Greetings Brewers and Judges! I need you to help out with some important upcoming events. First, we're collaborating with Weyerbacher Brewing for a Homebrew festival on Nov 13th. Please sign-up and take advantage of this great opportunity to serve your homebrew to the public. Win a chance to brew your recipe at Weyerbacher! Also, this is one of the last opportunities to score points for the HBoTY challenge. Let's make it a great event!
Next, I need the judges to raise their glasses (including the Judging Class of 2021!) ... There are two upcoming competitions from our sister clubs that we want to help out. We are going to coordinate virtual (local judging) as the actual judging events conflict with the Weyerbacher event and Learn to Homebrew day. Please register for virtual judging:
Motown Mash - Planning Virtual Judging on Nov 2nd as a group (but also could be done any other day that week)
Stoney Creek - Planning Virtual Judging week of Nov 7th.
We have a busy couple weeks coming up. Learn to Homebrew Day is Nov 6th, and it's a great time to get together and brew as a group. We'll be back at Becker's in Kreidersville, so please RSVP. Plan on Mash-in around 9AM.
Upcoming at the November meeting, we'll hold Officer Elections. All positions are up for election, here's a breakdown of high level responsibilities:
President - Provides overall club leadership, interfaces with external groups (other clubs, AHA, etc...), authors monthly newsletter.
Vice President - Backs up President, responsible for club merchandise, selects meeting venues.
Secretary - Maintains club roster and meeting attendance, updates website, and sends club communications
Treasurer - Manages club finances including reimbursements of expenses, membership dues, and raffle fundraisers.
The new slate of officers will start in January. Running for office is a great way to get more involved with the club.
Finally, I'd like to thank our hosts Brian and Andrew for hosting us last month at 5 Maidens and I'll hopefully see you all at Gallows Hill Spirits next week!
John Litak
LVHB Club President
Future Meetings:
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
September Meeting - Tuesday, 28-Sept 2021
In September, Lehigh Valley Homebrewers met at 5 Maidens Urban Cidery and was attended by 33 brewers.
Agenda included:
Club Business and Announcements
Sampling of ciders
Wild and Sour Ales Competition
Sharing of Homebrew
UPCOMING CLUB EVENTS
Here are some upcoming events, we'll add more specifics as we work out the details for these events.
October Meeting, October 26th, Gallows Hill
Learn to Homebrew Day - November 6th 2021
LVHB & Weyerbacher Homebrew Competition - November 13th 2021
Holiday Party and HBoTY Award Ceremony - December 2021
OUR BREWERS (are awesome)
Lehigh Valley Homebrewer Mark Fedorov has shared his candidacy for Lehigh County Commissioner. Please support Mark in his candidacy if you'd like to see a fellow homebrewer in local government!
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
Congratulations to Josh Hellwig, Mel Homik, and John Litak who placed 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, respectively in the September HbotY Sour and Wild ale challenge. Josh brewed a delicious Berliner Weisse with a "cornucopia" of mixed berries to take the first place prize. Good job Josh!
The Peoples Choice competition event will be part of the Weyerbacher Homebrew competition on November 13th, followed by the last event due on at the November meeting (Iron Brewer ingredient: Maple).
Check out the details here. Start planning your next entry!
UPCOMING BJCP COMPETITIONS
Full list is available here.
Stoney Creek
Registration due 10/30/2021
Registration Fee: $8
Monk Melee
Registration due 11/20/2021
Registration Fee: $7
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...
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.