Cold-weather brewing beckons

By Darryl Barbour, President

We've made it to May, and with winter just around the corner, remember that filling your hot liquor tun the night before the brew risks that layer of ice and a stark reminder how much warmer it is in bed … But we are brewers, we're tougher than that, and the cold weather makes for great stout and bock weather. Oh, that and easy lagering.

I trust that everyone heading off on the Sydney trip in just over a weeks time will have an absolute blast. Two great breweries and, I expect, even more great beers. For those of you sticking around, i'm scheduling a Presidential Brew Day for Saturday 15 May (Ed: now Saturday 22 May, with details to come in the forum).

So, with that in mind, I'm looking for anyone who has been thinking of giving all-grain brewing a shot, but hasn't collected the necessary gear yet. I'll supply the grain and the equipment, and if all goes well, there will be two batches of beer — one for you and one that I will (hopefully) bring to the next club meeting. You get to pick the recipe (with a few limits). If you are keen, drop me an email (Ed: or a comment below) or get in touch at the May club meeting.

Also, the latest Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) class finishes its last session this month! Ben, Chris, David, David, Gerard, Michael and Paul have somehow survived the ten tasting sessions (it's a tough gig) and hopefully educated their palates and improved their knowledge of the wide range of beers available. Sunday 30 May is the scheduled "Big Belgian Bash" where the remaining strong Belgian beers get sampled.

At the club meeting we'll have oxygenation equipment, club shirts and a great raffle on offer, not to mention (well, actually it seems I am now) more chances to earn your entries on the Nookie Raffle which now has the Presidential seal of approval. We'll see you there.