Ann Arbor Brewers Guild

February, 2012 meeting

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:59:56 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The February meeting will be hosted by Adventures in Homebrewing, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, February 10.

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features Dark Lager, the style of the month.

AiH is located on the south side of Jackson Rd, west of Zeeb. If you are coming from the east, turn at the first cross-through after you pass Lowes. Special information for this meeting:

If you want to purchase supplies, please arrive before 7PM, as the store closes at 7.
There are only about 15 or 20 parking spaces in the front of the building, so if the lot is full, you may be able to park at one of the neighboring retail establishments (if they are closed for the evening), or you can drive around back and park, or on the side of the building. For those who elect to park on the side of the building, please keep it to one row so as not to obstruct others from coming in and out.
The actual meeting will take place in the “middle” of the building. By “middle”, I mean that you will come in through the front door, walk to the back of the shop. Jason and his crew have created a separate room through those back doors. The bathroom will be available throughout the evening, which means members will have to walk through the store close to the entrance where the bathroom is. This means that everyone will have access to the retail supplies area. While I hope it goes without saying, please don’t ask to purchase anything after 7:00, and please help the club earn the trust of AinH so that they will invite us again.
While they will have tables available for food, they do not have any chairs in the back. Bring your own if you would like a seat.

January, 2012 meeting

admin — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 15:28:38 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The January meeting will be hosted by Adventures in Homebrewing, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, January 13

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features American Dark Lager, the style of the month.

News flash! Roger Burns will be doing a presentation from 7-7:30, before the main meeting, about the “Brew in a Bag” system that he uses for all-grain brewing on limited equipment.

AiH is located on the south side of Jackson Rd, west of Zeeb. If you are coming from the east, turn at the first cross-through after you pass Lowes. Special information for this meeting:

If you want to purchase supplies, please arrive before 7PM, as the store closes at 7.
There are only about 15 or 20 parking spaces in the front of the building, so if the lot is full, you may be able to park at one of the neighboring retail establishments (if they are closed for the evening), or you can drive around back and park, or on the side of the building. For those who elect to park on the side of the building, please keep it to one row so as not to obstruct others from coming in and out.
The actual meeting will take place in the “middle” of the building. By “middle”, I mean that you will come in through the front door, walk to the back of the shop. Jason and his crew have created a seperate room through those back doors. The bathroom will be available throughout the evening, which means members will have to walk through the store close to the entrance where the bathroom is. This means that everyone will have access to the retail supplies area. While I hope it goes without saying, please don’t ask to purchase anything after 7:00, and please help the club earn the trust of AinH so that they will invite us again.
While they will have tables available for food, they do not have any chairs in the back. Bring your own if you would like a seat.

December, 2011 meeting

admin — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 18:35:43 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The December meeting will be hosted by Rolf Wucherer, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, December 9.

The December meeting traditionally features “holiday” beers, whether spiced or strong or both, along with holiday-themed refreshments. Please enjoy the company, food, and libations responsibly.

November, 2011 meeting

admin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 02:11:15 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The November meeting will be hosted by Chris Frey, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, November 11.

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features Porter and Stout, the styles of the month.

Crispy sends:
For the benefit of the numerous newer members to the Ann Arbor Brewers Guild, I wanted to share some details about the November meeting.

Over the years I have attempted to make this meeting sort of an unofficial “launch” of the holiday season. Members are encouraged to share a side dish that is kicked up a notch. While chips and salsa, hummus and pita, pretzels and mustard, etc. are all fine, I suggest that this is a meeting for members to bring that killer appetizer, the one that everyone asks for your recipe afterwards. Or that holiday side dish that you bring to the family. Perhaps an intense cheese with artisan bread. You get the picture. The net result is that if everyone brings something special, you can probably skip or scrimp on dinner beforehand.

Following tradition, both Brian Petrovich and I will each cook a turkey to be served as appetizers during the meeting. I will inject mine with Belhaven Wee Heavy Scotch Ale, and cook with lots of leeks from the garden. Haven’t decided if I am going to stuff the turkey with them, or roast them separately in some Belgian Triple. I encourage members to think “early holiday” and hope to see some creative side dishes or appetizers for everyone to share.

Because we share a driveway with our neighbors, parking is on either South Ann Arbor Street, or Crestwood, which is the side street at the light right in front of our house. To keep the local constables happy, please park on our side of South Ann Arbor facing north.

In an attempt to try to not have a repeat from last year’s police escorts after the meeting to the town line that many people enjoyed, I will not have the banner out. Instead, I will ensure that the cupola light is on – it is the only one on South Ann Arbor Street J. If you haven’t been to the house, a cupola is a small tower above the second floor. Because the house was built before electricity, these were originally added to homes as a way to vent hot air out in the summer. I will also likely have a red Ford Focus parked on the street at the edge of the driveway.

I just received our new, high tech fuel cell Breathalyzer, so if anyone questions their sobriety, please ask to use it. Remember, you can’t have had an alcoholic drink for at least 15 minutes prior to testing to ensure an accurate estimate of your BAC. We have extra bedrooms upstairs just in case…always drink responsibly and be safe.

Our dog Jake, while not an accomplished escape artist, needs to stay within the property. Please come in through the backyard basement door (thru the picket fence gate near the back steps), and re-latch the gate behind you. He barks like the Dickens, but will likely run away from you. Don’t bother trying to pet him, and please don’t feed him.

We try to keep the 1st floor off limits. We hold the meeting in the basement of the house, with overflow in the kitchen/dining room if necessary. Bathrooms, of course, are upstairs too. In the event we get an evening that is warm enough, we can spill out into the backyard and garage. If it is dry, I might have a late night fire in the back.

All food goes downstairs. We will have several “groaning” tables set up, and I will have an electrical strip available at one table for crook pots.

October, 2011 meeting

admin — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 14:27:08 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The October meeting will be hosted by Bob Scholl, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, October 14.

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features German Wheat and Rye beer, the style of the month.

A bit more information:

Parking:
People should park on the street.
Some people can park in the drive but people might get parked in.

It is dark..no street lights… bring flashlights.
The neighbor’s driveway has signage for an auction on Saturday (Braun Helmer).
Our driveway is right after sign. The house numbers go out of sequence.
There will be a sign: “The Party’s Here”.

Use back door please.

Saury Barrel Exchange: Belgian Golden/Saison

Aron Butler — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 20:56:25 +0000

On Sunday a dozen or so folks gathered at my place (Aron Butler) to drain the Belgian Golden from the Saury barrel there and replace it with a Saison. Like the Radoux barrel currently holding a Flanders Red at my place, this one was obtained from 2 Lads Winery of Traverse City. It was filled on February 27th with a Belgian Golden Strong (no blog post was made at that time), which slowly dried to 1.003 and developed some nice tartness and barrel character along the way. Investors got back about 4.5 gallons each of this beer.

Following a quick rinse-out of the dregs, the barrel was refilled with a collection of Saison batches brewed with 50% wheat malt and Saaz finishing hops, fermented with WLP-565. Given that the barrel is already inoculated and this Saison is relatively light in gravity, we hope to have something nice by the holidays. Linked here is a spreadsheet showing batch data for this barrel.

Excel 2003 file

PDF file

September, 2011 meeting

admin — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 04:02:10 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The September meeting will be hosted by Jeff Renner, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, September 9.

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features specialty beers, the style of the month.

August, 2011 meeting

admin — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 14:01:48 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The August meeting will be hosted by Patti Smith and Jeff Bletch, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, August 12.

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features Sour Beers, the style of the month.

Patti and Jeff live on Stone School between two Baylis streets, which is one big loop. So you pass one Baylis, but if you pass a second Baylis, you’ve gone too far. Their house has front yard garden beds and a windsock and a big driveway. Additional parking can be found on the Baylis.

July, 2011 Beer-BQ

admin — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 01:31:21 +0000

The July Beer-BQ will be hosted by Roger Burns, starting at 1:00 PM on Saturday, July 16. The Beer-BQ is our annual family-oriented picnic. Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features Mead, the style of the month.

In contrast to most AABG meetings, this is a members-only event. If you’re thinking about joining, please check back next month to attend the August meeting.

More about the Beer-BQ from Chris Frey:

Typically it is an all day, all night event (1:00 – 12:00), with those with other commitments (or fewer beer bullets) concentrating on the 4:00 – 8:00 time frame. Our master of ceremonies, Mike O’Brien, Caterer Extraordinaire, provides the anchor to this event. with his infamous trailer full of goodies. Mike typically brings a large tent, 8-10 large round tables, and seating for about half the crowd (bringing your own seating is good form). Additionally, he will bring his portable grilling system, and cook up some yummy meat, which in the past has ranged from whole pig to turkeys to beef brisket.

And usually he also hauls out his soft serve ice-cream machine. He will usually start with a straight vanilla mix, and once the children have been satiated, it is time for the adult mix. I brewed a Raspberry Imperial Stout specifically for this purpose, and thanks to a timely diversion to a Wisconsin package store, I have a variety of New Glarus fruit beers that I can offer up as well.

In years past at the Darnell’s and other hosts, the club typically rents a “bouncy” thingamajig for the children, which the club also reimburses. Yes, children are invited, as this is the one event a year where the whole family is encouraged to come and enjoy. Also available from club reimbursement, are available funds to rent a porta-potty, so as not to stress out the host’s septic system, and/or minimize trips into the house. Always the hosts call. Did I mention you really should be a current and paid up member to attend ?

While Mike will supply the primary “protein” for this event, it is also good form (and anticipated) to bring a side dish. These can range from pasta salads to chips and dip, cheese and crackers. Swedish meatballs, to shrimp and cocktail sauce, what have you. If you have that “killer” appetizer that everyone loves at your home gatherings of friends and family, this is the event to bring them along.

Additionally, the club bar will be available, and if you use a coke fitting, it is best to let Mike know ahead of time. Otherwise, there will be 12 taps available. Bottles of “special” and “regular” homebrew, craft beer and even American Homebrew Association Commemorative beers and meads are encouraged. And Same Wort – Different Yeast, home made distillates, and any other fermentables are welcome. If someone has a decent music system, that is welcome. If one is coming, let the collective know if CD’s or MP3′s or other media would be appreciated.

Games are welcome. Anyone have a croquet set? That corn hole game with the bean bags? Other games? Bring them along!

A call for help usually goes out for members to either show up early Saturday morning or Friday after work (weather depending) to help unload the trailer, set up the tent, tables and chairs, etc. A similar small volunteer army is highly appreciated late the next morning to break it all down and pack it up.

Kris and I purchased all the necessary plastic forks, knives and spoons at a recent estate sale, and we will contribute these. Plates, napkins, ice, and all other manner of items will also be needed, and as we get closer, volunteers will be sought to secure these items. Perhaps Mark Zadvinski or someone else could set up a Goggle doc to start collecting all who are coming, with any additional family or friends, their side dishes, if they are bringing a keg, etc.

This is a terrific event. Others, please feel free to chime in on this, as we have a lot of “newbie’s”, and I want to encourage them all to come, bring family, food, brews and games and have a great time! These are your dues dollars at work (did I mention that you should be a current and paid up member to attend , and it is a blast!

Our host, Roger, adds:
BeerBQ will be hosted by my inlaws, Dick and Dee Smit, who are really wonderful people and love a good party. There’s room for tents, if you feel like staying over. The yard is fairly large and there is a croquet set in the adjoining neighbor’s yard, who is also a homebrewer and will definitely be coming!

There’s a fire pit. We’ll work to getting some trees stacked up for a nice bonfire.

Things you may want to bring:

bug repellent
blanket
chairs (there are going to be a lot, but you never have enough)
jacket/pants (the temp drops off at night)
yard games (we have volleyball, frisbees, bocce, horseshoes, and possibly some more)

June, 2011 meeting

admin — Wed, 25 May 2011 20:44:21 +0000

Please note: you must be at least 21 years old to attend AABG meetings.

The June meeting will be hosted by Chuck Warpehoski, starting at 7:30PM on Friday, June 10.

Read more about the meeting online, including an interactive map to the location, or download the newsletter, which contains information about the meeting and features wheat beer, the style of the month.