The BrewsLeader March 2004 Vol. 21 No. 3 ** IMPORTANT ** READ THIS FIRST Annual Club Competition - March 10 Now's the time to strut your stuff! Stasi York, Steve Severtson, and the rest of the Competition Committee of the plan to be at the Legend by 6:00 to accept entries. Try to get there early if you can so they won't be swamped with 75 entries at 7:00. Bring three (3) 10-14 ounce bottles with plain crown caps (no Grolsch-type swing caps) for each beer you are entering. (Bring 6 if you're entering a Mead - the winner in this category will be sent of to the AHA Competition.) You can enter more than one beer, but no more than one in each subcategory. If the cap has any lettering or logo, be sure to black it out with a magic marker. No lables either. Because this is our local Club competition, we will allow bottles with raised lettering, but this is an exception to standard beer judging protocol. Complete an Entry Form and ID each bottle with a bottle ID Form and a rubber band - no tape! (These forms are included later in the BrewsLeader.) We will be using standard AHA/BJCP guidelines, which are also included. All members, including those without beer to enter, should plan to attend and participate in the judging. 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! ** IMPORTANT ** READ THIS SECOND St. Patrick's Day Party March 27 5:00 - 11:00 George Hatchell’s --REMOVED-- Directions: --REMOVED-- Club Provides Sausages & Rolls Condiments & Soft Drinks Plates, Utensils & Napkins Homebrew! You Provide Side Dish or Dessert (bring serving utensil) More Homebrew! UPCOMING EVENTS Mar 10 Club Meeting Club Competition AHA Club Only - Mead (Category 25) Mar 17 Board Meeting Mar 27 St Patrick's Day Party George Hatchell’s 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 How to Keg Beer May 19 Board Meeting May ?? Club Brew Jun 9 Club Meeting Summer Coolers Jun 26 Club Brew Jul 14 Club Meeting Jul 21 Board Meeting Aug 11 Club Meeting AHA Club Only Wheat Beer (Cat. 17) Aug ?? Summer Party February Meeting President Tedd Smith welcomed members and guests, and thanked Tom Martin and the rest of the Legend staff for their gracious hospitality. Feature: In preparation for the upcoming Club competition, Jeff Hewit discussed the fine art of judging beer. Members were provided to a great treat and provided the opportunity to actually watch Jeff sniff and drink a beer. Raffle: Bob Henderson filled in for Dan Mouer, and ran really great one, raising $??. Prizes included cool glasses, coasters, and posters. Rachael Ladutke won the Mystery Prize – rice hulls. 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 one for $4.00, two for $7.00, and three for $10.00 Competition: Stasi York is still looking for Stewards to help out at the Dominion Cup. ***************************** Club Survey We are conducting a survey of the membership to get a better handle on who we are and how we can make the James River Homebrewers an even better organization. Blank surveys were included in the March issue of the BrewsLeader. If more than one member of a household is a member of the Club, each member should complete a survey. Please return surveys to Jeff Hewit, or mail them to Club’s PO Box. If you need another copy of the survey, see Jeff. ***************************** Competition 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. ***************************** Beer Styles Use the following styles to register your beer in the Club Competition: 1. American Lager A. Light/Standard/Premium B. Dark C. Classic American Pilsner 2. European Pale Lager A. Bohemian Pilsner B. Northern German Pilsner C. Dortmunder Export D. Muenchner Helles 3. Light Ale A. Blond Ale B. American Wheat C. Cream Ale 4. Bitter & English Pale Ale A. Ordinary Bitter B. Special or Best Bitter C. Strong Bitter/English Pale Ale 5. Scottish Ale A. Light 60/- B. Heavy 70/- C. Export 80/- 6. American Pale Ale A. American Pale Ale B. American Amber Ale C. California Common Beer 7. India Pale Ale 8. Kölsch & Altbier A. Kölsch-Style Ale B. Düsseldorf Altbier C. Northern German Altbier 9. German Amber Lager A. Oktoberfest/Maerzen B. Vienna Lager 10. Brown Ale A. Mild B. Northern English Brown Ale C. Southern English Brown Ale D. American Brown Ale 11. English & Scottish Strong Ale A. Old Ale B. Strong Scotch Ale (Wee Heavy) 12. Barleywine & Imperial Stout A. English-style Barleywine B. American-style Barleywine C. Russian Imperial Stout 13. European Dark Lager A. Munich Dunkel B. Schwarzbier 14. Bock A. Traditional Bock B. Helles Bock/Maibock C. Doppelbock D. Eisbock 15. Porter A. Robust Porter B. Brown Porter 16. Stout A. Dry Stout B. Sweet Stout C. Oatmeal Stout D. Foreign Extra Stout 17. Wheat Beer A. Bavarian Weizen B. Bavarian Dunkelweizen C. Berliner Weisse D. Weizenbock 18. Strong Belgian Ale A. Dubbel B. Tripel C. Belgian Strong Golden Ale D. Belgian Strong Dark Ale 19. Belgian & French Ale A. Belgian Pale Ale B. Witbier C. Biere de Garde D. Saison E. Belgian Specialty Ale 20. Lambic & Belgian Sour Ale A. Straight Lambic-style Ale B. Gueuze-style Ale C. Fruit Lambic-style Ale D. Oud Bruin E. Flanders Red Ale 21. Fruit Beer 22. Spice/Herb/Vegetable Beer 23. Smoke-Flavored Beer A. Classic Rauchbier B. Other Smoked Beer 24. Specialty, Experimental, Historical Beer 25. Mead ***************************** 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 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 Web Site www.jrhomebrewers.org 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 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 Inclement Weather Policy If the Richmond city Schools are closed due to inclement weather on the day of a regularly scheduled Club meeting, the meeting will be cancelled, and re-scheduled for the following Wednesday – this will be confirmed by e-mail. 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