the particular style. The winner’s brew is sent off to the AHA to be judged with the winners from other homebrew clubs around the country. Bring in five bottles – two for the local competition and three to send off if you win. Competition schedule: > Mar - Mead (Cat 25) > Apr - Extract Brews - Any style - at least 50% of fermentables must be from extract > Aug - Wheat Beer (Cat. 17 ) > Sep - Smoked Beer (Cat. 23) > Nov - IPA (Cat. 7) - Hosted by James River Homebrewers When the entry dates are set, we will include the competitions in the Upcoming Events listing. Winners earn Homebrew Club of the Year points for their club. ***************************** The Governator, a 'Strong' Beer for California For Californians who can't get enough of bodybuilder turned film star turned governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, a brewery in the neighboring state of Oregon is offering a new full-bodied beer labeled "The Governator." Portland-based MacTarnahan's Brewing Co., which brews a popular regional beer of the same name, came up with the idea for the strong brew just before the holidays last year and has seen brisk demand for the ESB, or extra special bitter ale. Called "The Governator Ale," the label features a man flexing his muscles beneath a logo of the state of California with the words "Pumpin Iron Brewing" superimposed on top. "The big surprise is that The Governator, behind its novelty packaging, is actually top-notch," MacTarnahan's chief executive Jerome Chicvara said in a statement issued when the beer went on sale. "We're hoping this is a sign of things to come in Sacramento." The beer, which is also higher in alcohol content, comes in oversized 22-ounce (625-ml) bottles that retail for about $2.99 each. It is available in California but, so far, distributors in the states of Oregon and Washington aren't interested, said company spokeswoman Renee Daniels. ***************************** Let There be Beer Lights Michigan Ends 70-Year Ban on Neon Signs in Bar Windows The end of a ban in place since the end of Prohibition allows Michigan bars, restaurants and retailers to hang neon signs in their windows. Attorney General Mike Cox ruled that the 70-year-old law against illuminated signage was a constitutional free speech violation. The opinion affects signs for all alcoholic beverages, though most are for beer. Bar and restaurant owners praised the decision, saying the Michigan Liquor Control Commission ban on lighted signs, clocks and other beer-related knick-knacks was an unreasonable restriction on commercial speech and advertising freedom. Louis Adado, executive director of the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association, said the rule was arbitrary. Michigan was only one of a few states with such a ban. "It's just one less regulation that our members have to put up with," Adado said. The opinion does not throw out another old rule, one that prohibits breweries and beer wholesalers from providing free merchandise to licensed retailers and bar owners. Michael Lashbrook of the Michigan Beer and Wine Wholesalers Association, which has long supported the ban on lighted signs, says free distribution of the signs would give larger producers of alcoholic beverages an unfair advantage over smaller brewers and wineries. ***************************** River City Cellars Beer, Wine and Gourmet Foods 2931 West Cary Street Richmond, VA 23221 (804) 355-1375 www.rivercitycellars.com 10% Discount to Members of James River Homebrewers ***************************** The WeekEnd Brewer Homebrew & Wine Supplies 4205 West Hundred Road Chester, VA 23831 (804) 796-9760 www.weekendbrewer.com January Converted Keg Sale Cut with lid and welded with 1/2" stainless steel outlet and brass shut-off valve. The outlet at the bottom-side of the keg makes it easier for draining and no need for a siphon. While our supply lasts - only $85.00 (reg. $95.00) - One each please. German Hallertau Mittelfruh Hop Pellets This classic German aroma is associated with Bavarian style lager beers. The Noble hop is also well known for its use by the Boston Beer Company in its Samuel Adams Lager. It has a mild and pleasant aroma with a typical alpha acid of 3.5% to 5.5 %. Is it Time for your Wheat Beers? Bulk Wheat Malt Extract, is back and still just $ 1.99 per pound. Charlie Papazian's The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing - 3rd Edition The revised 3rd edition of this legendary book by Charlie Papazian has been published and now available. The best-selling homebrew book for years blends from the old and adds some from the new. $14.95 Coopers Carbonation Drops Coopers Carbonation Drops are designed to make bottling a breeze for all levels of homebrewers. Simply add one Coopers Carbonation Drop to each 12 oz bottle (2 drops if using 22 oz bottles) prior to filling. Fill bottle to within 1-2 inches of the top and cap as normal. Store at fermentation temperature and your beer will be fully carbonated within 3 days. No more measuring, racking or uneven carbonation levels. Coopers Brewery Carbonation Drops are 27% glucose and 73% sucrose. Coopers Brewery Carbonation Drops contain no additives, preservatives, fillers or binders. Just 100% ease in bottling. Each package contains 60 drops, enough to bottle 6 gallons of beer. Free BYO Subscription Redeem your UPC codes from 6 Cans of Coopers Unhopped Malts and receive a free subscription to Brew Your Own magazine. Come in and ask for details. New 6 Gallon PET Carboy Glass prices are on the rise. Glass beer and wine bottles have had a price increase in the last three month. Carboy prices from Italy and Mexico have also been on the rise. As advertised in beer and wine magazines, the new food / alcohol grade carboy is here This carboy is MUCH lighter, taste and odor free and impervious to gases. The cloudy white plastic blocks light better than glass. Looks just like a 6 Gallon glass carboy and takes a # 8 stopper. Only $ 16.40 each. Premium All-Grain Wort Kit Barons Premium Beer Kits offer you 7.5 liters of high quality concentrated wort to get you underway to creating a natural beer of outstanding flavor, ready to brew with conventional brewing equipment, with no need for boiling! Barons is defined by superior ingredients, state-of-the-art processing and unique user-friendly packaging which preserves product freshness. With Barons, we handle the preparation of premium malt, hops and water. We even throw in a special pack of finishing hop pellets, allowing dry-hopping for extra aroma and a further hint of flavor. You handle the rest – and it couldn’t be simpler. Barons offers a range of popular North American styles in addition to a selection of premium microbrew styles that offer full aromas and flavors for the discerning beermaker. See how easy it is to brew a high quality, deliciously refreshing beer with Barons Premium Beer Kits! White Labs High Gravity Yeast - WLP099 Flavors from this yeast vary greatly with the beer produced. The higher the gravity, the more winey the result. Beers over 16% ABV begin to taste less like beer, and more like fortified wines. With low gravity beers, this yeast produces a nice, subtle English ale-like ester profile. As the gravity increases, some phenolic character is evident, followed by the winey-ness of beers over 16% ABV. Most fermentations will stop between 12-16% ABV unless these high gravity tips are performed: * Aerate very heavily, 4 times as much as with a normal gravity beer. Less oxygen dissolves into solution at high gravity. * Pitch 3-4 times as much yeast as normal. * Consider aerating intermittently during the first 5 days of fermentation. This will help yeast cells during a very difficult fermentation. Aerate with oxygen for 30 seconds or air for 5-10 minutes. * Higher nutrient levels can allow yeast to tolerate higher alcohol levels. Use 2 times the normal nutrient level. This is especially important when using WLP099 to make wine and mead, which have almost no nutrient level to begin with. * Do not start with the entire wort sugar at once. Begin fermentation with a wort that would produce a 6-8% beer, and add wort (it can be concentrated) each day during the first 5 days. This can be done together with aeration. This is mandatory if the reported 25% ABV is to be achieved. The BrewsLeader is the official publication of James River Homebrewers PO Box 486 Richmond, Virginia 23218-0486 Monthly Meetings All meetings are held on the second Wednesday of each month at The Legend Brewery, 321 West 7th Street, Richmond, Virginia. Homebrew tasting at 6:30, meeting at 7:00. We are grateful to Tom Martin and the rest of the Legend staff for their gracious hospitality. Officers and Board of Directors President: Tedd Smith xxx-xxxx Vice President: Dan Mouer xxx-xxxx Treasurer: Bobby Yenney xxx-xxxx Secretary: Jeff Hewit xxx-xxxx Member @ Large: Denise Pierce xxx-xxxx Competition Coordinator: Stasi York xxx-xxxx Asst. Competition Coordinator: Steve Severtson xxx-xxxx Web Master: Ronnie Anderson xxx-xxxx Directors Woody Elliot xxx-xxxx Jack Jackson xxx-xxxx Steve Jarrett xxx-xxxx Joel Trojnar xxx-xxxx Ted Warren xxx-xxxx Jeff York xxx-xxxx Submit Articles Articles or other items of interest from the membership are welcome and should be submitted to the Secretary. Email to xxx@xxx.xxx Web Site www.jrhomebrewers.org Dues The date after your name on the address label is the due date for your dues renewal. To renew your membership, just bring your dues - only $20 - to the next meeting, and give them to the Treasurer (or another officer if he isn’t there). If you wish, you may mail your dues to the Club at PO Box 486, Richmond, VA 23218-0486 Remember Drink Responsibly - Don’t Drink and Drive! Members and guests at James River Homebrewers meetings and events are individually and solely liable for any and all actions attendant to or resulting from their participation. James River Homebrewers PO Box 486 Richmond, VA 23218-0486 Don't take it too seriously, it's only beer! The More We Brew, The Better We Drink 1