News
Learn to Brew 2014 is coming up November 8th from 10-2 pm at Barley John’s Brewpub in New Brighton.
Come out, bring some friends and learn to homebrew, or help share your knowledge of homebrewing with others! Barley John’s Brew Pub has invited us to hang out on their patio while club members provide demonstrations on how to brew both extract and all-grain beers. The gathering is from 10 am to 2 pm on Saturday, November 8nd. Home brew is welcome and remember that Barley John’s offers great beer and wonderful food, including a fantastic egg bake that they are making just for us again this year.
Last year we had a fantastic time with great beverages, fun people and a great host!
Read MoreOnce again The Growler is soliciting votes for their “It’s-Kind-of-a-big-deal” awards. The past two years the Minnesota Home Brewers Association has taken best Homebrew club and we need your help winning again! Please go vote…and ask your friends to vote for us too!
Read MoreDue to a scheduling conflict we have had to reschedule our October meeting (previously October 11th). Many of you may have already read of this change in the weekly newsletter. Below is additional information:
Come out to Lucid Brewing on Saturday, October 18th from noon to 3:00 pm. We will be having a short discussion from our own Andy Ruhland, who is the Brewer/Cellarmaster at Lucid. Andy has the privilege of scoring an almost perfect score of 98 on his Gose (Lucid’s Goslar) at the 2014 World Beer Championship. He’ll discuss his research behind this old German style, wheat ale. We’ll have some Goslar to sample and educate your palate, while you listen to Andy discuss his process in creating this near perfect beer.
Homebrew beer, mead and cider is welcome and encouraged!
Read MoreCider lovers,
We will be doing another Club Cider Buy of fresh-pressed, unpasteurized cider for fermenting this year at Barley John’s during Learn to Homebrew Day on November 8th. As usual we will try to arrive near the beginning of the event, but these things always take longer than expected so if you are on a tight schedule please find someone else to take care of your pickup, and let the coordinator know in advance.
The price will be $4 a gallon and you will need to supply your own 5 gallon vessel(s), ideally 5+ gallon buckets. If you are interested in cider, please let me know how much you would like in 5 gallon quantities by emailing me directly, or using the form below.
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Due to an unfortunate scheduling conflict, our October meeting at Fulton will be delayed one week, until October 18th from 12:00 noon until 3:00pm. We are working on a couple special items for the 18th meeting and will have more information next week.
We apologize for the delay and any confusion this may have caused.
Read MoreThis year’s Byggvir’s Big Beer Cup was the 8th annual event, hosted at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival. There were over 70 volunteers that worked tirelessly to make the competition a success. This year there were nearly 300 entries received. Thanks to everyone who entered!
Congratulations to everyone who places in this year’s Byggvir’s Big Beer Cup! Here are the winners from the MHBA
Read MoreCongratulations to all the Minnesota Home Brewers Association winners at the 2014 Minnesota State Fair Homebrew Competition.
Read MoreOccasionally we post notices about homebrew competitions here and in our discussion areas. If you are a newer home brewer you may have heard people talking about competitions and judging but you may not really know what they are all about. The short answer is that home brew competitions are an organized way for home brewers to receive feedback on their beer from people who have studied beer styles and beer defects and have taken certification exams to test their knowledge. The BJCP, or Beer Judge Certification Program is the organization that oversees most competitions, provides guidelines on beer styles and provides certification exams to potential beer judges.
If you are interested in becoming a better brewer, or learning more about beer in general, you should look into home brew competitions. Entering your beers is a great way to get honest feedback about your beer, what problems are in your beers and how you may go about trying to eliminate some of those problems. In addition to entering your beers, volunteering at a home brew competition is a fantastic way to interact with other experienced home brewers and to learn about the home brew competition process. There are lots of volunteer positions that require no previous knowledge, experience or certification!
Here are a few upcoming homebrew competitions you may want to consider entering, or volunteering to help at! If you have questions about any of these, feel free to ask on our email list or facebook page, or ask any of the club leadership for more information!
State Fair Homebrew Competition
If you have time this weekend, there may still be a need for volunteers to help at the State Fair Homebrew Competition. Judging starts, Friday the 15th so you have to act quick. Send an email to [email protected] immediately for more information. Note: Signup on the web has been disabled so if you want to help, email now.
Beer Dabbler Home Brew Competition
If you are thinking of attending the Summer Beer Dabbler on September 6, consider entering a homebrewed beer into the Beer Dabbler Summer Home Brew Competition. The entries are dropped off at the beer festival and winners announced the same day!
Byggvir’s Big Beer Cup Home Brew Competition
At the end of September is the Renaissance Festival Home Brew Competition. This is a home brew competition with judging happening at the Renaissance Festival. This competition is specifically geared to newer brewers and to introduce people to beer judging. It’s a perfect opportunity to get feedback as a brewer and to see what a homebrew competition is all about.
Read MoreIt’s that time again! The Minnesota State Fair Home Brew Competition needs your help to sort bottles on Sunday, Aug 3 at 11am. Check out the event page for location information.
Definitely a case of “Many Hands Make Light Work!” and it’s a great way to get to know some of the other home brewers in the community.
If you can spare two or three hours, please RSVP to Amanda Kutzke at [email protected]
You can find out more about the Minnesota State Fair Homebrew Competition at the competition website.
Read MoreThe Arboretum will be hosting a Mead Event with our very own Steve Piatz as the guest speaker on Saturday, September 13th. Along with the talk about mead and a tasting of commercial and homemade meads, there is an option to make a 1 gallon batch during the event to finish at home. Steve’s new book will also be available for purchase and signing.
Event Description:
Read MoreThis nectar of the gods we know as mead holds an honored place in history, literature, art, and…your table. Learn how the simple ingredients of honey, water, and yeast are used to create mead. Watch mead makers go through the steps of making mead and hear about the difference the type of honey, water, and time make in the final result. Explore your options of ingredients, equipment, and process that goes into the craft. Then taste and compare a number of meads. And for those ready to join in the mead-making trend, you may choose to make the beginnings of your first batch and head home armed with the materials and knowledge to bottle your mead and finish it at home. Book available for sale and signing. Limit 30, Learning Center