April 2008

Hi All,
This month's club meeting will take place at the Moums' on Saturday, April 19, starting at 2PM. Alan hopes to have at least one beer related demonstration prepared. Actually, in addition to some other demo we'll probably do the glassware aroma test once again to help re-inspire our eternally delayed glassware purchase.

Depending on winds and tides we should have some oysters available and we'll probably have some of Vic's beer and cheese thindue, among other treats.

Proposed group gruit experiment/demo for this month's meeting-
Actually, for the second demo here's a suggestion that the group can participate in beforehand. Due to the recent hop shortage many of us have been considering unhopped gruit beers and wondering about the various herbs and substances we might want to use to make them. Alan will make several bittering experiments with just enough malt extract for 16-22 ounces of a somewhat beery/worty blend boiled for 45-60 minutes with various things, with perhaps a late addition for aroma and/or flavor, then set them aside to cool. Flip top bottles or canning jars are fine and if you make this on the day of the meeting or 1-2 days ahead of time they should be fine in the fridge and won't ferment or get contaminated. Alan plans to do at least 4-8 such samples: one with bay leaves, one with cedar boughs, one with citrus rind, and one with fir boughs. He'll probably do a few more too, depending on time available that Friday night or Saturday morning. Feel free to do the same with any bittering ingredients you'd like to try. Alan offers to hit rare spice shops in Seattle if you request something you can't find in Kitsap. We can cook them up during the meeting.

Globe trotting WSB member Dan Parilla to visit in late April
Dan has covering many thousands of miles since his last club meeting and has loads of stories to tell about beer all around the world. If you're interested in catching up with him and discussing such things contact Alan Moum and he'll keep you in the loop about when and where to meet. We'll leave it up to Dan to select where he'd like to meet, and how often. I imagine he wants to catch up with Kitsap beer spots but even in the far reaches of the planet he may have heard of some of the amazing new places on the other side of the Sound.

Next WSB Meeting
May 3, Saturday
Our May meeting will be the Big Brew at Steve and Frances' place just north of Silverdale. Check out the official website for details:
http://beertown.org/events/bigbrew/index.html

This year's official recipes are an ordinary bitter, in honor of Michael Jackson, and a blonde ale that can be made with whatever hops you can find or already have lying about.

BIG BREW FACTS
2007 Over 9000 gallons of homebrew brewed by more than 4000 participants at 242 sites on four continents worldwide. There were sites in 42 states, as well as Israel, Australia, Argentina, and Russia.
2006 Over 7,000 gallons were brewed by more than 2,500 participants at 229 sites worldwide.
2005 7,347 gallons of homebrew brewed worldwide at 210 Big Brew sites by 2,956 participants.
2004 5,180 gallons of homebrew were produced at 160 Big Brew sites by 2,177 participants worldwide.
2003 3,706 gallons of homebrew were produced at 157 Big Brew sites by 1,405 participants worldwide.
2002 5,235 gallons of beer were produced at 196 Big Brew sites by 2,000 participants around the WORLD – spanning 5 continents.
2001 5,185 gallons of beer were brewed at 182 brewing sites by 1,864 participants worldwide.

If you haven't checked out our club website lately, do so now. Brad, Matt, and Mike have been adding interesting stuff to their beer blogs.
www.westsoundbrewers.org

Date: Thu, 10 Apr 2008 12:02:49 -0800
From: "Ernie & Marti Gwaltney"
Subject: Rum Tasting

Heard from John Gray about the rum tasting he will have at his house and he wanted me to pass it on to the Westsound Brewers. Unfortunately, it is the day of the Big Brew.

John M. Gray is hosting a rum tasting at his home in the McCormick Woods golf course area on Saturday night, May 3rd, starting at 7pm. John joined us at last month's meeting and he brought his triple to share. It is scheduled the same day as our Big Brew. John has also posted this on the Heads Up Yahoo Group. So, if you haven't had too much beer and you want to try different rums.

Date: Thu, 10 Apr 2008 09:52:31 -0700
From: "John Foyston"
Subject: [Brewcrew] hops on the way
To: "Oregon Brew Crew Official Discussion List."

some good news...

Growers are feverishly reconditioning yards and adding new land at an unheard-of pace. Growers are receiving multiple-year contracts with prices front-loaded to help them shoulder the estimated $6,000-per-acre cost to plant yards and also upgrade equipment.

Growers couldn't make investments like that when prices were depressed.

"It's basic economics," observed Ann George, administrator of the Moxee-based Washington Hop Commission. "When everyone started making orders, we found we had a shortage. The price went crazy. People are willing to spend large sums."

Northwest hop acreage, which expanded by about 2,000 acres last year as the lack of supply became apparent, could grow by another 5,000 acres this year.

Date: Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:10:27 -0700
From: Robert Daly <2robdaly@comcast.net>
Subject: [Brewcrew] WORLD BEER PRICE

A friend sent me this website: http://www.pintprice.com/ It is fun, you can get the price of pint of beer in 140 countries (and thousands of cities) in dollars, euros, pounds, etc.

If you want to feel cosmopolitan you can get the price of beer in three cities in Slovenia in canadian dollars ($2.91).

It shows US 3.49 for the average pint in Portland---it doesn't say but I would assume that is us not the other Maine landers.

Robert Daly

IPA Festival (April 4th-April 25th)
Coopers Alehouse
8065 Lake City Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 522-2923
www.coopersalehouse.com
There will be over 40 IPA’s including cask, special releases, and a couple brewed specifically for the event. Food specials and tasters will also be available. On Friday, April 25th they will present the very first Best of the Fest plaques (including honoring the past winners) and will have IPA specials all night.

The 3rd Annual Parkway Tavern Barleywine Festival
Saturday, April 12th, 2 p.m.-2 a.m.
The Parkway Tavern
313 North I St.
Tacoma, WA 98403
(253) 383-8748
A twelve hour celebration of barleywine featuring 25 aged barleywines
from local and regional breweries. They will be also grilling whole
pigs and prime rib to help soak up the beer. Lots of prizes,
giveaways, and drinking!

Laughing Buddha Bottle Tasting (Monday, April 14th)
Bottleworks
1710 N. 45th St.
Seattle, WA 98103
www.bottleworks.com

Georgetown Night @ Beveridge Place (Thursday, April 17th, 6 p.m.- )
Beveridge Place Pub North
6413 California Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98136
www.beveridgeplacepub.com
The very first promo at the all new Beveridge Place Pub in West Seattle. It's right across the street from the old pub, on Beveridge Pl. and California. If you've been there before, then you know exactly why not to miss an event like this. If you've never been, then now is as good a time as any find an excellent new place to share a beer with friends. The bonus feature will be a cask of Chopper's Red.

Leavenworth Ale-Fest (April 25th-26th)
Leavenworth Festhalle
1001 Front Street
Leavenworth, Washington
www.leavenworthalefest.com
There will be brews from 20 micro-breweries, and delicious foods from area restaurants. For those who don’t like beer, but still like to party, there will be soft drinks and root beer floats in the Designated Driver’s booth.
Yes it will be “An-Ale-Of-A-Party”, and all to benefit the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum, a local non-profit entity.

25th Annual San Francisco International Beer Festival
April 26, San Fran
www.sfbeerfest.com

2nd Annual Women's Brewfest
April 26, Sacramento, CA
Rubicon Brewing Co.
darcyquinn@rubiconbrewing.com

April Brews Day (Saturday, April 26th, 5:30-10 p.m.)
Depot Market Square
Bellingham, WA
This annual local beer festival is held to benefit The Max Higbee Center. Local breweries bring in a grand variety to sample, as well as some interesting food and other entertainments. The Max Higbee Center is a non-profit organization that provides community-based recreation programs for adults (14 years and older) with developmental disabilities. Tickets: $12 in advance/$15 at the door.

Brouwer's 1st Sour Beer Festival
Approximately the first week of May
25-30+ sour beers on tap. Last year they had 5 Cantillon lambics on tap during the barrel aged fest. Stay tuned for updates on this rare and amazing event.

12th Annual Boonville Beer Festival
May 10, Boonville, CA
www.avbc.com

WABL Event @ Laughing Buddha (Saturday, May 10th)
Laughing Buddha Brewing Co.
9320 15th Ave S, Unit CE2
Seattle, WA 98108
www.laughingbuddhabeer.com

The UnTapped Blues Festival (Saturday, Mat 10th, 12-11 p.m.)
Benton County Fairgrounds
1500 South Oak Street
Kennewick, WA 99337
www.untappedblues.com
Come on out, grab a cold one and listen to some awesome blues and zydeco music while you bite into the best food and beer the Northwest has to offer. $25 advanced/ $30 at the gate. 21+ only.

Beer Dinner with Artisan Cheeses @ Pike (Thursday, May 15th)
Pike Brewing Co.
1415 1st Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101
www.pikebrewing.com
Beer dinner with artisan cheeses featuring Jeff Roberts, author of The Atlas of Artisan American Cheese and local artisan cheesemakers.

"Kissin' Cousins" (Friday, May 16th)
Pike Brewing Co.
1415 1st Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101
www.pikebrewing.com
A comparative tasting of European and American beers and cheese featuring renowned cheese maven, Debra Dickerson of 3D Cheese.

The Cascade Brewers Guild’s ExBeerience Beer Festival
June 7, Woodinville, WA
The Cascade Brewers Guild is inviting all WABL members to attend this year’s ExBeerience Beer Festival June 7th at the Redhook Brewery in Woodinville. The festival was started last year as the awards ceremony for the Cascade Brewers Cup, a local homebrew competition now in its 12th year. In addition to having about a dozen breweries pouring beer, there will be judging workshops for individuals wanting to learn more about properly judging beer, awards announcements and handouts throughout the day, information on Washington’s local amateur brewing organizations and Beer appreciation clubs, and a Joe’s vs. Pro’s style booth to see if you can spot the amateur’s beer vs. the pro brewers. The event will run from 1pm-6pm that Saturday and will be $10 (cash only please) at the door. The general public will get 5 tastes, and WABL and local homebrew club members will get 7. Additional tastes can be purchased inside. More information can be found at www.cascadebrewersclub.org and groups.yahoo.com/group/cascadebrewers/, as well as info for those interested in entering the competition. Anyone looking to judge in the competition can email bradrcr@comcast.net for info.

The Washington Brewers Festival update
June 13th, Kenmore, WA
As announced in the last newsletter we are already busy getting ready for the big Fathers Day event, Washington Brewers Festival (aka “The Mother of All Fathers Day Festivals”) and here’s what we know so far:

Friday evening will be a 21+ only affair with select Washington breweries (some of them will bring Friday-only beers) and Vicci Martinez as the headliner on the music stage.

Saturday & Sunday will remain all ages with lots of kids activities, live music, Brewers Keg Toss, Rootbeer Garden and more.

We’ll need lots of volunteer and we need your help! You’ll receive an email announcement once the web site is ready to sign up volunteers. So look for it in your inbox soon!

The web site will be updated with new information next week and online ticket sales will begin then. Tickets will be also available at ticket outlets beginning May 1st (Saturday & Sunday tickets only). We’ll also offer a group discount for online advance purchase only (10 tickets for the price of 9).

The Washington Brewers Festival
Friday, June 13th, 5-9pm (21+ Only)
Saturday, June 14th & Sunday, June 15th, 11am-8pm (All Ages)
St. Edward State Park
14445 Juanita Dr. NE
Kenmore, WA 98028
www.washingtonbeer.com/wabf.htm (Web site will be updated soon)

4th Annual Homebrew Fair
June 21, Kent, WA
Larry's Brewing Supply
http://www.homebrewfair.com/

North American Organic Brewers Festival
June 27-29, Portland, OR
abe@brewingnews.com

Check out this page for tons of AHA/BA events:
http://beertown.org/events/index.html
National Homebrew Competition
April 2008
http://beertown.org/events/nhc/
Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America(R)
April 16-19, 2008 in San Diego, California USA
http://beertown.org/events/cbc/
2008 World Beer Cup(R) Gala Awards Dinner
April, 19 2008 in San Diego, California USA
http://beertown.org/events/wbc/
National Homebrew Day (Big Brew)
May 3, 2008
http://beertown.org/events/bigbrew/index.html
American Craft Beer Week
May 12-18, 2008
http://beertown.org/events/acbw/index.html
SAVOR: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience
May 16-17, 2008 in Washington, DC USA
http://www.beertown.org/events/savor/
National Homebrewers Conference(R)
June 19-21, 2008 in Cincinnati, Ohio USA
http://beertown.org/events/hbc/
Mead Day
August 2, 2008
http://beertown.org/events/meadday/index.html
...and more.

Cheeseburger in paradise
By: Jimmy Buffett
1978
Tried to amend my carnivorous habits
Made it nearly seventy days
Losin' weight without speed, eatin' sunflower seeds
Drinkin' lots of carrot juice and soakin' up rays

But at night I had these wonderful dreams
Some kind of sensuous treat
Not zuchinni, fettucini or bulghar wheat
But a big warm bun and a huge hunk of meat

Chorus:
Cheeseburger in paradise (paradise)
Heaven on earth with an onion slice (paradise)
Not too particular not too precise (paradise)
I'm just a cheeseburger in paradise

Heard about the old time sailor men
They'd eat the same thing again and again
Warm beer and bread they said could raise the dead
Well it reminds me of the menu at a Holiday Inn

Times have changed sailors these days
When I'm in port I get what I need
Not just havanas or bananas or daiquiris
But that American creation on which i feed

Chorus:
Cheeseburger in paradise (paradise)
Medium rare with mustard 'be nice (paradise)
Heaven on earth with an onion slice (paradise)
I'm just a cheeseburger in paradise

I like mine with lettuce and tomato
Heinz 57 and french fried potatoes
Big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer
Well good God almighty which way do I steer for my

Chorus:
Cheeseburger in paradise (paradise)
Makin' the best of every virtue and vice (paradise)
Worth every damn bit of sacrifice (paradise)
To get a cheeseburger in paradise
To be a cheeseburger in paradise
I'm just a cheeseburger in paradise

Coda:
I like mine with lettuce and tomato
Heinz 57 and french fried potatoes
Big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer
Well good god almighty which way do I steer for my

Hey bartender, there's a big bug in my beer
Gene Phillips-

Hey bartender, there's a big bug in my beer
Hey bartender, there's a big bug in my beer
One eye is red, the other is green
The craziest old bug that I've ever seen
Hey bartender, there's a big bug in my beer

Whoo bartender, the bug's got a big bazoo
Whoo-ee bartender, the bug's got a big bazoo
Big old head from there to here
Big old mouth drinking all my beer
Hey bartender, the bug's got a big bazoo

One more beer, without the bug
One more beer, without the bug
One more beer, without the bug
One more beer, without the bug

Well there's bugs on the ceiling, bugs on the floor
All kinds of bugs creeping through the door
There's bugs on the table, bugs on the beer
I do believe there's bugs in my hair

Hey bartender, the bug's made himself a home
Hey bartender, the bug's made himself a home
Every time I take a sip
The big old bug tries to bite my lip
Hey bartender, he's drinking up all the foam

Hey bartender, one thing I've got to know
Hey bartender, there's one thing I've gotta know
If the beer is his, then he can stay
But if it's mine, all I can say
Hey bartender, the big bug's gotta go!

V.1
I HAD A POCKET FULL OF PAYDAY
WHEN I CAME HERE ON FRIDAY
NOW I'M SITTIN ON THIS OL' BAR STOOL
WITH NOTHIN' IN THERE BUT LINT
I THOUGHT I HAD THE BOTH OF YOU
RIGHT THERE IN MY HIP POCKET
NOW IT'S CLOSIN' TIME ON SATURDAY NIGHT
AND I'M WONDERIN' WHERE YOU TWO WENT

CH.1
BOUNCIN’ BEER CANS OFF THE JUKEBOX
A POSTER BOY FOR DE-TOX
MY AIM IS GETTING BETTER
EV’RY TIME I HEAR THOSE SONGS
MERLE THREW AWAY THE ROSE
WYNN SINGS A SONG OF SADNESS
THAT'S A LOT OF HEARTACHES FOR A DIME
'N SHE'S GONE, GONE, GONE

V.2
DAMN THOSE BOYS FROM BAKERSFIELD
HOW'D THEY FIND OUT HOW I FEEL
I THOUGHT I WAS THE MASTER
OF HOLDIN' IT INSIDE
THOSE BOYS DOWN THERE IN TENNESSEE
NEVER GOT THE BEST OF ME
BUT THEY NEVER HEARD OL' BUCK SING
IT'S CRYIN' TIME

REPEAT CH.
BOUNCIN’ BEER CANS OFF THE JUKEBOX
A POSTER BOY FOR DE-TOX
MY AIM IS GETTING BETTER
EV’RY TIME I HEAR THOSE SONGS
MERLE THREW AWAY THE ROSE
WYNN SINGS A SONG OF SADNESS
THAT'S A LOT OF HEARTACHES FOR A DIME
'N SHE'S GONE, GONE, GONE