Lawrence Brewers Guild

What ever happened to the brew calendar? I was looking forward to this concept. I think it would make the meetings more interesting.

I'm pretty sure I posted it here somewhere... I'll look for it, and if I don't find it, I'll post it again. It definitely would be nice to see it used and get back to having donations for tastings, rather than all commercial beers.

Matt

SAMPLE:

February: Mead & Braggots (as has already been discussed)
March: Scottish & Irish Ales
May: Bocks (esp. Maibocks)
June:
July: Rye Beers (ie. German Rye, Rye Pale Ale)
August:
September: Dark Lagers
October: European Amber Lagers (Octoberfests, Vienna Lagers, Marzen)
November: Stouts & Porters
December: Spice/Herb/Vegetable (ie. Christmas/Winter Warmers)
January: Strong Ale (ie. Barleywines)

This is the only schedule I could find in the forums. Not sure if has been used at all, which is too bad for everyone.

Also, what ever happened to posting tastings ahead of time?

Amen brother............

+1

+2. & 3

Alright alright... I have been sufficiently shamed. I will try to do something about it this weekend.

Matt

Thoughts on commercial tastings:
I suggest that we make it our standard practice to have a set meeting structure with no exceptions. Can we do this? Here?s an idea:

Seminars, 7 ? 7:30 pm
Commercial tasting, 7:30 ? 8 pm
Bus meeting, 8 ? 8:30 pm
Socializing, 8:30 ? whenever

We should have someone working every bit as hard at scheduling the monthly seminar and tasting as we do with Brewfest logistics.
The seminar thing has always been a clunker for us ? a different topic.
Bus meetings can always benefit from a dose of brevity.
Let?s get back to the real interests that most of us have: how to improve our brewing (seminars) and how to inspire our brewing (tastings).

Absolutely Dale.... Everyone in the club would agree emphatically!!!! How does this get implemented? How many actually read this forum? The First of what I hope would be an uninterrupted, contiguous, never ending, scheduled stream of seminars and tastings-- should be the very use of this forum. Sooo many I talk to never check the forum out, or really know how to....

Seminars and tastings were the absolute BACKBONE of this club for years-- what the heck do we have meetings for if not to learn new techniques and compare notes together on flavor profiles? Hell, we could all go to a bar and just socialize and throw darts compared to the way meetings have been lately.



.

If nothing else, it would be good to do tastings before everyone starts socializing. Not only is everyone's pallete blown by then, but it's a real pain in the ass to yell over everyone and try to fill glasses that are already in use.

So I'm all for it.

Matt

I agree as the club has grown, we have gotten away from the norm. of the scheduled routine of the meetings. If you ask an officer privately why this may be, id bet you would be surprised of the answer. Personally, i view the majority of the club to be a social micro drinker club due to the large growth of the club the last few years. Its obvious to me that the majority of members care more about beer tastings, learning styles, and socializing vs learning to brew your own beer. Yes, there have been alot of new brewers join the ranks of the Old Brew Guard, as proven by the last few Club Brews. But imo, The LBG is viewed upon from the non brewing outside as a Social/Brewfest club. From other clubs, i feel they are jealous as hell of our accomplishments. I may be wrong on this proven by the fact of the amount of beer that's been donated to Brewfest this year.

Maybe seminars would help motivate people to start brewing. But from my experience as one that tried hard to do monthly seminars, i felt very few really got much from them. But back then also, the members of the LBG were all brewers.

Maybe i should just eat *Crow*?

Just my two cents again... even though we have been brewing for about 4 years now, I really think I still have a lot to learn. I really would appreciate seminars, however, I feel like I have seen the same ones over and over, since I became a member.

What about somehow rounding the seminar around the tasting for a bit. I mean expand on styles, not just what they taste like, but also how they are made. Differences in yeast that could be used, fermentation temps, specialty grains (ie mashing differences), hints on that style for both extract and all grain brewers. Something that, if a member liked the taste of a style they would have info in hand to go home and try and recreate it to their liking. I have the Designing Great Beer book, but I honestly have learned much more from members than any book I own.

I would also suggest a few minutes of this time to some type of question and answer. The way we do it now you have to circulate, to ask more experienced brewers about what we are tasting, and maybe the why's of why we like it, what is that taste, or why this is the most awful thing I have ever tasted. It would be better I think, to share the questions and answers, if we could ever get enough order to do so. This could also be opened at the end for just general questions, or advice.

Lastly, I know this requires some study and work. But it would only take 12 brewers, each 1 style per year to pull it off.

Just thoughts, nothing more

Melissa

Andy - the times you did seminars, they were after the biz meeting. Same thing with Nate and his kraut. The talks were great, but maybe we should consider doing the seminar session earlier in the agenda?

If I can make a general comment, without offending anybody. Really, I'm not trying to rile anyone up.

I've been brewing for 18 yrs, but the majority of the club has brewed more batches and more gallons than I have. Some, more in one year than I have in 18. I brew 2-4x/yr oscillating back and forth from extract to all grain. There is a very noticeable perception that if you don't all-grain, in the LBG you are not a true brewer. Or, if you don't brew 10 gal batches, or if you don't brew with a HERMS (still don't exactly know what that is), or if you don't brew with _______, you are not a true brewer. I'm just saying, if the Guild is truly interested in recruitment/education, the definition of a brewer in the home could be expanded just a tad.

Enough of my little rant - back 18 yrs ago, the only other club I belonged to only had the social hour (with 2 exceptions in 2+ years). But the thing that I loved back then was, you kept your beer with you and you served it to others. Than 2-4 people discussed your beer. Most of the time, I have no idea who's beer I'm drinking or what style it is supposed to be.

I would like to learn more, but at the same time, this is still just a hobby for me. I mostly go to the meetings to hang out with people I like and have common interests as I do.

I would like to end with two props: In the last 45 days, I have learned two very important things from Shane and Andy. Shane pointed out how to taste the hot side aeration (becaue my beer had it) and Andy explained to me how HSA happens while we were making the bourbon batch. Thanks guys. Up until this summer, I had no idea. I learned because the moment was right.

First off id like to say that this may be one of the best threads ever to grace our forum. Because it has brought out some good things of what people are thinking. And for the record Mellisa, your suggestions is a goal i feel strongly about and we should strive to get there.....good stuff.

Andy - the times you did seminars, they were after the biz meeting. Same thing with Nate and his kraut. The talks were great, but maybe we should consider doing the seminar session earlier in the agenda?

It was once moved to the beginning of the meetings back at the other meeting church. Doing it then tho people that were not interested in the seminar would pop in for the meeting, things would get noisy, people get excited, and focus was lost. I do feel this is the best time to do the seminars, But those not interested should respect the conversation if its still going on when they arrive for the business, social portions of the meeting....

There is a very noticeable perception that if you don't all-grain, in the LBG you are not a true brewer. Or, if you don't brew 10 gal batches, or if you don't brew with a HERMS (still don't exactly know what that is), or if you don't brew with _______, you are not a true brewer. I'm just saying, if the Guild is truly interested in recruitment/education, the definition of a brewer in the home could be expanded just a tad.

Wow, i sure hope this isn't the perception. I think as in any hobby type club, there are those that will always take it to another level that a different member isn't at or not interested in being at.
Brewing can generate allot of cool toys. I'm a gadget guy that loves to try to take things to the next level. I'm hoping there are no attitudes from these types that everyone else sucks when these type of people talk. I think this perception could be caused by the gadget brewers getting together and bragging about their gear and what they made w/it. The other suspicion could be the bulk grain buys.
But this shouldn't persuade someone from not brewing an extract batch if they cant brew AG. But the support is there if that person wants to get to that level if desired. And the support will always be there for a first timer to do an extract batch. Point is, jump in and brew, brew something and learn!

I would like to learn more, but at the same time, this is still just a hobby for me. I mostly go to the meetings to hang out with people I like and have common interests as I do.

As do I. But I also like to make things happen. I also enjoy pushing myself to levels Ive never even reached yet. To me, this attitude along with a willingness to learn and do what you learned is how your beer is improved. And, I just like beer geeks in general.

I would like to end with two props.

Thanks, I appreciate that a whole lot. If I can help somebody learn something, then I did the guy a favor who helped me out along the way!