DBF Packs 'Em in at September Meeting
The Displaced Brewery Fanatics held a very successful September meeting, when nearly half of the registered club members and “interested” home brewers met to talk business and sample a few homemades.
Ed Stone began the meeting around 7:10, but not before everyone had a chance to try a sample of Jay Bradley's “Wee Heavy” scotch ale – a fine example of this style, by the way. When asked about the ingredients, Jay confided that he brewed it from something he got at Park Winery. However, he switched the yeast, adjusted the grains, and altered the hops, but kept the water the same. Bruce Fine also offered samples of his Baroque Ale, aptly name because he was a little low on cash when he dropped in at the Park Winery to get his supplies. Bruce nicknamed the brew 2-Roll Barley, since he paid for everything using two rolls of quarters.
Skip Uhl informed the club that the Park Winery has adjusted its hours to accommodate its customers. In particular, the store will now be open on Sundays from 1-4pm. See www.parkwinery.com for all the new hours of operation.
The subject of membership dues came up again. Ed requests that members who have not already paid their $25 yearly fee must ante up by the October meeting.
Gary Przybycki, food creator at Meaghan's Diner on Mack, told the group about a possible opportunity to brew beer live on local television. Gary is proposing a production of “Cooking with Gary,” which is televised on the Grosse Pointe community access cable channel. Gary had originally planned to demonstrate how to cook with beer in the recipe.
Ed Stone readdressed the need for club officers. Al Minetola offered his services and was unanimously elected DBF club Secretary.
“Can we pick a title that sounds more masculine?” he asked.
Other members suggested Note-Taking Guy, Writing Master and Scribbler-in-Chief. There will be a final vote in October. Incidentally, the club still needs a VP.
Ed has offered to hold a Bar-B-Cue and Brew at his house on Saturday, October 22, the fourth Saturday in the month. All home brewers are welcomed and encouraged to bring their equipment and supplies. The grills will be hot, so bring something to cook, too. Please respond to Ed so he will know if there is enough support for this event.
At this point in the meeting, members took the opportunity to sample Tom Adams's Canadian Hi-Test or John Wohlfahrth's Double Bock. The Hi-Test, a Baron's no-boil ale, proved to be considerably different the Hi-Test that Bruce Fine introduced at the August meeting, although Fine noted that a power outage during the brewing process may have factored into the variation.
John's Double Bock, which he brewed early in the summer and left in the secondary fermentation stage for almost two months, yielded a flowery aroma and caramel taste that combined nicely with the adequate hops. We may have to feature John's recipe and technique in the DBF Website, although John did admit that the additional time spent in the carboy was more the result of his busy family schedule than his patience as a home brewer.
During the latter half of the meeting, several members offered useful tips and tricks for the craft brewer. These will be collected and posted separately for all Displaced Brewery Fanatics to enjoy.
As a reminder, November 5 is Teach a Friend to Brew Day. What a coincidence! That's a Saturday! Club members are discussing plans to demonstrate the brewing process on the sidewalk outside the Park Winery. DBF members will want to bring a friend to this event. The first time our club made beer on the sidewalk, we received a lot of public interest and afterward enjoyed some really fine ales.
The meeting loosely came to an end around 8:30pm, but not until Jay Bradley treated club members to another of his homebrews. At home, he attempted to duplicate the Edmund Fitzgerald Porter, an outstanding porter from Cleveland's Great Lakes Brewery and which is considered by some to be the best porter brewed in America. And he brought some bottles of the original, so members might make their own conclusions. All the comments were congratulatory. Jay used a recipe found in North American Clone Brews, a book that Skip Uhl keeps at Park Winery. Next time, though, Jay plans to add more chocolate malt to improve mouth feel.
Jay's clone brew, along with a Canadian Ale that the club made at a previous meeting, brought the total of home brews to six. That is quite an impressive showing.