Greetings Brewers! I don't know about you, but I'm getting excited for Big Brew, our first in-person event in several months! We'll be celebrating on May 8th (a week after the official date), so start planning your brew day. If you can't brew that day, please come out and spend the day seeing some old friends, sharing homebrew and catching up. Also remember to plan your safe trip home with a designated driver, rideshare, or bring some camping gear and stay the night.
For the April Meeting, we'll be virtual again, with a special guest speaker, Nate Walter, Barrel Aging Program Manager at Free Will Brewing. Be sure to think of your questions about aging and souring beer - which is one of the upcoming Homebrewer of the Year competitions. Also, it would make sense to have some of their beer on hand - they will ship their beer to you if you can't get to their brewery.
I'd like to thank Kristina from Fieldstone Roasters for joining our March meeting - please watch for an update to this blog post. We're still consolidating the notes - but hopefully you already picked up some great tips for the May brewing with coffee competition! I'd also like to thank Chuck Lysakowski for sharing his winning Dark Mild recipe and everyone who participated in the spirited discussion on water pH! We'll definitely have a follow up conversation on additional aspects of water chemistry at some point going forward.
I'd like to give a sincere thanks to Ted, Ryan, Steve, Ken, & Dan who helped get our application for the Radegast Homebrew Club of the Year application submitted on time. Thanks guys!
Finally, I'd like to point everyone to the recent activity on the "Brewing Equipment" forum - there are lots of new posts of equipment for sale - be sure to check out the deals and don't be afraid to make an offer! Keep brewing and be safe!
John Litak
LVHB Club President
Future Meetings:
April 27th - Zoom - RSVP Here
Beer Homework:
Free Will Sour/Wild ales https://freewillbrewing.store/collections/bottles
Tip: Free Shipping on orders over $85, If you don't want to pick up your order, or pay shipping, consider combining your order with other members.
The April Meeting Agenda will feature:
Announcements
Nate Walter, Barrel Program Manager, Free Will Brewing
AHA Presentation on Diversity in Homebrewing
American Wild Style Deep Dive
Plus more!
Meetings are open to anyone (21 and older) who home brews (beer, wine, cider, mead) or is interested in learning about home brewing. Our club has over 30 certified judges and several members who have "gone pro" by opening their own brewery, meadery, or distillery! - So bring your latest craft creation and get some constructive feedback and/or accolades!
Meeting Minutes from Last Month
March Meeting - Tuesday, 30 March 2021
For March, we continued with our zoom virtual meetings. We had 36 Zoom participants. Our Agenda included:
Announcements and updates on club activities and competitions.
Special Guest Presenter: Fieldstone Roasters
Round 1 of Lehigh Valley Homebrewer of the Year results.
Group discussion on understanding and managing pH.
Here are the presentations from the meeting:
General Notes, Winning Dark Mild Recipe:
Brewing with Coffee:
(Check back soon for notes)
UPCOMING CLUB EVENTS
Here are some upcoming events, we'll add more specifics as we work out the details for these events.
Big Brew - May 8th 2021 - RSVP now!
BJCP Classes - July/August 2021 - Sign-ups now available! (limited spots available! Note, if you plan on taking the test, you'll need to RSVP to both events)
Members Picnic - Summer 2021
Malt Madness - August 2021
Learn to Homebrew Day - November 2021
Holiday Party - December 2021
OUR BREWERS (are awesome)
Join us at the next meeting to hear about the successes and contributions of our brewers to the homebrew and professional brewing community.
CLUB COMPETITIONS
Lehigh Valley Homebrewer of the Year
The second flight in the competition will have it's entries due by the last weekend in May. Plan accordingly!
Check out the details here.
UPCOMING BJCP COMPETITIONS
Full list is available here.
BUZZ OFF 2021
Registration: Now until 5/22 (unless limit reached)
Shipping Window (Keystone Homebrew drop-off is available): 5/8-5/22
Judging: Virtual, 6/5-6/19 (Best of Show)
$5 per entry
25th Annual New Jersey State Fair Homebrew Competition / SCUBA
Registration: (not open yet, due 7/17/2021)
$8 per entry
Also, for the winemakers: https://winemakermag.com/competition/competition-overview
OTHER CLUB INFO
The details for most of our happenings (news, events, etc.) will either be included in the monthly newsletter or will be found on the LVHB Website Club Info page. More random thoughts, photos, and links will be shared via the club Facebook page. Find photos of our brewing activities on Instagram! @lehighvalleyhomebrewers
LVHB T-Shirts
LVHB t-shirts are being redesigned for 2021.
Member Benefits
Keystone Homebrew Supply offers 10% off online and in-store purchases for LVHB members as well as a points based loyalty reward program. They offer weekly local delivery on Saturday at Bonn Place in Bethlehem (just place your order by Thursday). Keystone offers full sacks of grain as well as a large selection of brewing and wine making equipment. Also, for most local competitions they provide a drop off point so you don't have to mail in your entries! https://www.keystonehomebrew.com/ Hop and Grain offers members 20% off purchases on their online store, free shipping and flexible local pick-up options. You'll find them very accommodating, even if you require a special order. https://hopandgrain.us/
There's no excuse not to brew because you can't get ingredients or equipment! Thank you to the local shops that support our club!
See all the benefits of membership as well as how to join here.