Bloatarian Open winners have posted. Congrats to all of our winners. BTW, if you won a medal, we will have them at the June meeting along with certificates and scoresheets. If you can’t be there to get them then, we will mail.

Remember we will be holding the Bloatarian Open at the Norwood Community Center on Saturday, which means NO CLUB MEETING ON FRIDAY.

BBL May Meeting – The Bloatarian Open May 19th
2012 Dues are Due!
May Board Meeting Minutes
Club Elections
Looking for Volunteers for Library Presentations
Memorial Weekend Bloat Events
BBL Membership Cards
Ohio Homebrew Bill Letter Writing Campaign
Google Group for Future Club Mailings

This newsletter was prepared under the influence of Rivertown Helles Lager and Negra Modelo.

Have you recently toured a brewery, been to a new favorite beer bar, or have some other beer related news you’d like to share with the club?  Let us know and we’ll include it in the newsletter.

When: Sunday, May 27;  3 p.m. till whenever the neighbors decide they are glad we are moving

Why: The Beckers are moving to San Antonio! Jenny got a new job as Executive Director of Corporate Communications for USAA.  (Ask them all about USAA).  Brian decided it was time for him to discover a new beer scene.  The kids are just along for the ride.  Although they do prefer tex mex food and warmer weather.

What can you bring: Food and homebrew to share.  Grilled meat will be provided.  We will be trying to deplete our stash of beer and wine and we do need your help.  The movers won’t move alcohol and we don’t have THAT much space in two cars.

What to not bring: No parting gifts, please.  Anything you give us, we have to move.  All we want is your presence and your ability to put away beer.

Help us celebrate, in our hearts we will always be Bloatarians!

More info can be found HERE

The Bloatarian Open is a BJCP/AHA sanctioned Club-Only Competition. You must be a paid-in-full BBL member to enter a beer into the competition.  Not yet a member? First Year Members can enter an unlimited number of entries in the competition FREE with your paid 2012 membership. Already a member? Register an unlimited number of entries for only $10.

This year’s competition will take place on Saturday, May 19th at the Norwood Community Center

MUST finalize your entries online by Friday, May 11th at 5pm. Most members HAND CARRY their entries to the competition on Saturday morning, however, if you will be unable to attend the event, please drop off your entries any any of the THREE drop off locations — Paradise Brewing in Anderson TWP,  Listermann’s in Evanston or TableTop in Cheviot — by Noon on Thursday, May 17th.

We will also be doing a communal brew, BIG BREW Bucksnort American Brown Ale, using Rivertown’s Pro Equipment. REMEMBER: NO GLASS FERMENTERS WILL BE PERMITTED INSIDE THE BREWERY, SO PLEASE BRING A BETTER BOTTLE, FERMENTATION BUCKET, KEG – WHATEVER TO COLLECT YOUR WORT! Please contact Chris Nascimento at cmnase@yahoo.com if you are coming out, or reserving wort at $12/5gal so we can have a head count for how much food we need.

There will be a toast at 1pm, as well as plenty to see and explore. Owners/Founders/Brewers Jason Roeper & Randy Schlitz got their start in homebrewing and have never forgotten their roots. They have been extremely supportive of the homebrew community as a whole. Don’t miss out on the fun!

We will brew rain or shine! If anyone has a pop up shelter please bring along (I have four lined up already.) Also if you have camping chairs bring them along. We have plenty of electric and water hookups. Wheel barrows will be provide to dump grains/hops into.  We will have roast beef sandwiches, soup, hot dogs, hamburgers around lunch time- ish? Weather permitting: cornhole, bon fire and the neighbors have given permission for a few tents. Naked slip-n-slide TBA??? ~

I plan on starting about 6 AM so come early if you dare! Parking will be mostly on the road. Please DON’T park in the grass of my neighbors. Please DO bring homebrew to share and a dish to pass.

If any new brewers are wanting to see all grain brewing this is a wonderful opportunity to learn along with checking out the systems and gadgets of others ( just don’t watch Zeller! )

Any thoughts or suggestions will be helpful. Thank you and hope to see everyone on April 28^th.

Cheers,
Dick and Debbie

[UPDATE: We had 4 brewers on Saturday and lots of drinkers who braved the elements and made 35 gallons homebrew: Porter, Pale, Scottish and Belgian Session Ales! Thanks to our hosts and everyone who joined the fun. Ja-EEEP]

An extra note about the meeting on Friday.  We are working together an order for some Bloatware.  There are several different styles of shirts to choose from.  We will have order forms at the club meeting.  Please bring a checkbook ready for placing your order.

BBL April Meeting – ALL ABOUT HOPS! Friday, April 20th
2012 Dues are Due!
April Board Meeting Minutes
Club Elections
BBL Membership Cards
Ohio Homebrew Bill Letter Writing Campaign
Google Group for Future Club Mailings

This newsletter was prepared under the influence of Samuel Adams Winter Lager.

Have you recently toured a brewery, been to a new favorite beer bar, or have some other beer related news you’d like to share with the club?  Let us know and we’ll include it in the newsletter.

Join us in April for a hoppin’ good time as we will discuss this much loved and vital ingredient of the beer making process. Everything you wanted to know about hops is on the table for discussion. We’ll talk about the different ways and reasons to use your hops during the brew day along with the characteristics and expectations from the different varieties, provide technical info on utilization and how to calculate IBU’s and HBU’s. We’ll also discuss hop bursting and dry-hopping techniques that homebrewers use as well as tips on growing and using your own!

Word around the wort chiller is that a few club members will also have hop rhizomes available!  Varieties include Nugget, Cascade and Glacier – all known to grow well in our area.

Bring along your hoppy beers, hop experiments, single-hopped, double-dry-hopped (but no ‘triple-hopped lite beers’ please!) or any other creatively hopped homebrews.

BBL March Meeting – March Beer Madness! Friday, March 9th
2012 Dues are Due!
January Board Meeting Minutes
March Board Meeting Minutes
BBL Membership Cards
Ohio Homebrew Bill Letter Writing Campaign
Google Group for Future Club Mailings

This newsletter was prepared under the influence of Samuel Adams Winter Lager.

Have you recently toured a brewery, been to a new favorite beer bar, or have some other beer related news you’d like to share with the club?  Let us know and we’ll include it in the newsletter.