Minutes of the February Meeting
Clean-Up Volunteers: Robb and Barry. - Thanks, guys!
Treasurer's Report: earned $1.73 in interest, $991.71.
Old Business
Dues: If you haven't renewed your dues, it is time to do so. $16 for individual memberships, $22 for family. We pro-rate dues for new members.
Membership Cards: Doug passed out cards for those members who are payed up.
AHA Conference: Guest speaker Darren Underwood from the KC Biermeisters gave us detailed information and cleared up some misconceptions about the national AHA conference June 24-26. Here is a rundown:
This year is a pilot program for the AHA. Members of the KC Brewmeisters convinced the AHA to allow local brew clubs to put the package together so the AHA wouldn't lose money as it has in the past. If the conference is successful this year, then future conferences held throughout the country probably will be handled in the same way.
Location: Holiday Inn in Olathe
Tentative Schedule
Thursday afternoon: judging and concurrent sessions
Thursday night: Beer Without Borders - Holiday Inn. There will be a charge for this (See Price Breakdown), but this event allows area homebrew clubs to showcase their beer and merchandise (assuming they have any) and culinary skills.
Friday afternoon: Judging and concurrent sessions
Friday evening: Blues, Brew & Barbecue at Pony Express Brewery, 6:30-8.
Saturday afternoon: Judging and concurrent sessions
Saturday evening: Banquet and awards ceremony
Hospitality Suite: This is another way for area homebrew clubs to showcase their talents. Although plans have not been finalized, the idea is to have regional homebrew clubs host the suite for blocks of time throughout the conference. Attending members can bring homebrew and appetizers, hobnob with conference attendees, answer questions about the club and swap stories about brewing techniques.
Volunteers: Darren emphasized that he wanted us to look at this not as an obligation but as an opportunity for us as a homebrew club to share our club with homebrewers around the country. Opportunities for volunteer work include the Beer Without Borders on Thursday night, Hospitality Suite, transportation of beer from Pony Express Brewery to Holiday Inn for judging; apprenticing/judging. If any of you are interested in representing the LBG through the hospitality suite or the Beer Without Borders night, start brewing now!
Seminar Committee: Seminars were deemed ok by club members. Be thinking of an idea for the blank spot in November.
Community Mercantile: Pretty much off the docket for now.
New Business
St. Pat's Day Informal Stout Competition: March 20th, Merriam Community Center.
Child Care: The LBG will pay for someone to watch the young'uns while the adults enjoy the meeting. Jamie said she would find somebody by March meeting.
Commercial Tasting:Our Biermeister says that March will be stouts, a pre-tasting before the St. Pat's day stout contest. April will be weizens.
BrewFest Committee: It's time again to start planning for the LBG's 1999 BrewFest. Committee members are Joe, Chris, Barry and Ellen.
March Seminar: It's not too soon to start thinking about your 1999 hops crop. Barry will let us know what to do to get started.
Happy Birthday: Our beloved Free State Brewery turned 10 on Feb. 23.
Commercial Tasting: Barley Wines and a Scotch Ale
Sierra Nevada-Bigfoot Ale (7 votes)
"Waaach, as in lots o' alcohol. You can just kind of smell the alcohol wafting out of it. It's good. I do like it." -Ken
"Wow! Hoppy." - Xan
"Lots of hops, that's for sure." - Pete
"Scotchy." - John
"Aaaaaahhhh." - Bill
Anchor-Old Foghorn (8 votes winner!)
"This is excellent - good malt. good balance." -Dale
"Much better than Bigfoot. Bigfoot has funky-ass hops."
"Balanced." - Pete
"Much sweeter." - Joe, Xan and Barry
Sam Adams-Scotch Ale. (Didn't vote on this)
"Smokey." - Dale and Andrew
"Smells woody to me-along the lines of all the other crap from Sam Adams." - Derek
Thumbs down - Bill
Ellen Jensen
Secretary
March Treasurer's Report
January dues: 7 individual and 3 family
Balance after deposit of January dues and interest: $991.71
February dues: 5 individuals
Balance after deposit of Feb. dues and $15 payment to ECM (Feb. mtg.): $1056.71
List of paid members: Doug and Sherry Holub; William Siebenaler; Xanthippe Stevens; Robert Dewhirst; John Falley; Joe Yoder and Joan Phelan; Chuck Epp; Barry Fitzgerald; Jeff and Ellen Jensen; Pete Clouston; Christopher Lounsbury; Dale Wheeler; Derek Osborn; Kenneth Godwin; Stephen Fretwell
Doug Holub
Treasurer
Of Tastings and Yeast... (not Tasting Yeast)
I would like to make a couple of comments concerning articles in the February LBG newsletter and also suggest organizing a yeast exchange or bank within the club.
I don't know whether this was talked about at the February meeting, but I like John Falley's idea of organizing some "serious" tastings. During a meeting (maybe every other month?) would be convenient, but I would still be interested in doing this outside of regular meetings, as well.
Dale Wheeler asked about shelf life of yeast in a bottle. I don't believe that there is any set time period that one should not exceed when trying to reactivate yeast. However, there are numerous factors to consider, including the yeast strain, storage conditions (temperature, container, etc.) and, yes, some luck. A good rule of thumb is 2-3 months for liquid yeast (yeast stored in wort or sterile water), 6-12 months for plates and slants (stored in a refrigerator), and years (5, 10, 20???) for frozen (-80 degrees Celsius). I have personally been able to reactivate liquid cultures that have been in my refrigerator for more than 6 months and plates that are more than 2 years old with excellent results: no detectable off-flavors or undesirable characteristics. However, I have also have lost several strains due to spoilage or lack of viable cells.
In light of the storage limitations, work that is required to ensure a healthy and viable yeast bank, and the desire to have access to various strains of yeast (without spending $5/batch and having to grow that up to a reasonable pitch rate), I would like to propose establishing a LBG yeast bank. I would suggest that we could store original samples in a -80 Celsius freezer (I have access to one- it just may cost us a few beers!) and retrieve those only when necessary.
The main way of distributing the yeast would be for people to store the yeast from a past batch and make that available to anyone that might want it. That way the yeast may have been stored only for a few weeks or months since last being used. This will help ensure viable yeast and will be easy to prepare for pitching (I find that about a pint of yeast sediment that has been in the refrigerator is quite active about 8-12 hours after adding it to some sterile wort). Of course, it would be important to have a current list of available yeast strains (maybe the newsletter?) and that people take a few precautions in handling the yeast. Maybe we could even institute a regimen of washing the yeast periodically if there is enough interest and some people willing to assist (Dale?).
Doug Holub
St. Patrick's Day Celebration/Stout Competition
On March 20, area homebrewer clubs are gathering at the Merriam Community Center from 6 to 11 P.M. for an informal stout competition. Participants' kegs/bottles will be numbered around the room, and at the end of the evening, members will vote on their favorite stout. (You can bring other beer styles, but only stout will be judged.) Prizes will be awarded to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place brewers. Participants are also supposed to bring enough corned beef for their members present.
The community center charges $23/hr plus a $25 liquor license fee. To cover the cost, admission will be $5 plus a side dish. (There will also be a vote on the best three side dishes.) If not enough people show up to pay for the center, the brew clubs in attendance will split the difference.
Coast-to-Coast Guinness Toast
Several Lawrence bars hosted the world-record attempt for the most people doing the Guinness toast simultaneously - a coast-to-coast, simultaneous Guinness toasting. We folks in the Central time zone toasted at 10 p.m. Friday Jan. 29. A few LBG members - Xan, Rob D., Ken, Jeff and Ellen -joined in the toast at G Willikers. Other bars that participated were JB Stouts, Louises and the Red Lion. The crowning event, however, was when Dale (one of the bartenders) stood on the bar and dropped his pants to show off his Guinness tattoo that is strategically located on his buttocks - simply sublime.
Ellen Jensen
Pilsner Braised Beef Stew in San Francisco Sourdough
This recipe comes from Gordon Biersch in San Francisco
Serves 6
2 pounds beef stew meat
2 cups peeled and stewed roma tomatoes
1 medium red onion
1 cup carrot, cut in bite size chunks
1 cup celery, cut in bite size chunks
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 bottles Pilsner (Pilsner Urquell or Staropramen are good choices)
1 quart beef stock
2 ounces olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme
pinch salt and pepper
Heat oven to 350?. Season the meat with salt and pepper. In a small stock pot, heat oil and sear the seasoned beef until brown. Add the vegetables and tomato paste. Cook until they color lightly. Add the beer and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and add the herbs. Cover and place in the oven. Cook for one hour.
Remove from oven and taste. The meat should be tender and the sauce slightly thickened. Adjust seasoning as necessary. Serve in hollowed-out 6-ounce sourdough bread loaves.
Kendra made this on the stove in a heavy stock pot. After adding the ingredients and bringing to a boil, she added the herbs and covered. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1 - 11/2 hours until the meat is tender.
Pete Clouston
Shirts, Anyone?
LBG shirts, that is. A few of us were at the Free State anniversary dinner the other night and thought it would have been kinda cool if we LBG members in attendance had all been sporting polo shirts with the LBG logo embroidered on the front. We could wear them to group functions (ie. BrewFest, that thing FS sponsored at the park last year, etc.), as well as just around town as an advertisement for the club - you know, kind of like a walking billboard. I'll try to have price estimates by the April meeting but would like to have a feel for how many people would be interested before then. Thanks!
Xanthippe Stevens
Free State Turns 10
Our beloved Free State Brewery turned 10 years old on February 26, and it celebrated in style. As part of the celebratory events, it hosted a Brewmaster's Banquet, pairing brew with food. The beers we sampled were the Hoegaarden Wit, Hoegaarden, Belgium; MacTarnahan's Amber, Portland, OR; Wisconsin Belgian Red, New Glarus, WI; Froach Heather Ale, Alloa, Scotland; Thurn & Taxis Roggen, Regensburg, Germany; Belhaven St. Andrew's Ale, Scotland; Anchor Old Foghorn; Traquair House Ale, Scotland; JW Lee's 1997 Harvest Ale, Manchester, England.
It was a great time. The food was great; the beers were great. I hope they have plans of doing this again. Highly recommend.
Discount Days at Bacchus & Barleycorn
LBG members receive a 10% discount from Bacchus & Barleycorn, March 8-13. Please show membership card or bring newsletter. Bacchus & Barleycorn is located at 6633 Nieman Rd. in Shawnee (913-962-2501).
March 1999
Moderator: Officers