2005 January Newsletter

By Bill Lynch 

Photo's by Tom Henderson

The January meeting was a sight to behold! More than 50 current and perspective members attended! This was a record and I guess we can expect this in the future as word of our great club spreads. I want to thank everyone that brought their homebrews to share; they were all incredible!

Here follows what was covered at the meeting:

• 2005 dues are due. Still the best 15 bucks you’ll ever spend
• Those in attendance were polled to see who brewed what during December. Quite a respectable amount of beers were brewed in a month in which a lot of other activities going on
• Assuming most members renew and with the spike of new members we can expect to have an active roster of between 90 and 100. The 2005 officers met in mid December to discuss plans for the coming year. There will be something for everyone and we encourage you to take advantage of as many activities as you can.
• We have decided to provide honorary memberships to members of the Charlotte area beer community including Dave Gonzales (Rock Bottom), Nikki Koonz (Carolina Beer and Beverage), Tom Lockhart (Mellow Mushroom), Ale Clayson (Homebrew Adventures), Jess Faucette (Alternative Beverage) among others.
• Would like to emphasize, especially to new members, to please bring in your homebrews for everyone to try. We will provide good feedback from BJCP judges if you would like; advice on what category you should enter the beer in, flaws, good points, tips for improving etc.
• We are considering a group trip to Baltimore to attend the AHA national conference in June (16-18). About 15 people indicated that they are interested. We will be providing more information on this in future meetings
• We are looking for judges, preferably BJCP or experienced, to judge the Gambrinus Cup entries on Saturday February 12 at 2:00 at CB&B in Mooresville. The styles to be judged are Oktoberfest and Munich Dunkel. The winner will be brewed at CB&B to be served at the 2005 Renaissance Festival
• Garrett Oliver of the Brooklyn Brewing Company will be holding a beer dinner at the Providence Bistro in the Ballantyne section of Charlotte on Wednesday February 9. The price is $55.00 per person. We understand that tickets are going fast. Details at www.providencebistroballantyne.com/BeerDinner.html
• Douglas MacKay has proposed forming a subcommittee that would investigate the feasibility of establishing a competition that would judge only highly hopped beers. Douglas will be in contact shortly looking for volunteers.
• Mead makers – Meadllennium VIII will be hosted by Central Florida Home Brewers on January 29. This is the largest home mead maker competition in the country. Entries due no later than January 25. Kevin Martin indicated that he was planning on submitting a couple.
• The 2004 officer’s dinner will be held on Friday night January 21 at Presto Bar and Grill in Uptown Charlotte. This is our annual way of thanking those who have volunteered either as officers, members of the U.S. Open organizing committee or the Oktoberfest organizing committee. There will be ample opportunities for members to join these committees so please consider joining

• BJCP study sessions. We are shooting for a summer exam. We received a list of 20 committed members that are willing to participate in some concentrated study sessions. We also got a couple of people to volunteer as hosts. As with any exam, a lot of ‘on your own’ studying will be required but the BJCP website has an excellent study guide. The exam will likely be held in the Triangle area. We will be in contact with everyone that signed up very shortly
• The club will subsidize any exam takers whether first timers or judges looking to move up in the ranks.
• David Jones will be holding the January brew session at his home on Saturday January 15 beginning at 11:00 a.m. He will be brewing an all grain batch on his incredible home brewery. There is a possibility that Bill Lynch will brew a mash extract batch. Directions and additional information will be placed on the club website shortly
• We are looking for volunteers to hold brew sessions at their homes. We’re shooting for the 3^rd Saturday of each month. We would like as many extract sessions as possible

• We welcomed approximately 10 perspective new club members many of which joined at the meeting. We hope that you find our club to be as much fun as many of us long time members have
• All members were again reminded to sign up for Brewnet. It’s easy, an effective means of communication and instructions can be found on the club website www.carolinabrewmasters.com.

Social Events

• Checkers game on February 11
• Social events for 2005 will be posted on the website
• Plans are for the club to sponsor a trip to a Knights game, a brewpub tour, a Belgian beer/food pairing and the holiday party
• Other events that we decide on will be announced as far as in advance as possible
• Hickory Hops festival will be held on Saturday April 2
• We are always looking for suggestions for social events. Please contact Tony Profera at tprofera@hotmail.com.

• Dues can be paid either at Homebrew Adventures, in person at meetings or via mail. If paying by mail, send it to Homebrew Adventures 209 Iverson Way Charlotte, NC 28203
• Any reimbursements that are authorized by the officers to club members must be accompanied by a receipt
• The club roster will be made available to all members when it’s finalized at the end of February
• The 2005 Oktoberfest will take place on Saturday October 8. We expect it to be held at the same site as last year and we will be incorporating a series of changes to the event as suggested at the committee’s post-fest meeting. We will be looking for committee members shortly so please consider joining us.

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