Next meeting: September 20th 7:30 pm
There will be NO August meeting since most of us
will be at Yakimania and the store will be closed!
See you in September!

August 2002 Issue
Buy a Frosted glass Alers mug!
How about an Alers frisbee or a license plate frame?

By Brian (I'd increase the gravity) Thatcher

Club Campout a lot of Fun!

This year's campout was again held at Buck Lake Campground, this year the weekend of July 19th through the 21st. It was my first campout with the club and I can say it was an immensely enjoyable experience. Turnout was good, I'd have to guess somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 to 30 members and their families attended (of course I could be way off).

I showed up with my brother mid-afternoon on Friday. When we arrived, there were only a couple of people at the visitor's site setting up, many others had gone out crabbing that day. We were able to get set up and start on a refreshing beverage about the time someone came down to tell us they were cooking the crab at one of the campsites. We walked up to the campsite where they were cooking the crab and helped to inhale the nearly 50 crabs they had caught in about an hour.

After the crab was finished everyone gathered around the fire pit to enjoy the many beers to be had. Several guitars were brought out and songs were sung to the enjoyment of many. There was plenty of socializing among all who showed up, with the occasional laughter at those who seemed to have overindulged (my brother was good for a few). I think I rolled to my tent sometime around 2 and there were still several people going strong.

On Saturday, a large group once again spent the day out on the boats catching crab. Those of us who remained behind relaxed and recovered from the night before (there were a few who were a little rough that morning). A handful of smokers were cooking away throughout the day. Then it was time to eat. Out of the smokers came a brisket, a roast, a turkey, sausage, and a little later a pork loin. All the other side fixings were there including salads, bread, and pickled asparagus and garlic. Later there were fresh oysters and more crab from Saturday's catch.

Once again, everyone gathered around the fire to relax. The guitars appeared again, at least until the marshmallow war started. The war really escalated when someone started throwing the Peeps. The atmosphere seemed a little more subdued that night, whether people were still feeling the night before or (like me) had to digest the excessive amounts of food consumed.

My brother and I left early on Sunday morning, as we both were brewing beer that day. I believe an enjoyable weekend was had by all. Hope to see everyone next year!

Portland International Beerfest

I had the good fortune to be able to stop in to the Portland International Beerfest again this year. However, I was only able to be there for a few hours Saturday night with a return on Sunday. Saturday was the Seattle to Portland Bicycle Ride, which I participated in. My plan was to try to arrive at the finish where my brother was waiting at around 5:00 in the afternoon. However, I was involved in a crash early on in the ride that caused me to slow down slightly and not reach Portland until almost 6:30. We still made it to the festival about eight o'clock, which ran until 11:00 on Saturday.

My main goal at the festival was to sample the beers that are not going to be served at the Seattle International Beerfest in August (more on that later). There are between 12 and 15 beers that will either not be poured in Seattle or will be substituted with something else (there are about 10 beers that are supposed to be at Seattle that weren't in Portland). Several of the beers that won't be in Seattle are not allowed because the alcohol content exceeds ten percent. I achieved most of my goal (they were out of two beers I wanted to try, both of which I have had before) with a couple of extra samples to round it out.

Of those strong ales, the strongest was Belzebuth from France at 15%. This beer has a golden color, malty flavor with some sugariness; the alcohol is apparent in both the aroma and flavor, but not to the point of unbalancing. I actually thought it was unexpectedly light considering the alcohol. Also being poured were Samichlaus (Christmas beer at 14%), Kasteel Triple and Kasteel Brown (both at 11%). All three of these were on tap. I had the two Kasteel beers last year but revisited to refresh my memory of how much I liked them. Last time I checked, both beers could be had at Belmont Station in Portland. They were already out of the EKU 28 when I got there; luckily I have had it before.

There was a Steinbier from Rauchenfelser being poured, which I thought had a malty, slightly smoky aroma and flavor, with some caramelization evident in the taste (hey Terry, when are you going to actually sit down and set a date for the club to brew a Steinbier?). Caracole Troublette is a Belgian Wit with a nice orangey aroma and flavor perfect for a hot day in the sun. There was a Kasteel Red, an Ur-bock with cherry essence from Austria (not associated with the above Kasteel brewery?). It had a nice cherry aroma, a balance of cherry and malt in the flavor and was somewhat on the sweet side. Hair of the Dog poured a beer called Glen which they said was a strong Belgian golden ale that I thought was overly bitter for the style. There was a Dutch Barley Wine, Karthuizer Ipso Facto that had a nice malty aroma and flavor, but with a substantial bitterness on the palate. The beer that I recommend (it will be poured in Seattle) is Duchess De Bourgogne, a Flanders Red Ale. This beer has a slight tartness and hints of wood in the aroma, a malty sweet/tart flavor with hints of fruit (I thought of fresh berries).

In all there were 144 beers being poured at the festival, with only about a dozen produced in the U.S. A large number of the rest were balanced between Belgium, Great Britain, and Germany, with several from other countries like the Czech Republic, Holland, the Baltic countries, and Austria to name several. This looks like it will remain an annual event for the time being, and I look forward to next year.

Seattle International Beerfest

Yes, those of you who missed the Portland Beerfest this year are still in luck. The same organizer is holding the festival in Seattle also. The festival will be august 23rd through the 25th at the Seattle Center. Those of you who were intrigued by my description of the Portland fest should show up to sample beers. There will be about 135 beers poured at the festival, and all details and beer list are at www.portlandbeerfest.com.

The festival runs from 4 to 10 on Friday, 11 to 10 on Saturday and 12 to 7 on Sunday. The cost is $20, which includes your tasting glass and 10 tickets. Extra tickets are $1 each. The beers will take 1, 2 or 3 tickets (believe me, some of the 3 ticket beers are worth it). The samples are all 4 oz. There is free same day exit/reentry, but next day entry is $5 (bring your glass and wristband for next day entry). On Friday from 6 to close they are having "Shake the Shack", a live broadcast of KEXP 90.3FM's rockabilly show with Dr Leon Berman "The Proctologist of Rock and Roll".

Cask Festival Tickets Now Available

Tickets are now on sale for the Washington Cask Beer Festival on Saturday October 26th. There are two sessions, one from 12 - 4 and the other from 6 - 10. Tickets are $30 and include all samples. There are limited numbers of tickets for each session, so if you want to go, get them early. Information and ticket links are at http://www.washingtonbrewersguild.org/news_events-caskfest.htm.

Oregon Brewer's Festival

This year marked the 15th anniversary for the Oregon Brewer's Festival, held at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland. The festival was July 26 - 28, always the last full weekend in July. The festival features 72 micro brews from around the US, plus a rotating selection of Oregon beers inside the Oregon Brewer's Guild Pavilion.

I was at the festival both Saturday and a couple of hours on Sunday, joined by my brother Peter and hid friend Chris. We also met a couple of other friends later on Saturday afternoon. There have been people in the past who have expressed dislike for the layout of the festival. The serving tables are in the sun (hence the beer), but I am of the opinion that most of the beers are consumed quickly enough that the effect would be minimal. Also, new this year, it now takes 4 tokens for a full glass of beer, rather than the 3 in previous years.

As for the beers, there were several I thought worthy of mention. Rogue's Charlie 1981 Redux, a beer brewed to commemorate Charlie Papazian, had hops dominate the aroma and hops and malt battle it out for domination of the flavor. Stone Brewing was pouring their Double Bastard Ale. If you have ever had Arrogant Bastard, this is a 10% Alcohol beer with a very similar flavor profile. There were 3 IPA's that I really liked for you hopheads, New Old Lompoc's C-Note Imperial Ale, Boundary Bay Skip's Imperial IPA, and Bear Republic Racer 5. There were also two Belgian style ales I thought worthy of mention, Flying Fish Abbey Dubbel and MacTarnahan's Stand-Up Triple.

There were also a couple of beers from the Oregon Brewer's Guild tent to mention. The most impressive was Hair of the Dog serving Doggie Claws from the Wood very smooth malt flavor with some hints of the wood. They were also pouring Wild River's Double Eagle Imperial Stout and BJ's Wit, among the many. It seems that some of the better beers the last couple of years have been in the Brewer's Guild tent.

Puyallup Fair Entries Due August 17

Entries for the Puyallup Fair need to be turned in Saturday August 17 from 10 to 5. Each entry will be charged $3.00. Entries consist of three bottles with an AHA entry form attached to each bottle with a rubber band. An Entry Recipe Form must accompany each entry. Winning beers will be displayed for the run of the fair (September 6 - 22) in the Ag/ Hort Building.

Hefeweizen Judging Next Month

Next month at the meeting we will be judging our homebrewed Hefeweizen. Those of you who have brewed this style don't forget to bring them to the meeting. The tasting off commercial beers at the campout didn't happen as someone forgot to grab them out of the cooler at Larry's. There should be some of them left so if anyone needs a commercial example to calibrate their senses, hopefully they will be able to.

The next style on the calendar is IPA.

Monthly Meeting Schedule

Club Events Calendar

These are this year's club events.
More information and exact dates will be added as they get closer.

Upcoming Events

Portland International Beerfest, July 12 - 14
Holladay Park at Lloyd Center, Portland. http://www.portlandbeerfest.com

Oregon Brewers Festival, Portland, July 26-28
Tom McCall Waterfront Park, Portland. www.oregonbrewfest.com

Great British Beer Festival, August 6-10
Olympia, London. www.gbbf.org

Seattle International Beerfest, August 23 - 25
Mural Amphitheater at Seattle Center. http://www.portlandbeerfest.com

Fremont Oktoberfest, September 20-22
Under the bridge in Fremont, www.washingtonbrewfest.com

Great American Beer Festival, October 3-5
Colorado Convention Center, Denver, CO. www.beertown.org

Washington Cask Festival, October 26
Alki Room, Seattle Center. Two sessions, 12 – 4 and 6 to 10.
www.washingtonbrewfest.com

Great Canadian Beer Festival, November 22nd and 23rd
Victoria Conference Centre, Canada
http://www.gcbf.com