March 23, 2017

Good Afternoon LAB. Well, what can I say? It has been a slow start for everyone I suspect. But here we are well into March. So, lets get caught up. Our Fall Beer Comp was won by Ken Slater. Congrates to Ken and his award winning beer Fall Down American Brown. Thank You's go out to our Christmas Party hosts, Mike and Grace Bammer. And Thank you to all who came out to share some holiday cheer. As we all rang in the New Year, our thoughts turn to what we will be doing and brewing in 2017. At out January meeting we discussed some of the up coming events in the brewing world and the club. 

  National Homebrew Day is May 6, 2017. Mike Mullins and myself talked with Tom Hansen at Tilted Axis about the club brewing, along side the building again this year. They will have hot water and electric available to the club. Brewing will most likely start around 10 am.The club has been doing this brew for a couple of years now, at this location. It is always a good time. I suggest you dress warm in layers. We have seen snow and warm temps all in the same day. 

  We raffled off a few items at the January meeting ( pint glasses, gift certificate, hop glass stache ). I hope the winners are enjoying their prizes. We will be holding raffles during other meetings throughout the year.

   And as normal it is that time of the year again. Time to pay your yearly dues. Your dues help the club to purchase our club site at MHF and also club kegs. Which are available to any member in good standing to borrow. We have also purchased tents for club events. Also this helps the club to purchase and hold tastings and sensory sessions, throughout the year. 

  The World Expo of Beer is taking place in Frankenmuth, May 19-20, 2017. Some of our members will be volunteering to pour for this event. You can check out the World of Beer expo site for more info. And if they are still looking for volunteers. Or if you are interested in attending to check out the expo, ticket info is available on their website.

  Seven Ponds has invited the club back to brew at their heritage festival in September on the 16-17, 2017. Mike Mullins has sent out our acceptance to be there. This event is a great way to welcome in fall and get ready for those long, cold, hard to brew days ahead. More info will follow as this event draws closer.

  We had to make a change of date for the April meeting because it falls on Easter. So we have rescheduled it for Good Friday (April 14,2017) at 6:00pm. At Tilted Axis. Come on out and join us and kick off the holiday weekend.

  We have a new Quarterly Brewing Competition that started in January. Mike Drops is taking the lead on this one. Thank You to Mike and Carrie Drops for handling and running the Quarterly brewing Competition. The first quarter was Catergory 15 ( Irish Beer). Mike Bammer was the 1st place winner followed by Mike Mullins and then Mike Drops. The 2nd quarterly  comp is Catergory 21 ( IPA) That turn is due on June 3, 2017. Remember that it needs to be brewed to the 2015 BJCP guidelines and you must have your dues current and there is a one time $10 fee to enter the comp. Mike also posts reminders and has created an event on facebook. The 3rd Quarter comp was changed due to it being so close to Homebrew festival. It was going to be Catergory 18 (Pale Ales), But, With our club brewing in the upcoming months for the festival. We have decided to make it an open brew. Brewers Choice. Following 2015 BJCP Guidelines. Any questions , contact Mike Drops via Facebook.

  I am currently talking with Sean at Top Hops about coordinating a field trip out to the hop farm. Hoping for July. More info when I have it. Also I was talking with Chris Payne. He has asked about having the club over in June to his home in Lapeer.. More to come as he gets back to me. 

  SO, That brings me to Michigan Homebrew Festival. It will be August 17-20, 2017 at Camp Agawam in Lake Orion. This is the festivals 2nd year at the new site. They are planning on it being bigger and better this year. Its time to start considering what you would like to brew for the club to serve up at the festival. We have 13 taps to fill plus a smaller keezer for a few extra. Mike Bammer is the keeper of the bar and is planning on a few tweeks. Looking forward to seeing them Mike! We always have a great time at this event. This is the MHF 8th year and LAB has been fortunate enough to be part of the festival for most of those years. This event is a great way to end out the summer season and to get to experience many other clubs and supporters of Homebrewing and craft beer, from all over the state. The Michigan Homebrew Festival website will be up in a few short weeks. If you have been to MHF in previous years you know what a blast it is. If your new to the festival I encourage you buy a membership and come on out and check it out. The store front  should be up and running in May. Keep your eyes open for more info.

  Also want to mention that the Michigan Beer Cup Competition should be kicking off soon. This is the same comp that was held at the Michigan State Fair. Dan Frechette and many other dedicated brewers took over the comp to keep it alive. Check out Michigan Beer Cup website for more info and how to enter. This competition is awarded at the Michigan Homebrew Festival. Just another amazing event, to give you a reason to attend the festival.

  So, as you can tell our year is already taking shape. Hope to see everyone come on out to a meeting and/or any events. Brew Strong my Friends. Tell, a Pal, Bring a Buddy, Meet a Friend.                                                                                   KANPAI  That's Cheers or empty your glass in Japanese.

                                        

  

  

    

November 20,2016
  Good Afternoon to all our members. I have been a litttle late at posting. Sorry for the inconvenience. First I would like to Thank Fred and Patsy Folts for hosting the club for our Friendsgiving meeting. The food was great and the beer was awesome. But I wouldn't expect anything less from all our members. We really didn't have much business to discuss.
 Mike Mullins dropped off the brews that were brewed at the Seven ponds event. For their auction/dinner. Which is happening December 3rd.
  Also I want to remind everyone that has brewed for the Fall Brewers Challenge that the turn in date is fast approaching That date is 12/15/2016. Please contact me or Fred Folts or Mike Mullins to arrange your bottle turn in. We will be judging the entries on 12/17/2016 . And the Awards will be presented at our Annual Christmas Party on 12/18/2016. I will be updating the entry for shortly.
  Mike Drops has presented a new brewing competition that will span the year. This comp will be quarterly. There will be judging done at the end of each quarter and points will be awarded that will be tallied up for the entire year with a final prize at year end. And there will be quarterly prizes awarded also. So here are the details...
OVERVIEW
*Open to all LAB members in good standing
*One entry per brewer, per competition
*One time entry fee of $10 per brewer for the entire competition
  -Paid at the time you submit your first beer for judging
  -To be used to offset expenses for prizes
*2015 BJCP Guidelines will be used as the standard for the judging of the submitted beers.
COMPETITIONS
QUARTERLY STYLE COMPETITION
* 4 Separate quarterly competitions
*Style and submission dates are:
  -Category 15-Irish Beer- due 03/04/2017
  -Category 21- IPA- due 06/03/2017
  -Category 18- Pale American Ale- due 09/02/2017
  -Category 22- Strong American Ale- due 12/02/2017
* Bottle labels and submission locations will be available at a later date and the club meeting later that month.
* Judging will be conducted and scored between submission date and club meeting later that month.
* Judges scores will be averaged to determine a final score
* Quarterly winners will be based on these scores
* Winners and sampling of all submitted beers will be revealed at the club meeting held in the submitting month.(March,June,September,December)
LAB BREWER OF THE YEAR
 * Not required to submitt an entry in every quarterly competition to be eligible to win.
 * Winner is determined by totaling the brewers score from all quarterly competitions, with the winner being the brewer with the highest total score from the quarterly competitions.
  -For example: brewer #1 earns scores of 26.3, 33.5, 32, and 28 for a total of 119.8, while brewer #2 earned scores of 40.1, no submission,41.5 and 40.5 for a total of 122.1; brewer #2 would be declared winner with the higher total.

So, if you have any questions please direct them to Mike Drops, regarding this comp.

  Since we are coming to the end of another year of brewing I want to remind everyone that your club dues will be coming up for renewal in January.
  Our December meeting will be held at Mike and Grace Bammers BrewHaus. 4820 Oregon Road, Lapeer, Mich. 48446. Starting at 3pm. Please bring a dish to pass. Also we will doing our traditional gift pass/swap. In previous years we have had a $10 limit. This tear we have increased that limit to $20. Cause we all know how difficult it is to buy for world class brewers. You are not required to spend that much. But if you want to participate in the exchange you must bring a gift.
 One last reminder..... The Fall Brewers Challenge is fast approaching. Category 19. 2015 BJCP Guidelines for this category. Bottle drop off is up to 12/15/2016. Please contact Nancy Terry, Mike Mullins or Fred Folts to make arrangements.
  Thank You to all our members for being a part of LapeerAreaBrewers. And Thanks for coming out and supporting your fellow brewers. Merry Christmas! Brew Strong my friends!
 

October 2016
Good Afternoon fellow LAB members. Well, It's been a while since I have updated the minutes. So, let's see if we can get up to speed. The July meeting was pretty laid back. Pretty much just talked about Homebrew festival and what beers we would have on tap to serve.
 As usual we did not have an official meeting in August. Just because it always falls during the festival. Michigan Homebrew Festival was amazing. Everyone seems pretty happy with the new camp and location. Our club site was pretty awesome. We were kinda like the gatekeepers. Thank You to Mike Bammer for all his hard work and time on the new club bar and the taps look great. We had some pretty great beers being served up. I have to say CRAFT beer club was the happening club spot in the fort. With their Star Wars theme and the Mead Mamas serving up the slushies it was definitely the favorite cantina to be at. Most of the LAB campers were camping at the East shelter. Which was a great spot. Hoping that we can get that spot next year for the club. I wanted to give a HUGE shout out to the Staff and volunteers of the MHF, Thank You guys and gals. Without all your work and dedication to this event it would not happen. You guys are AWESOME! Looking forward to MHF 2017.
  The September meeting was held at Seven Ponds during theirHeritage Harvest Festival. Thanks to our brewers who came out to demo and inform the masses about our brewing process. Thanks to Ken Slater, Mike Mullins, Mike Bammer, Aaron Sweeten for presenting the demos. Looking forward to tasting your meads and brews. We discussed holding a fall club comp. The category will be  #19 ( Amber and Brown American Beers ) Subcategories are 19a American Amber, 19b California Common, 19c American Brown Ale. Be Creative but stay within the style. The turn in date will be December 14th, 2016. You will be able to turn your entry into Nancy Terry or Fred Folts. Your entry must be a Amber or American Brown beer , Brewed to category 19 a,b,c  2015 guidelines. I will be posting the entry form and bottle ID tags for your entry. ** 1 entry per paid club member.** Brown bottles, no identifying marks or labels.** Bottles must be 10 oz. or more. **No flip caps.** No stickers on caps or bottles. Entry will be assigned a number on check in and you will be notified what that is. **you must provide 3 bottles for comp. **2 for judging and **1 for club tasting. I would love to see more entries this time around. So...... cause I know there are plenty of amazing brewers in the club, Get out there and brew your best and get it entered. Good Luck. Judging will take place on December 17th. Awards will be at our December 18th meeting.
  We also discussed planning a pub crawl in the spring up to Traverse City. This will be a weekend event. If you are interested let me know. 
  We are going to start scheduling styles tastings meetings. Our first one is with Mike Mullins. And it will be our Fall Brewers Challenge Category 19 Ambers and American Brown Ales. We have scheduled it for October 18, 2016. Time and location TBA. I will be asking for a $5 donation to cover the beer examples. 
  We are also discussing purchasing some equipment for our taps and maybe some unique tap handles. 
   We will be holding a raffle at the October meeting. So bring some cash for a chance to win something cool for your brew collection.
   Okay, So... you all know that Doug left Tilted Axis and they closed for a few weeks. Just to regroup. Well, Tilted Axis is open again. They have a new staff and menu, which I'm sure we will be looking forward to meeting and trying. So, that being said go on out and check them out. Let everyone know what you think. (Be Nice) They are still serving up many of Doug's brews, but will have something new on deck soon.
  The club will be brewing at Tilted Axis on November 5, 2016. For Teach a Friend to Homebrew Day. Anyone interested in brewing that Satuday let us know. So we can get a head count.
  I am still trying to track down the club taster glasses. This is the last time I will ask where they are. I guess the club will have to purchase new ones if they don't turn up. If you have them PLEASE bring them to the October meeting or arrange to get them to me or Alice Mullins.
  Mike Bammer is planning to have a brew day every month. Anyone interested  in joining him is welcome. He will post his next brew date via facebook.
 Also our website will be going down briefly while our webmaster James Terry, builds us a new and improved site. Be patient it will be back new and improve ASAP.
 The October 16th, 2016 meeting will be at Tilted Axis. Come on out and join the comrodery and brew talk.
  Well, That's about it. I think we are about up to speed on club business. As always brew strong my friends. looking forward to seeing everyone come out for our meeting and events. 
  Tell a Pal, Bring a Buddy, Meet a Friend!!! 

June 19, 2016
  Good Afternoon fellow lovers of all craft beer and yummy food. We moved our meeting up a day this month, so our members could observe fathers day with their families. Hope you all had a great day.
Back in May the club brewed at Tilted Axis. That went very well. The beer that was brewed there will be on tap within the next week or two. Stay tuned to the Tilted Axis newsletter for the announcement. Or our facebook page. The Big Brew Day at Rochester Mills was a big success also. Mike Mullins and Dan McDaniel paired up and brewed a a pear pale ale (Grow a Pear). We were able to taste it at the June BBQ. Great job guys. Also Tony and Nancy Terry brewed a IPA which was also tasty. Kudos to all our brewers. The May meeting at Redline was also a success. Our attending members had a tour and thoroughly enjoyed the brews. Thanks to Redline Brewing for hosting our club and our meeting.
  Anyone interested in entering the Michigan Beer Cup, Registration has begun. Bottle turn in goes till 7/08/2016. Check out their site for more info. (Michiganbeercup.com)
  The June Meeting was at Mike and Alice Mullins Place. Thank you Mike and Alice for hosting the BBQ.
The ribs and pulled pork were... AWESOME...... We Discuss quite a bit regarding club business. I am happy to announce that Donna Zaiki, our treasurer will be giving a treasurer's report at our monthly meetings. So if you wondered where your dues go. She will be there to answer those queries. Or chase you down for your over due dues. hahahah......
We also discussed our monthly meetings being at a regular place. That will be Tilted Axis. This should be better for any one that is interested in checking out the club, to find us, and be more comfortable with coming out a meeting. All other club activities will be scheduled for non-meeting days.
  We talked about Facebook content a little. Some club members had an issue with too many posts to our Facebook page. We addressed this and the posts have slowed a bit. If you have any issues or questions regarding the content, feel free to contact me. (Nancy Terry) by messenger or text.
  We are working on adding a link to the Michigan Beer Guide. The Guide has all the beer happenings scheduled around the state and whats going on in brewing at the state and local levels. Also great articles about breweries and brew related topics. If you haven't checked one out, You can go to Michigan brewersguide.com and see what a good read this is. And all the valuable info to be had.
  So the biggest event of the year is coming. The site is up and running. Get your camping reserved ASAP. Michigan Homebrew Festival is happening August 18th-21st. This is an AWESOME event. The festival is at a new venue this year. If you have attended in the past, this one will not be the same. This is the festivals 7th year. It started out as a pig roast, some corny's with picnic taps, in buckets of ice and 2 clubs. But has blossomed into 1 of the biggest events for home brewers to attend. We start talking about this event in January and can't stop talking about it until Christmas. Come on out and check out the festival. Either as a day tripper or a weekend warrior. Looking forward to seeing everyone there. (mhfsite.com)
 We also mentioned club beer donations for the the festival. Let us know what you can provide for us to serve on our taps.
  Starting this fall we will be scheduling our monthly tastings. More info to follow.
  The club has once again been invited to participate in the Seven Ponds Heritage Harvest Days. That will be September 17th and 18th. Our club does a couple of brewing demos. And then donates some of the brews to the nature centers dinner. This is a good family event to come out to.
  And also, we will be holding a fall brewing challenge. Details to follow.
Well, I think thats about it. Just a reminder that the July 17th meeting is our final summer meeting. The August meeting falls during homebrew festival. So we usually don't hold an August meeting. Hope to see everyone in July and at MHF. Tell a pal, bring a buddy, meet a friend, brew strong my friends.

 

April 17, 2016
Good Afternoon fellow L.A.B. members.
  First of all, A huge ThankYou to our, Brewers Challenge participants. I would like to also Thank our judges who helped us out. Thank You to Pat, Rachele, Dan and John. You guys had some interesting and helpful comments for our brewers, I'm sure.  We had 7 entries. Mostly porters. But, as always we have a group of very outstanding brewers. Congratulations go out to our 1st place winner: Fred Folts for his Imperial Stout ( My Ryes Better). Our 2nd Place was taken once again by Tony Terry for his Porter (Black Sails). And 3rd place was Ken Slater for his Porter (Wry). And Mike Bammer got an Honorable Mention for his American Stout (Black Stuff). Congrates to you all and to everyone who entered. Thanks to Ben Ruppel For helping us out with the gift certificates and Thanks to Fred Folts for setting up the prizes. Looking forward to the next comp.
  Just a few things to get out to the club. Mike Mullins and Dan McDaniel, Tony and Nancy Terry will be brewing Saturday April 30th at Rochester Mills Big Brew Day. Which will be at their Production facility off M24. Come on out and check out the other clubs and brewers that will be there. This is a great event, can't say enough about it. Come on out and support your club and homebrewing. HUZZAH!!!
  May 7th is National Homebrew Day. Our club will be out at Tilted Axis to brew once again. Like last year the club brewed a group recipe on site (Hoppy Beligan Red) and it was fermented and later served and well received by all. This year the club will be brewing again but, Doug will be providing the ingredients and the club will brew a  traditional Bock. We still could use a couple more brewers for this event. Let Mike Mullins or Nancy Terry  or Dan McDaniel know. If you aren't brewing we would still love to have ya come out and support your local brewers and toast National Homebrew Day with us.
  If you have not heard, the bus beer brewery tour that Chris Payne and Donna Zaiki were organizing, has been Cancelled. Due to lack of interest.
  Also as far as the nonprofit status, Chris Payne and Donna Zaiki are working and researching it currently.
The May meeting will be at Redline Brewing Company in Burton. Same time as usual. The brewer will be giving a tour of the brewery. If you had seen any of the postings about this brewery, you probably know that they were only in business for a short time before a fire closed his doors. Fortunately the brewing community rallied and they didn't lose hope and were up and running pretty quickly. Come on out and raise a pint to hope, prayer and persistence and good beer. Congrates to Redline!
  We didn't get a chance to talk about the June meeting. If you look at the calendar it falls on Father's day. So we will be holding a BBQ on Saturday June 18th, 2016 at Mike and Alice Mullins place in lovely Lapeer. More info to follow regarding that meeting.
  The club has been invited to brew at Seven Ponds, once again. That will be in September. More info to follow.
  Also a new brew comp is in the works. We are currently working out the details with Doug and Tilted Axis. But it will be a Wort Challenge. Doug will have 5 gallons of base wort that you will pick up from him and  brew your recipe. More details as they are available.
  Some other tidbits that were talked about:
  The club would like to start holding a couple of raffles at future meetings. We have some hops that are being donated from Top Hop Farms. Thank You Sean. And Maybe some rhizones or plants also, Maybe a bottle pass raffle too. Mike Mullins and Nancy Terry will be discussing and organizing some tasting classes in the coming months. These are very interesting and very informative. The club has done these before and they were also fun. Location and classes TBA.
  As you may have noticed on the Facebook Page, there are a lot of up coming events being posted.. If you have a free night, go check one or more of them out. You can also check out the Michigan Beer Guide for a more detailed list of times, dates and locations.
  A finall quick post for our treasurer, For those that have paid your dues, You are AWESOME! For those that have not, What are ya waiting for? LOL.  Please see Donna Zaiki at one of our meeting or use the PayPal option.
  As Always I leave you with these thoughts: Tell a Pal, Bring a Buddy, Meet a Friend! Brew Strong my friends.  May the 4th be with you!
 

March 20, 2016 
 Happy Spring! Hope everyone is getting excited for the upcoming club comp of Category 20 American Porters and Stouts. Turn in will be by April 10th. We will set up a drop off, so you can get your entry to the judging location. Judging will take place on April 16th and the awards will be presented at the April 17th meeting. Which will take place at Tilted Axis. A lot was addressed at this, meeting this month. As soon as I get the details I will update the minutes. Congrates to Donna Zaike for becoming the new club treasurer. If you follow the facebook page then you know we now have a paypal account. So you will be able to pay your dues through that. A big Thank You to Fred Folts for taking care of the club treasury. Enjoy your retirement from the treasurer position.  Also, The big brew day brew at Rochester Mills Production facility is happening April 30th. If interested check out their web page for more info. Our club currently has 3 members signed up to brew. This a great event. If you are not brewing, come on out anyway to support your club. Rochester Mills big brew event for the brewers, supplies grain,hops,yeast, water. You supply your equipment to brew and any specialty ingredients. There are only 125 entries available. So register quick, fast if your interested. They also will hold a comp with what you brew. Check out their site for details. We should be brewing as a club on May 7th at Tilted Axis. Details to follow. I was unable to attend the last 2 meetings so I will  update with info as I get it. Brew Strong my friends.

January 17,2016  Happy New Brew Year! Thank You to Tilted Axis and their great staff for their hospitality and hosting us. I would like to send out our condolences to Dan McDaniel and his family. His mom passed away unexpectedly, shortly after Christmas. We raise a glass and toast your mom's memory and her life.
  The club discussed a few topics at the meeting this month. First, we have announced the 2nd Annual Brewers Challenge. This time we will be brewing Category 20, subcategory a,b,c That's Porters and Stouts. Please use the new 2015 bjcp guidelines for this style. The competition starts now and we are looking at judging and awarding in April. Eligible brewers must have currently paid their membership dues for 2016, to participate. Bottles must be brown, at least 10oz, have no distinguishing marks or labels. No markings on caps. No flip top bottles. There will be 1 entry per brewer. Brewer will provide 3 bottles for judging. Bottles will be assigned a number on check in. The bottle labels are already on the site for download. And the entry form will be posted shortly. More information will follow.
  If you are interested in entering any of your award worthy brews in competition, Sicilianos market is hold a competition open to homebrewers. They are located just outside of Grand Rapids. You can check out their website for more info.
  As you know by now, the seasonal favorite, HopSlam has been released. Good luck at finding it. And when you do , enjoy.
  We discussed the club beer that was on tap at Tilted Axis for a short time. It was tasty. And talked about possibly doing it again. Maybe for the Big Brew Day (National Homebrew Day) May 7th,2016. More about that when Mike Mullins gets the chance to discuss it with Doug. Alice Mullins has the menu from Tilted Axis with our club compilation on it. She will get copies for anyone interested in having one. Kinda cool to see our club in print.
  Usually Rochester Mills holds a Big Brew day the Saturday before National Homebrew Day. most of the brewers that attend have brewed in previous years for it. Tony and I attended last year. Even if you aren't brewing you can come out and check out the event and support your fellow brewers. Maybe get some tips and check out what other brewers equipment consists of.  This is held at the Rochester Mills Production Facility, not the brew pub.
  May 7,2016 is National Homebrew Day. We will be brewing on site at Tilted Axis again this year. Come on out and join us for a fun and informative brew day. And a chance to toast our fellow brewers.
  July , the Michigan Beer Cup Competition will get under way. I would love to see most of our brewers enter this. You guys and gals are the best, and our club has done well in this comp in previous years. The beer cup competition will be looking for volunteers and judges to help out for the judging. If you have not done it before, This is a great time and very informative.
  Now as I said at the meeting, It is never too early to start talking Michigan Homebrew Festival. This will be in August. For those of you that have been there, You know what a great time it is. And for those of you who haven't and were thinking you may want to go. I say you only live once. This is an awesome end of the season event. We will be talking about it more as it approaches.
 I also want to mention the World Expo of Beer (WEB) will be happening in Frankenmuth, on May 21-22,2016. This event is always fun. And if you would like to volunteer to pour for any of the breweries, you can go to their website and apply. Or buy tickets and plan your weekend getaway. They book up pretty fast for accommodations. So if you plan on spending the weekend out there, better book soon.
  Does anyone have any suggestions for future club meetings, topics, queries, questions that they may want to hear more about? Anyone got any great plans for what they may be doing for brewing this year or upgrading their brewing systems?  Let's talk about it. maybe a pub crawl?  Well, till our next meeting, Brew Strong my friends.