A beautiful (if windy and waspy) Saturday afternoon allowed the club to congregate in the back parking area of Midwest Supplies on September 10th. The main point of the day was the club’s Iron Brewer Competition, which this year required the use of rye in the recipes. Congratulations to Kurt Smelser for taking home the judges’ trophy for the best rye beer–a roggenbier! Congratulations are also in order for Dave Matson, who took the people’s choice award for his rye IPA with honey. Thank you to Matt Weide for conceiving and executing this contest.
In what we hope will also become a traditional club contest, Jon Hunter won the award and prize for best beer made from this year’s AHA Big Brew recipes, with a delicious alt. Next May, brew one or both of the 2017 Big Brew recipes for a chance to win prizes and accolades. Many members went home with one-pound packages of Summit’s gifted Cascade hops.
We aren’t certain who enjoyed Pat and Hank McNeely’s mead demonstration and tasting more, the wasps or the humans, but all enjoyed it immensely! The duo brought myriad honeys, as well as mead made from each honey, and the samples included Tallow Tree, Brazilian Peppertree, Red Mangrove, Youpan Holly, Guajillo, Star Thistle, Tupelo, and Blackberry. There was even a peanut butter mead. It was a “sweet” thing that the McNeelys did, and the club offers them much appreciation.
(Left: Matt Weide presenting the Iron Brewer trophy to Kurt Smelser. Right: People’s Choice winner Dave Matson with Kurt Smelser.)