Next meeting: FRIDAY Decembeer 14th, 7:00 pm

Cider tasting and nomination and election of new club officers.

Decembeer 2001 Issue
Buy your new Alers t-shirt and a 2001 Oktobeerfest Stein!
Hurry - the steins are only available until Decembeer 31st!!!

By Kevin Fawcett
(with contributions from artbeatshows, Jeannie McWilliams, and Nancy Fawcett)
 

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! and good brewing to all!
 

At our last meeting we tasted some mighty good ciders, some apple jack (it just keeps getting better, Larry!) and held elections for out new club officers. They are Duane Roush, supreme commander, Bill Shockley, vice commander, Brian Thatcher, lowly scribe, Heidi Elston, pillager and Nancy Johnson, Webmistress.

I don't know how things are going around your brewery but mine is jumping with a few new brews and more being brewed weekly! This weeks project is the racking of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Red-plum wine, Golden-plum wine (very dry, soon to become champagne) and a batch of mead. The latest lager is a semi-clone recipe of Jubal Ale made instead with lager yeast. This one is just about ready to keg. I have included the recipe a bit later on in this publication. Also coming up is a nearly standard pale ale recipe, although I was all out of crystal malt so I substituted 2 lbs each of Belgian aromatic, honey malt, wheat malt and brown malt. The results are already tasting excellent! Superbowl beer should be brewed NOW, especially if you intend to lager it before the game! I don't know if you heard, but Randy Abner and I have combined forces for Superbowl. This years party will be at Randy's house (address to be announced next month) and we expect you to bring your homebrew!!

Ho, Ho, Ho!!

The Impaling Alers Christmas Party is swiftly approaching and Santa knows who's been naughty or nice! I can think of a few girls who have been both (at the same time) recently!! Remember girls, nice and naughty tends to result in jewelry!!

This year it will be held THIS COMING Friday, the 14th. Don't forget to bring along your favorite dish or appetizer, and something homebrewed to add to the adult gift exchange. Our own "Father Christmas" will be there with stuff for the kiddies (if you happen to have any). Reindeer must be parked in the parking lot with all other vehicles and you must scoop your own poop. Securing the reins to the gas meter is acceptable.

Be sure to lock the sleigh, Santa has spotted a few low-lifes cruising the parking lot of late and don't forget to think snow.

The 8th annual Winter Microbrew Brewfest is coming!! This year it will be held in two locations, one in Everett, and one in Issaquah. The Everett fest will be a one day affair while the Issaquah fest will be two weeks later and last two days. Following is the press release:

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, December 12 is Brewers Night at the RoseHill featuring Fish Brewing. Kerry said they promised to bring something special. As usual, festivities begin at 7:00 and there will be the usual giveaways.

Thursday, December 13, the Celtic Bayou (www.farwestirelandbrewing.com) will be releasing their Winter Brew with a special party. It will be held in the beer garden (so dress warm). Besides the beer, there will be light appetizers and warm spiced wine also available. It begins at 7:00 pm.

In the grand scheme of things, some events live longer, shine brighter and linger in the memory above all others. To me, such an event is the Great Canadian Beer Festival.

Set in the most beautiful city on the North American continent, attended by what is likely the friendliest crowd anywhere and providing its attendees with some of the tastiest beers, the GCBF is a favorite among many of us Northwesterners.

The site of the ninth annual fest, the Victoria Conference Center, is located smack in the center of downtown Victoria. Victoria, British Columbia, is located on the Southwestern tip of Vancouver Island, a 90-minute ferry ride from nearby Vancouver. Just getting there on the boat is a pleasure in itself, with a winding, lazy trip through the inner passage of the gulf islands.

Connected to the Empress Hotel (an historic Victoria landmark), the center is the perfect place for a beer fest. It is surrounded by plenty of shops, restaurants, pubs and other attractions all within walking distance of each other and the inner harbor. It is usually not difficult to find a room for the weekend within walking distance of the fest.

Warm, friendly and seemingly very knowledgeable about beer, the crowd is like no other. This CAMRA-sponsored event (that's Campaign for Real Ale, for those who have been in the dark lately) has a lot of breweries pouring cask-conditioned ale and seems to attract a surprisingly large number of homebrewers. We always seem to strike up an interesting conversation with several of these folks.

But what about the beers?!! Yes, the BEERS!!

Tree Brewing Co. was purchased by Big Rock last year. When I heard this news, I was a bit concerned. Often the qualities we enjoy most about a particular beer or brewery are lost when the operation changes hands. Such is not the case this time. Tree still produces some of my favorite Canadian beers. Hophead IPA was back this year as a cask-conditioned ale. I voted this one the best of the fest in 2000. It stands in a tie with several others for that distinction in 2001.

Another consistent beer that never fails to please is Sailor Hagar "Thor's Hammer", a barleywine. They also had a nice smoked porter served on nitro. The first day of the fest I enjoyed a few more than my fair share of Thor's Hammers. The results were obvious to anyone who happened to run into me that evening.

Avalon Brewpub was pouring a nice brew simply called "Belgian Ale" on the second day. This was a nice Trappist style ale with plenty of flavor and very slight phenolic character. I felt this and Thor's Hammer were both right up there with Hophead as the best beers of the fest.

Steamworks had a few very nice Belgian styles that were also in the running; Frambozen (a ruby red, aromatic fruit beer made with fresh raspberries) and also a very nice brew made with sour cherries, somewhat along the lines of a Kriek, but more North American style. I forgot to record the name of this brew, and it wasn't listed in the GCBF catalog. Suffice to say it was wonderful!!

Merridale had a mouth-puckering dry cider called Somerset that I loved. Also pouring were their House Cider and Summer Berry Cider, a concoction made with the unfermented juices of raspberries, black currants and cherries. All were delicious.

Present from the United States were Anacortes, Fish, Elysian, Boundary Bay and Alaskan. All had great beers to pour. Of note were the Strong Ale and Winterfish from Fish, Anacortes Pilsner (verging on Bohemian style, very crisp but also quite hoppy), Elysian Bi-frost and also their stout, the Winter Ale from Boundary Bay and Alaskan Smoked Porter.

Spinnakers surprised the heck out of me with a Maple Scotch Ale, a cask ale made with Canadian maple syrup providing smoky peat and malty flavors. This was really good. A very distinctive beer unlike any other Scotch ale I have tasted.

Pender Island Porter from Gulf Islands Brewing was very good! Crannog had a mead that was quite powerful and deserving of more than one glass (it was one of the first items at the fest to disappear, along with many a festival-goers sobriety, if that is any indication of its popularity). Nelson Brewing scored good with me on their Paddywhack IPA, another hophead's delight!

Unibroue was there again with many of their signature beers. I was somewhat disappointed that they did not serve their Quelque Chose, a brew they served last year warmed in a crock and ladled out into cups. Cherries are steeped for months in this beer to give it a sensational, summer sweet flavor. Maybe they will serve it again next year (we can only hope so).

Most of us Alers made it over to the brewer's dinner at Spinnaker's the first evening and it was quite good (what I remember of it, that was the night I was "Thor's Hammered"). The second evening we all met at the Sticky Wicket and had a rollicking good time! With 34 fine breweries to choose from and plenty of good conversation to go with all the brews, it's tough not to have a good time at the Great Canadian Beer Fest. Hope to see more of you there next year... I know I'll be there again.

Who Says Rednecks Aren't Real Bright??

"Hello, this is the FBI, can I help you?"

"Yep. I'm a-callin' to report about my neighbor, Billy-Bob Smith. He's a-hidin' marijuana inside his firewood."

"Thank you very much for the call, sir."

The next day, after retrieving the address, FBI agents descended on Billy Bob`s house and searched the shed where the firewood was kept. Using axes they broke open every piece of wood, but found nothing. They were swearing at Billy-Bob as they left.

As they were disappearing around the bend Billy-Bob's phone rang.

"Hey ol' buddy, did the FBI come?"

"Yep!"

"Did they chop your firewood?"

"Yep!"

"Happy Birthday, ol' buddy!"

Rockfish Grill, Anacortes Brewery Celebrate 1st Year

The Rockfish Grill and Anacortes Brewery celebrate their first year anniversary on Wednesday, December 19th.

Morning DJ team, Rockfish and Cash from Bellingham radio station KISM will be on hand at 6:00 PM to help celebrate with contests, prizes and an opportunity to win a new Pacific Vista Wood Stove provided by Orca Spas of Anacortes.

The popular radio DJ team will be celebrating their first year at KISM the same day and were on hand last year to host the official Grand Opening of the restaurant and brewery.

Also on hand for the event will be John "the balloon man" Hogan, Anacortes' own Father Christmas and live music with Breadline Blues featuring World Harmonica Champion, Jim McLaughlin.

For More Info Contact:
Rick Star - (425) 681-5644

A Christmas Ale with a Lager Twist!

Jubal ale clone, renamed "Jubalager"
This one is a variation on a Jubal Ale clone recipe from Larry's. It came out along the lines of a Dortmunder, but with (as usual) the hops way over the top!

For ten gallons-

22 lbs Gambrinus pale
2 lbs honey malt
1 ½ lbs crystal 40
1 lb flaked wheat

Infusion mash, stabilize temp @ 152F. Hold 90 minutes.

Recirculate first runnings until clear, then sparge 50 minutes using 173F liquor
Steep ½ oz Columbus and ½ oz Cascade in first runnings in brewpot.

½ Columbus, ½ Cascade, 60 minutes
5 oz Cascade, 10 minutes

Wyeast 2206 (Bavarian Lager) yeast

Primary ferment two weeks at 40 F, add 2 lbs honey and secondary for two weeks at 35 to 40F

Original gravity, 1050. Finished gravity, 1.008

Keg or bottle and drink mass quantities!

---

That's it for me and I am outa here.
I hope y'all enjoyed what I've had to say over the past two years!
Have fun!
 

---

Hey Alers! Kick off Oktobeerfest 2001 with a special Limited Edition Aler's stein! These one-of-a-kind steins will only be available until Decembeer 31st, so be sure to place your order today! Features: - 22oz Capacity - White with Gold Trim - Wide base - Size: 6.3/4" x 2 ½" - Dishwasher and Microwave Safe Visit http://www.cafepress.com/alers today!

---