These are the people that will be organising events for you. If you have any suggestions, please contact any of the comity members.

In this issue are articles about high alcohol beverages - Barley Wine and Mead. Both Barley Wine and Mead will be discussed at the meeting and recipes have been included to set you on your way to brewing a Millennium Ale or a Mead. Both these styles of "beer" have been included now because they require long conditioning and maturation times - in some quarters it is considered that we have already missed the boat for a Y2K brew.

The reportback on the visit to Mitchell's is a fascinating read and we hope will inspire more brewers to join us on the visits. I have had a little feedback on the Bosun knock off's that have been brewed since, and the differences are quite marked. We have another competition for the next meeting, so start preparing your stouts and porters also featured in this issue.

I have included items from various sources which may be of interest to you all. The article on a boozing snake ended happily but would have been a certain death sentence to the poor creature if a concerned citizen had not taken action. Please dispose of all your rubbish responsibly at all times.

If you would like to make a comment or add to the newsletter please drop me a line.

Thanks to Ant for his contribution on beer culture, Danie for the History of Mead and Jeremy for the numerous e-mails about beer trivia. Danie was also responsible for defining the brewer grading system.

Enjoy your brewing.

Cheers

Donald Coward

Next meetings: 2 June, 4 August, 6 October, 1 December

To join the Worthog brewers please contact Ant Heys. Membership entitles you to access the club library, tours, as well as easy access to advice information on equipment and techniques which will enable you to improve your beer. Currently membership is R 50.00 per year.

To receive regular e-mail updates from "I love fermenting" register by sending an e-mail to konkoksie@hotmail.com.

1. Bavaria Brau - 23 April (Details in the next issue)

2. SAB Rosslyn - 23 June at 13.00 at the brewery.

3. The big tour

Eight members congregated out side the brewery in St George's street Opherton at three on Friday afternoon. We stormed the brewery and stalled in the brew house where Andy explained the workings of the brew house.

The brewery has had a short but interesting history. The brewery was started around 1990 as Our Brewery. Early in 1994 the brewery was taken over by Mitchell's of Knysna, and became Mitchell's Egoli Brewery. Later that year all the brewing equipment was replaced when Mitchell's bought out an operation in Nelspruit and brought all the equipment up to Opherton. The original equipment was sold in Zambia. The brewery was renamed in 1995 as Mitchell's Gauteng Brewery.

Three beers are brewed at the brewery: Bosuns, Foresters and Raven stout.

400 kg of pale malt is mashed in with 35 kg of crystal malt for Bosuns and 3 kg for Foresters. A 90 minute single step infusion mash is used. After conversion has been checked with iodine the wort is drained until the flow almost stops. At this point the sparge water is turned on and is sprayed evenly around the mash tun by a rotating sparge arm. The runnings are collected in a grant before being pumped to the boiler.

The brew length is 30 hecto litters (3000 l). The boiler reduces the volume by 8% to 10% in an hour and a half. The wort is now pumped to the whirlpool to settle the hot break, before being pumped through the plate chillier to the fermentation cellars. Andy has developed the system rather nicely to conserve energy by collecting the heated waste water from the chiller in the boiler. The boiler insulation keeps the water hot until the next brew session. The primary fermentation is at 17 deg C and the beer is conditioned in the cold room which is kept at 12 deg C to 14 deg C before being packaged. The beer is packaged in 50 litre and 30 litre kegs as well as 1,5 litre PET bottles. Development work is now being done on 340 ml glass bottles. Mitchell's has been a casualty of the SAB and Kenya Brewery battle over the use of an Elephant as a logo on a brand of beer. Kenya breweries wants to market its Tusker Beer in SA but is unable to as SAB has the rights to use an elephant on the logo. The new Foresters label now has a legless Elephant - Potent Beer or what?

We were very fortunate to pick up the last of a batch of "darker" Bosuns. A delivery of crystal malt from England was delayed for some reason which resulted in the brewery running out of crystal malt. Andy bought some from SAB Chamdore (who says big brother never helps out). It was of a darker grade than that which he usually uses. No allowance was made for the darker malt which resulted in a darker, richer more malty beer. I took 8 bottles and all the other guys also took more than just a couple.

We were also able to persuade Andy to divulge the recipes for Bosuns and Foresters as well as to part with a little yeast. The results will be available at the meeting of the 14 April for all to determine if we managed to meet the standard.

Brewed as a winter warmer, these beers are an extension of the Strong ale category. In Europe and the United States where Christmas falls in winter most Christmas Ales fall in to this category.

In the days of knights and fair maidens in distress, when each village had its own brew house the brewers lacked the techniques, technology and equipment that we have today. Most brewers practised the parti-gyle system of brewing, where by the first runnings were boiled separately from the latter runnings to produce a richer wort with a high starting gravity, from which a strong beer is produced. Small beer was produced from the latter runnings.

The first use of the term barley Wine can be traced back to the Burton Brewery of Bass, Ratccliff and Gretton's No 1. which was first called a Barley Wine in 1903. Other breweries soon followed the example and also called their strong ales Barley Wines.

Tax systems around the world changed and began to charge higher taxes on stronger beers making the production costs of Barley wines prohibitive and by the end of the 60's Barley Wines were all but extinct. In South Africa there are no barley wines that are curently being produced. However, the home and micro brewery revolution in the U.S.A. and the formation of CAMRA in the UK created a resurgence of the Biggest of beers.

To brew a barley wine will require some changes to the procedures required to brew a standard ale. Barley Wines feature a strong malt character, which is created by using lots of malt, up to four times more grist per litre than for a standard brew. Use speciality malts sparingly particularly dark malts as plenty of melanodins are produced during the long boil.

Avoid making the mash bed to deep - brew a smaller batch or mash twice into one brew. Use a single infusion mash at a low mash temperature of between 64 deg C and 66 deg C. Mashing at higher temperatures will result in a wort with to many unfermentable sugars. Use "Mowie,s Magic Mashing Method Made Much Easier" to mash in the grain to a thick mash with plenty of trapped air to keep the mash bed afloat (See Draymans Brewery hand out from the brew day demonstration last year).

Sparging must be done carefully and slowly to prevent the mash sticking. Re-circulate the first runnings until the runoff is clear or until no big particles are being passed through. Measure the gravity during the sparge and stop when the gravity reaches 1.040 to 1.050.

Boiling is a long process of two or more hours, which concentrates the wort, creates melanodins and causes caramalization to occur. It also drives of undesirables compounds. Keep the addition of malt extract to below 40% and kettle sugars to a maximum of 15%.

There are no fixed hopping rulles for barley wines. However, remember that the high gravity reduces the hop utilization and the malty sweetness must be balanced by the bitterness from the hops. Keep in mind though that Barley Wines are aged and the hop compounds mellow as the beer matures but they also contain the compounds that are first to breakdown and contribute to the deterioration of the beer after the optimum age has been achieved

The yeast must be a good strong variety which is tolerant to alcohol levels of up to 10%. A large yeast starter is essential 23 million cells per millilitre of wort. Before pitching the yeast the wort must be aerated.

Once the yeast has got hold of the wort the fermentation can become very frenetic and cause the temperature to sore. Keep the fermentation temperature to around 20 deg C, other wise the beer will develop some rather strange flavours.

Once the fermentation has subsided keep the beer on the yeast for 1 to 3 weeks at 20 deg C, then transfer to a secondary fermenter and condition for 3 months at 1 to 3 deg C, and bottle. For the impatient the beer will be drinkable in 3 months but the true flavours will be developed in 1 to 3 years. The higher the alcohol content and the lower the hop rate the better the beer will age.

(Brewing Techniques September/October 1998)

Colour Pale straw to deep copper not as dark or black as a stout.

Flavour A malty sweetness that is balanced by strong alcohol and high hop bitterness.

Bitterness should be high to counter the malty sweetness, generally over 50 IBU's.

Mouth feel full bodied with strong malty sweetness and good hop after taste.

Original Gravity 1.065 to 1.120+

Final Gravity 1.024 to 1.032

History of Mead by Danie Deviliers

Mead is an alcoholic beverage made by the fermentation of honey and water . Sometimes fruit and spices are added as flavourings it is then known by different names, melomel and metheglin. It is typically clear with a slight gold tint, with an alcohol content of between 8-18%. By varying the proportions of honey and water and the point at which fermentation is stopped, a wide variety of types can be produced ranging from a very dry and light, to sweet and heavy-bodied. If fermentation is left to continue while bottled sparkling mead resembling a sparkling white wine is produced. Until the late middle ages both mead's and sparkling mead's were very popular beverages, especially in northern regions of Europe, where wine grapes could not easily be grown. It was produced by organised industry during the 15th-century controlled as with other trades by guilds. The largest guild of brewers in London during the time was the Guild of Free Brewers. Who at the time controlled all aspects of brewing both wine, mead and ales. Not only did they control the manufacture of these products but the distribution and laws governing the measurement when dispensed. The guilds controlled all aspects of the trade and production of ale, mead and only toward the end of the 16th-century wines. As the importance of honey was displaced by less expensive sugars in the late Middle Ages, mead was gradually displaced by less costly beers and ales and to a lesser degree by imported wines. Mead then became a drink of the socially lower classes. Nonetheless, it was always considered for medicinal value and was prescribed even to royalty.

The story of stout goes back to the age of brown ales. When in London breweries began to mix old sour ale with new. To create a slightly sour refreshing drink for the porters of London's markets, hens the name porter after the working people that drank it. The beer developed into a stronger darker beer and became known as a Stout Porter. As time passed by the Porter was dropped (on his head) and we now have a beer style called Stout.

Porter became so popular in London that the breweries had to build larger and larger fermentation vats to keep up with the demand. The vats became so large that the opening ceremonies were grand affairs held in the vats them selves. Unfortunately the great flood of 1814 that resulted from a vat of Richard Meuux's Brewery bursting demolished a row of terraced cottages killing eight people.

The two beer styles are distinctly separate and have their own style guidelines.

Grading Kit Brewer

Description This brewer is able to brew a "Good" beer from using ingredients, which is in a kit form.

Application Bring one of your beers to a meeting. Fill in the grading application form. Inform the Chief-grader of your intention.

Requirement The Wort-Hog Committee will judge your beer and the minimum requirement is an average score of more than 21 points.

Grading Extract Brewer

Description This brewer is able to brew a "Good" beer from using malt extract, partial mashing and hops. This brewer can put together his own recipe.

Application Bring one of your beers to a meeting. Fill in the grading application form. Inform the Chief-grader of your intention.

Requirement The Wort-Hog Committee will judge your beer and the minimum requirement is an average score of more than 26 points.

Grading Grain Brewer

Description This brewer is able to brew a "Very Good" beer from using grains (Full Mash). This brewer has a good understanding of the brew process.

Application Bring two of your beers to the meetings. Fill in the grading application form. Inform the Chief-grader of your intention.

Requirement The Wort-Hog Committee will judge your beer and you will need to explain your brewing process. The minimum requirement is an average score of more than 30 points.

Grading Home Brew-Master

Description This brewer is able to brew a "Very Good" interpretation of different styles of beer. This brewer has a good knowledge of the different beer styles.

Application Brew three different styles of beer. One beer should be an ale, one beer should be a lager and the third beer should fall into any other style. Fill in the grading application form. Inform the Chief-grader of your intention.

Requirement The Wort-Hog Committee will judge your beer and you will need to explain how you brewed this particular style. The minimum requirement is an average score of more than 33 points for each beer.

Summary of equipment likely required at the various levels:

Rabbinical tradition says that Hebrews were free from leprosy during their captivity in Babylon because they drank "siceram veprium id est, ex lupulis confectam," that is, sicera made with hops, which I think could be none other than bitter beer. Thankfully, leprosy isn't an issue any more, but a pint or two this weekend certainly couldn't hurt! Cheers, Pete's.

Pete's Brewing Company

It was reported in Engineering News that Yeastpro is expanding and modernising its production facilities. Yeastpro a joint manufacturing company operated and managed by anchor yeast is installing 4 new stainless steel tanks larger than 100 m3 to replace 6 smaller tanks. The need for the modernisation has come about as a result of the decreasing sugar content of molasses as sugar mills improve the sugar extraction process, increased competition and large bakeries - the largest consumer of yeast in SA, decentralising to become more accessible to their customers.

Perhaps we as home brewers can convince the local yeast manufacturers that we as a niche market can boost their bottom line.

Our (brewingtechniques) Homebrew Clubs Page at http://brewingtechniques.com/brewclub.html

Is a listing of homebrew clubs nation-wide with contact information and links to their home pages. These free listings are one of the perks of our Homebrew Club Partnership program. Your club gets a free subscription, and your members get a reduced rate on their subscriptions. We contribute subscriptions and merchandise as prizes to your club's competitions. All you have to do is pass out our subscription cards at meetings and run a little ad for BrewingTechniques in your club's newsletter. It's a great way to increase the value of your club memberships at no cost to you.

By Ant Hayes

There is something about drinking a porter with roast beef. Stout complements a pie, and bitter goes perfectly with fish and chips. Certainly there are wines that can do in a pinch, but part of the reason that we brew beer is that we like to drink the stuff. How often have you sat at a restaurant which offers you every meal that your heart could desire, has a wine list representing most of the Cape, and yet consider their beer list to be more than sufficient if it includes one or two imported lagers? The typical response of a waitron asked for a non lager beer is to suggest "Hansa".

So what are we to do when we feel like dark ale? Drinking your fill prior to going to the restaurant tends to irritate those accompanying you. In the past I have made do with a half-and-half if Guinness is available, or else have given up and drunk something else.

In the Cape it is considered quite normal to be fairly picky about the wine that one drinks. It is perfectly acceptable for someone to phone a restaurant prior to visiting in order to pre-inspect the wine list. If it is established that they do not have the particular wine that you are after, most restaurants are very happy for you to bring your own, if subject to a moderate corkage. After all they are in the food business, not wine sales

I do not see any reason why beer should be treated differently. After all, we tend to take our beer as seriously as wine connoisseurs do wine. I have tried this strategy on a couple of occasions, to mixed results. I phone the restaurant up and enquire whether they serve the particular beer that I enjoy, and if not what the "crownage" is. After I have explained the term, some tell me to get lost, but then better I know their attitude before visiting them. At the other extreme, a restaurant that I frequent fairly regularly now has Castle Stout on the menu.

It important for beer consumers to raise awareness amongst restaurateurs that there is a myriad of beer styles, and plenty of people who like them.

A reuters report has illustrated the natural goodness of beer. The report is of a King brown snake in Alice Springs Australia that had its head stuck in beer can. The chap that found it thought it has a substance abuse problem but called in the assistance of the local Parks and wildlife rangers. Capturing the snake was easy but removing the can from its head was a tad difficult. No one likes their head messed with when you have a hang over. A message here is not throw cans, beer or other wise senselessly into the environment. Not only are they unsightly bur are also a potential death trap to the all forms of life.

1. Which is the only popular SAB brand of beer which has beer on the label ?

2. What did Shakespeare's father do for a living ?

3. At what temperature is Alpha Amalaise most active ?

A gram scale is necessary for accurately dispensing mineral salts or hops. To use a balance scale, suspend a small cup with coins in on the one side, and add your hops in to a cup on the other side until the loads level.

For example if you need 12g of Hops, use a R5 coin and a 50c coin.

Big Brew Day

I am writing to you per Charlie Papazian's request.

On Saturday, May 1, 1999, homebrewers everywhere will gather at homes, homebrew supply shops, brewpubs, breweries and in other public areas and simply brew a batch of beer together in an event called, Big Brew '99. We started Big Brew last year as a celebration of National

Homebrew Day, but we would like to turn it into more of an international homebrewing event. For this reason, I am writing to you now.

As you will see, the only "rule" to participate is to brew on National Homebrew Day. Because of the time differences, we will let any international participating site translate that one "rule" to whatever works best for them. In other words, you can brew anytime on Saturday, May 1st, your local time or you can brew anytime while Saturday, May 1st is happening here in the United States.

The bottom-line is that we would love to have your participation. There is no fee and all brewers are welcome. Please feel free to extend this invitation to anyone.

Thanks for your time.

"Big Brew '99

E Pluribus (Br)Unum! - {From Many, One (Brew)!}"

Part I - How To Enter This Competition

1. What kinds of bottles are required?

Any glass bottles between 375 and 750 ml, brown or green glass, and be free of raised-glass or inked brand-name lettering and paper labels. Bottles with Grolsch-type swing tops are not allowed. Bottles not meeting these requirements will be disqualified.

2. How many bottles do I need?

In total about 4 Litres of beer.

3. What are the entry fees?

Wort Hog Members R5 per entry.

Non Members R10 per entry.

4. When are the entry deadlines?

E-mail or phone Danie de Villiers at ddevilliers@hotmail.com / 012 8037290 before 20 July 1999 to confirm your entry. Bring the beers to the meeting on 4 August 1999. No entries will be accepted on the day of the meeting.

5. How do I enter?

(a) For each entry, fill out an entry form (Available from the Judge or the Editor.) in its entirety. For complete instructions on filling out the entry form, see Part II. Judges do not see your entry form. For more than one entry, please make copies of the entry form.

(b) Entry fees must be paid before judging.

6. Which category do I enter?

There is really only one category. Brew a beer, which will impress the judges.

Any method of brewing kit, partial or full mash. However fullmash is likely to be the only method to come close to the original.

7. Are there entry limitations?

(a) You may not submit more than two entries.

(b) Your homebrew must not have been brewed at any place that brews beverages for any commercial purpose, whether for commercial research, production or any other purpose, including brew-on-premise establishments.

(b) You must give the names of all brewers who helped in the brewing.

Part Ii - Instructions For Completing The Entry/Recipe Form

Entry Form Section A: Brewers Information

Please print clearly.

In Item 1 fill in the name of the brewer who is responsible for receiving results.

In Item 2 fill in the full names of all other brewers who participated in brewing the entry.

Part Iii - The Fine Print

A. General

This Competition is open to all homebrewers.

It is the sole responsibility of the entrant to complete all registration and recipe forms and enclose the proper entry fees.

B. Awards and Prices

Awards and prices will depend on the number of entries received.

At the discretion of Competition organisers and/or judges, awards may not be given if the quality of an entry is not deemed deserving of an award.

C. Judges

For this competition the Wort Hog committee will be the judges. Chief Judge: Anthony Hayes. Competition organiser: Danie de Villiers

D. Wort Hog Membership

Non-members can join at the meeting, cost R50.

F. Recipe Requirement

You must submit a recipe. Upon entering this Competition, entrants agree to allow (at

no cost) publication of their recipe by the Wort Hog Brewers. Entrant will receive all due credit.

H. Disqualification's

At the discretion of the judges and competition organisers, entries will be disqualified for eligibility or entry requirement infractions. These entries may still be judged, but will be ineligible for awards or prizes.

I. Results

All entrants will receive a score sheet with judges' comments for his/her entries.

Entry Form

Please read the instructions in PART II of the rules and regulations

Section A: Brewer Information

1. Name __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Additional Brewer(s) ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Address ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. City ______________________________________ Province ________________________ Postal Code ________________________________________________

5. Phone (H) (_______)_______________

(W) (________) _______________________

6. E-mail __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7. Are you a member of the Wort Hog Brewers? _____________________________________________________________________

10. Entry Fees Enclosed. WHB members pay R5 per entry: __________ no. of entries x R5 = R____________ total

Non-members pay R10 per entry:__________ no. of entries x R10 = R____________ total

Section B: Entry Information

12. Name of the beer (optional) __________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13. Style __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

14. SPECIAL INGREDIENTS:

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

BEER RECIPE

Please give a detail recipe and a full explanation of how you had brewed this beer.

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