April 2016 meeting preview

Greetings brewers,  your new committee – as selected at the March meeting – are getting set for a big couple of months of activities, starting with our April meeting next Thursday.

The fun kicks off at the Harmonie German Club in Narrabundah with an education session at 7.30pm. Education officer Patrick will give an overview of the new IPA categories from the 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines, while we sample a few commercial examples with guided tasting from a couple of experienced (and hop-loving) judges. It will be limited to 20 places – first in, first served!

Calling for judges, stewards and entries!

Our first club level competition is all set for Sunday, May 1, and we’re looking for judges, stewards, and of course, beers! Entries are being accepted in AABC categories Low Alcohol (<4% Abv),  Pale Ale, American Pale Ale, Brown Ale, Porter, Strong Stout (>6% ABV), India Pale Ale, Strong Ale (>6% ABV) and Farmhouse Ale & Wild Beer. Make sure you fill out the entry form online, and drop off your beers before April 23 (drop off points are listed on the forum). Of course, we can’t have a competition without judges and stewards – so please if you’re so inclined add your name to the list here.

Save the date: International Home Brew Day

After a huge event last year, we’re starting to get together ideas for this year’s International Home Brew Day celebrations on Saturday, May 7. We’ll make more announcements in the forum soon but in the meantime if you’re keen to brew or help out on the day, flick an email to social@canberrabrewers.com.au to express your interest.

Memberships are now due

Club membership is now due, with costs remaining at $40 for the year. Due to popular demand, we’ve created an online membership form, Paypal payments and now have a new Paypass system available at the meeting. More information is on this renewal page here.

Greetings from your new committee

The Canberra Brewers appointed a new committee at the March meeting, with outgoing president Joel Baines give a rundown of the previous year’s highlights. Other 2015 committee members to stand down included treasurer Andrew Chek, competition secretary Stephen Lawford, social secretaries Jeremy Michael and Tony Hill, and webmaster Jay Henry. Your new committee is:

• President: Chuck Newton
• Treasurer: Darren Blackhurst
• Competition secretary: Geoff Appleby
• Social secretary: Geoff Swan
• Assistant social secretary: Rohan Lilley
• Editor: Michael O’Brien
• Education officer: Patrick Baggoley
• Webmaster: Scott Taylor

Luke Maiden (Mayds) was initially appointed as social secretary, but has had to resign because of work commitments. Geoff Swan has moved into the role, and Rohan Lilley has stepped in as assistant social secretary. Thanks for pitching in, Rohan!

Judges put to the test

Eleven of our dedicated judges ended months of preparations a couple of weeks ago when they sat the BJCP Judging Exam – the first in Canberra in more than four years and the first under the new format. Having all passed an intense online entrance exam (180 questions in 60 minutes), they had to fill out detailed score sheets for six different beers in 90 minutes. A big thanks to the brewers who supplied the beers (some of them outstanding), the proctors who came along, and the stewards who helped it run smoothly.

We’ve already booked another exam for January, so email education@canberrabrewers.com.au if you’re interested in learning more. Our BJCP tasting course for 2016 is already oversubscribed, but if you’d like to know more, check out the forum post here.

Be in it to win it

We’ve got another stellar raffle lined up for this month, with the main prize of a stainless steel pluto beer gun (including beer line and disconnect) with thanks to Full Pint. Also from them is a portable refractometer. And we’ve got Spiegelau beer glasses with matching beers, and some books. Tickets cost $5 for three, and for every three tickets you buy, you get one entry into the end of year Newcastle Or Otherwise Kind of Interstate Experience (N.O.O.K.I.E.) draw for a fantastic beer-related trip.

Get your brewing books

We’ve got a couple of new books to go into the library this month, so be sure to head to the club’s online library catalogue at https://canberrabrewers.librarika.com/ to peruse this great resource. You can reserve a copy of something and we’ll deliver it at the meeting. If the book is currently on loan, email education@canberrabrewers.com.au and we’ll arrange to have it brought back for you to borrow. Don’t have access to the library? Email us and we’ll hook you up.