In this edition:
- Blowoff from the Prez
- Secretary’s Report
- Birthdays
- 2012 Dues
- 1st Vice President Trainee
- Next Meeting – May 20th
- Upcoming Competitions
- REWARD!
- Beers Available in the Area
- Competition Winners
- Beer Education
- SAAZ on Facebook
- Raffle
- Feedback
SAAZ Platinum Sponsor
Blow off from the Prez
Welcome to the May edition of the “Blow off from the Prez” and welcome to American Craft Beer Week 2012! Dubbed the ‘Mother of All Beer Weeks,’ American Craft Beer Week is the annual celebration of small and independent craft brewers, their craft beer and the American craft beer culture. How will you celebrate ACBW 2012? Go have a pint at your local pub from a craft brewery you’ve never heard of? Why not try brewing a style of beer you have never brewed before? Or, how about teaching a friend about great American craft beers?
Wherever your plans take you, be sure to end your week at the monthly meeting on the patio at World of Beer. They have asked SAAZ to help them bring ACBW 2012 to a close with a brewing demo and I’ll be going over the practice and benefits of 1 gallon test batches.
I’ll bet your week will be overflowing with great craft beer however you choose to celebrate. I know mine will.
Cheers,
Kip
Secretary’s Report
To all my HOP HEADS!
Thanks to all that were able to make it to the Broken Barrel. It was a good learning experience, and very tasty. The last time we all gathered for a monthly meeting at WOB we had a GREAT turn-out! Let’s repeat this on May 20th.
Be there before 2pm so you don’t miss anything.
Shelley
May Birthdays – Happy Birthday!
Matthew McKey
Aaron Guittar
Nicole Frisch
Wade Atchison
Dave Swartz
Karen Stresau
Don’t see your name (and your birthday is in May)? It could be that Shelley doesn’t have a completed membership form from you. Ask her for one at the next meeting so we can include you!
2012 Dues
The first quarter of 2012 is over and all current members have surely paid their dues already! But on the off chance you haven’t been able to or have friends interested in joining you can do so for the low, low prices listed below!
Individual Membership = $15
Couple’s Membership = $25
Lifetime Membership = $150
Dues can be paid to the Treasurer (Anne Gregg) at any club meeting or online at our website via PayPal Click here to pay.
You don’t want to miss out on the benefits of membership!
1st Vice President Trainee
**Attention Members**
We are currently looking for a member to fulfill the role of 1st Vice President Trainee.
Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes to make the Commander SAAZ Interplanetary Homebrew Blast-Off a success year after year?
Now is your chance to get in on the action! If interested, email cmdr.saaz@saaz.org for more information.
Next Meeting – May 20th (Sunday)
This month’s meeting will be at World of Beer in Viera.
World of Beer is located at The Avenues. (Suite 119 2290 Town Center Avenue, Melbourne, FL 32940)
The meeting will be Sunday May 20th at 2pm! In celebration of Craft Beer Week, we will be putting on a brewing demonstration.
If you would like to learn more about American Craft Beer Week 2012, please click Here.
As always, bringing homebrew to share is strongly encouraged, but please respect our gracious host and leave commercial beers at home.
Next-Next Meeting: June 16th, Summer Party at Chet’s House, 10:30am setup, noon party! If you plan on attending this great event and need directions, please email prez@saaz.org.
Upcoming Competitions
18th Annual Commander SAAZ Interplanetary Homebrew Blast-Off!!!
Important Dates
- Entry Window – August 5th thru September 5th, 2012
- Early Round Judging – September 8-9, 15-16, and 22-23, 2012
- Final Judging – September 28th thru September 29th, 2012
- Commander’s Call at the Hospitality Suite – [Coming Soon]
- Awards Ceremony, Dinner, and Splashdown Party – September 29th, 2012
Schedule
The entry window opens on August 5th, but slams shut on September 5th. Depending on the number of entries we will be doing at least one weekend of early round judging, and we will need your help! Early round judging will be held the weekends of September 8-9, 15-16, and 22-23 at Carroll Distributing in Melbourne, Florida. Final judging, will be held the weekend of September 28th and 29th at Florida Beer Company.
For more details visit the Blast-Off page Here.
Dunedin Brewery’s Homebrewer IPA Throwdown 2
The Dunedin Brewery is holding its second annual IPA Pro-Am competition on June 2. They are looking for the next great IPA. Your beer could be it!
Main judging will be held the same day as the IPA Fest on June 2, 2012 at the Dunedin Brewery, 937 Douglas Ave. Dunedin, Florida 34698-4945. Winners will be announced at the festival. The best in show beer will be brewed on the Dunedin Brewery’s main system and will be sold to your adoring public!
Competition Rules
Categories:
IPA ONLY!
1. English IPA
2. American IPA
3. Imperial IPA
4. Black IPA/American-style Black Ale /Cascadian Dark Ale – many names, one great beer style
5. Experimental IPA – wood aged, brewed with fruit, hybrid styles like Belgian or white IPA to name a few.
2 bottles per entry
Entry fee $6
The online entry system will be open from May 10 to May 26 – link to entry system on http://www.dunedinbrewersguild.com/.
One entry per category, 2 entries per brewer limit
Experimental category entries must state underlying IPA style and special ingredients/experimental treatment.
Entries must be dropped off no later than midnight Wednesday, May 30th
Drop off and shipping location — Dunedin Brewery, 937 Douglas Ave., Dunedin, Florida 34698-4945
BJCP-sanctioned
Open to all home brewers everywhere!
Judges needed — We will need experienced home brew and commercial judges to help evaluate all of the entries. More details to come. Please email us if you are interested.
Contacts:
Mike Bryant, General Manager, Dunedin Brewery– mlbryant@dunedinbrewery.com
Jim Colvard, Competition Organizer — DBGBoard@dunedinbrewersguild.com
More info:
Dunedin Brewery — http://www.dunedinbrewery.com/Dunedin
Brewers Guild — http://www.dunedinbrewersguild.com/IPA
Fest Event on Facebook — http://www.facebook.com/events/313704252031709/?notif_t=event_invite
2012 Hogtown Brew-Off
The 2012 Hogtown Brew-Off will be held at a new location this year, at the beautiful Kanapaha Botanical Gardens. Kanapaha will be the site of judging Friday and Saturday, the Wild Boar Keg Competition Saturday afternoon, and the gala awards banquet Saturday night.
The competition will be held on May 18-19, 2012.
While the entry window may be closed, there still may be a need for Judges/Stewards.
Judges: Submit Your Information By Clicking Here!
Stewards: Submit Your Information By Clicking Here!
First Coast Cup
-Welcome to the 5th Annual-2012 First Coast Cup-
July 27th & 28th
(Entry Window – June 22nd through July 6th)
This year’s First Coast Cup will be held at the Four Points by Sheraton Jacksonville on Baymeadows.
Similar to past years, we’ll begin judging sessions around noon on Friday, July 27th and continue into the early evening or until that day’s flights are completed. For those of you who will be coming in from out of town and want to judge, please notify us as early as you can so we can sort the flights accordingly.
In addition to the awards banquet, we have some fantastic activities planned for this year’s First Coast Cup. Click the Activities Schedule link above for additional information.
For more details, please visit the 5th Annual First Coast Cup official page Here.
Check out the homebrewers association website for a list of the 2012 club-only competitions on the schedule.
REWARD!
Attention all SAAZ members!
Our friends over at Sunseed Food Coop are looking to reward the SAAZ brewer of the year, (highest point total in the Florida circuit).
The member with the highest point total will win a $100 gift card to Sunseed Food Co-op at the end of the year. So start brewing and remember to submit your creations!
Beers Available in the Area
Coasters Pub (Indian Harbor Beach) – facebook
- Dampfbier
- Nationalpark Pilsner
- Anchor Porter
Sunseed Food Co-op
- Longhammer IPA cans
- Crazy Mountain Brewing
– all cans-
— Amber
— Pale Ale
— Wit - Stone R.I.S
- Rogue
– MoM Hefe - Southern Tier
– Hop Sun - Oskar Blues
– Deviant Dales 16oz can
World of Beer – Viera
New on tap
- Terrapin Road Warrior
- Redhook Eisbock
- Ommegang BPA
- Cigar City Maduro Brown (nitro)
SAAZ Platinum Sponsor
Competition Winners
Congratulations to our members that have recently received awards or recognition!
SAAZ Spring Fling With Smoked Wings
Best of Show – Beer
| Brewer Name | Co-Brewers | Brew Name | Style | Medal | Club |
| Glen Weimar | Sean Gregg | SAAZzilla Clone | 14C | 1st | Space Coast Assoc. for the Advancement of Zymurgy (Rockledge, FL) |
| Josh Landin | Indian River Grapefruit Ale | 20 | 2nd | Space Coast Assoc. for the Advancement of Zymurgy (Rockledge, FL) | |
| Sean Gregg | I am Zythos, Take me to your liter | 10A | 3rd | Space Coast Assoc. for the Advancement of Zymurgy (Rockledge, FL) |
A complete listing of the results can be found Here.
-
Dave Webb – Silver Medal
-
Sean Gregg – Honorable Mention
Beer Education
About Mead Making
The first thing you are going to discover about Mead Making is that there are about 1,000 different ways to do it. And this may leave you confused. Which way should you follow? You may think this particularly critical when you are first starting out but in actuality this is very encouraging. The simple fact, it seems to me, is that you can successfully make a batch of great tasting mead using any recipe or process you want! Mead is very forgiving and very easy to make. It pretty much makes itself!
An overview of the Process
1. You mix a batch of water and Honey (typically it is 4 gallons of water and 12-15 pounds of honey. This 12-15 pounds of honey is about 4-5 quarts. Typically you heat this mixture but it isn’t mandatory.
2. You add yeast and yeast nutrition to the honey water mix. The yeast will gobble up the honey and transform it into Mead. You should add some kind of nutrient to the mixture so the yeast can grow. This nutrient can be store bought or it can be a variety of things like lemon peels and tea leaves.
3. You let it sit for a period of time. Typically about two weeks is the amount of time it takes for the initial fermentation to occur. At this stage your mixture should be bubbling nicely. You then move it to a large clear bottle so you can keep an eye on it. Keep it in this new blass bottle for another two weeks to two months until it isn’t doing anything anymore. (no more bubbling and no more activity)
4. Put it in individual bottles and store it! Depending on how much honey you put in the mixture it will be ready to drink anywhere from 3 months to a year. (Less honey means faster ready time)
(Information taken from http://www.stormthecastle.com)
SAAZ on Facebook
Do you want to stay up to date on SAAZ events?
Then be sure to like the SAAZ page on Facebook!
Raffle
Do you have some homebrew supplies that you don’t use anymore? Maybe you upgraded or maybe you prefer another product? Consider bringing your dusty supplies to the next meeting for the raffle. We have brewers of all experience levels, so I am sure we can put any brewing supplies to use!
Feedback
We need your help! We are very interesting in improving the club and we’d like to hear what you think. If you have comments or suggestions about the Newsletter, Website, Activities, or the Club in general, please send an email to editor@saaz.org.
All feedback is welcomed! For example you can:
- Share a topic for Beer Education
- Share your Review of a Beer
- Correct something in the newsletter or website
- Express a criticism about anything related to the club
- Offer a suggestion to improve the club
We want to hear from you! Email editor@saaz.org.