Fellow Homebrewers,
This past Sunday (7/20) I followed my own advice, braved the heat, and finally brewed a summer beer. Aside from a small amount of cider, I had nothing in on tap but somewhat heavy, dark beers – a Scottish, a Black RPA, and the club’s non-barreled FES. Actually only half of the 10 gallon batch is for me. The other half is for a friend’s wedding which is only four weeks away. I’m also making some hard cider for the nuptials. So, why bother you with this recount? Since I was under a time-crunch, both the beer and the cider are KISS (“keep in simple stupid”) recipes that can go from fermenter to cup in under a month. Simply take your base grain, throw in a bit of crystal malt (or other specialty malt) and maybe an adjunct, boil with your favorite hops, pitch plenty of healthy yeast, and, voila, a nice, refreshing blonde/pale/bitter in no time at all. Similarly for the cider, grab some apple juice (pasteurized and unsorbated) from the supermarket shelf, add some sugar if you want to up the ABV, pitch whatever yeast you have handy with a pinch of nutrient, backsweeten to taste and enjoy! When you get a chance, please share your favorite summer beer recipes on the OVHA forum.
Thanks in advance to all of you who have volunteered to help with the SWIRCA BrewFest on August 2, 2014. Not only does the club need a limited number of volunteers (and, of course, beer donations), but the SWIRCA staff is always looking for folks to help out before, during, and after the event. Often these assignments involve pouring for other vendors. Taking some of the lessons learned from prior events, Board Member Jill Mecklenborg has done a great job organizing and coordinating OVHA’s participation. If you’ve volunteered for the event, please visit the club’s web site to find out your assignment. If you don’t wish to volunteer, tickets can still be purchased online at www.swirca.org.
On July 9, 2014, a meeting of your board of directors was held. These meetings are held every couple months. Board meetings are open to any member wishing to attend. To this end, I will endeavor to keep you better informed of meeting dates and times. The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for 6:00 p.m., September 10, at the First Federal Savings Bank Operations Center on the corner of Green River and Lynch Roads. At this most recent meeting the board discussed the merits of an affordable homebrew club liability insurance program that has just been rolled out thanks to the efforts of the American Homebrewers Association. Most of the board felt that, pending a more thorough review of the program and policy, it would be prudent for the OVHA to participate. You can find out more about the insurance program by visiting the AHA web site. Also at the last meeting, Kenny Purcell and Michael Julian agreed to co-chair a committee to explore hosting an open homebrew competition next year. If you have any thoughts on these or any other matters, please pass them along to any of the members of your OVHA board.
The OVHA was again well represented at this year’s Indiana Brewers Cup. Along with the usual army of OVHA stewards, several members served as judges. Also, Jeremy Dunn kept the club’s win streak alive with a 1st place for his Belgian Golden Strong. Well done Jeremy! Hopefully Jeremy will have some to share at an upcoming meeting. From the professional ranks John Mills walked away with yet more hardware – four to be exact – two silver and two bronze medals. Congratulations to both Jeremy and John on a job well done!
I want to remind everyone that this month’s meeting (July 30) will be upstairs at Tin Man Brewing Company. For those living under a rock, Tin Man is located on Franklin Street, just west of Fulton Avenue. Thanks in advance to Nick and Sara for hosting our annual brewery tour meeting. Be sure to show your appreciation by giving them your business.
Finally, Sky will be filling in for me yet again this month as my wife is bidding adieu to her gall bladder that day. Hopefully nothing interferes with the August meeting since my quite pedestrian attempt at a Scottish ale will be standing, and likely falling, in judgment.
Just Brew It!
Jeff
