June 2019 Meeting

New Faces:

We had two new visitors this month. Scott tagged along with Justin Hammer to see what the club is all about. He has prior brewing experience, but now sticks to stirring and drinking with Justin.  Craig was our second new face. He’s been brewing extract for the past two years. He has an itch to start brewing all grain and hopes to find some insight from you SOB’s.

Treasurer’s Report and Dues:

Kurt reported this month that we had a big win – the Hilton Garden Inn accepted to be our Casks and Caskets venue and cashed our check. Additionally, dues were collected in June. If you were unable to be at the meeting, please see Kurt with $20 at your earliest convenience.

Casks and Caskets Report:
Casks and Caskets is full steam ahead. The Hilton Garden will once again be hosting us on
October 19th. October will creep up before you know it, so start brewing now. We’re asking all
members to donate and serve 5 gallons of beer, mead, wine, or cider to the event. If you can’t donate beer, consider donating your time. We need all the help we can get. If you know of a local business who would be willing to donate merchandise to our silent raffle, please contact one of the committee members.

Sign Ups:
The June meeting might have set a record for the most sign up sheets at one meeting. You should be receiving an email to sign up for each of the following events. If not, please contact Jeff or Logan to sign up.

Barrel Brew
Club Competition
Picnic
Lake Arrowhead
Timber Rattlers
Casks and Caskets

Barrel Brew:
The Fellowship has gathered and declared their brew – we will be brewing a wine barrel aged saison and a highland favorite, Scottish wee heavy. Our next meeting will be held on July 10th. If you are interested in this event you must attend the July meeting as it will be the last chance to be added to the official brewing list. If you are unable to attend, please contact Logan Anderson. In July we will be discussing and choosing a recipe for each style; if you have a recipe bring it with
to the meeting.

Club Competition:

Our member only competition will once again be held in July. This year we will hold the
meeting at Fox River Brewing Co. in Oshkosh and Kevin will brew the winning beer at Fox
River. Only beers will be accepted for this event. Beers will be judged by BJCP judges based on official style guidelines. Plan to drop off 4 – 12 oz. bottles (or the equivalent) to Fox River between July 10th and July 16th. Label your bottles with the standard BJCP labels that can be found in upcoming news blasts.

September Competition:
In addition to our usual club competition in, we are also hosting a competition for mead, wine,
and cider in September. This will take place during the September meeting at Rushford Meadery.  Keep an eye out for more information in the coming months.

World of Beer Fest:
The SOB’s are heading down to Milwaukee on June 22nd to serve at the World of Beer Fest put on by the Beer Baron’s of Milwaukee. We will be set up at the Bavarian Bier Haus in Glendale, so stop down for a visit.

August Picnic:
Every year we hold a club picnic for the whole family. This year the picnic will be on August
21st starting at 6 pm. We once again reserved the shelter at Menominee park near the amusement park. The club will provide dinner, but we ask all attendees to sign up and bring a dish to pass.

Timber Rattler’s Game:
August 29Th is the Timber Rattler’s Brats and Brews/ Bratoberfest game. Players will be wearing lederhosen and you can get a 12 oz. beer and a brat for the low, low price of just 2 dollars! We are planning to meet at the Fox Valley Stadium to enjoy the game and beer together. The club will purchase tickets up front. There will not be a bus, but we will meet beforehand at the stadium. Contact Jeff for more information.

Empty Bottles:
Former SOB, Don Demick, is moving out of Berlin soon. He has some 500 – 12oz. bottles that he is willing to donate to the club. If you are interested in getting some free bottles, contact Mike Engel.

The Cellar Needs Help:
The Cellar is hiring a part time employee to help around the shop. If you’re interested in learning more about beer, contact The Cellar to apply.

Member Beers:

Chuck Tomsovic brought in a clone of Speckled Hen that he’s dubber “New Polka Dot Pullet.” It was a delicious beer very similar to the original. A slight hop bitterness was supported by a strong malt backbone to create smooth, sessionable beer.

Knuth Brewing Company:
This month’s Brewery of the Month was Knuth Brewing Co. out of Ripon. In 2015 the company started with a small half barrel system. Since, they have expanded to a 7-barrel system with a total of 7 fermenters. Although they’re known as a brewery, they have an incredible menu with amazing food! Maybe this is what helped them to grow. Last year they expanded by adding an attached Bier hall. Knuth can be found in 50 local waterholes in a variety of styles. We sampled three of these styles – Red ale, brown ale, and a Belgian triple. Each beer was better than the one before. Thanks to Dave for the great experience!

Grains Discussion:
Few brewing clubs are lucky enough to have someone as knowledgeable as Dave Koepke
available to teach the in-and-outs of grains. Dave stopped by the meeting to discuss exactly what went into one of the backbones of brewing. He discusses the four kinds of malts – base (2-row, pale, pilsner), highly kilned (Munich, Vienna), caramel (crystal in England), and roasted. These distinct kinds of malts are developed during the malting process depending on time and heat.
Each malt will impart a distinct color, flavor, and mouthfeel to the beer. Although some brewers insist on performing a decoction mash, all modern grains can be mashed using a single infusion with no adverse effects to sugar extraction.  Malts from each company will have a slightly different flavor, smell, color. Each of these will in turn be affected by the age of the malts. The only way to find what each malt will deliver to a beer is to taste each in a grain library. With the many complexities of malt the only way to become a master is to brew time and again with as many malts as possible

May 2019 Meeting

• May Meeting Minutes:

  Every meeting is special to us SOB’s, but there’s nothing quite like the experience of sharing the same beer brewed by 15-some people. At the May meeting the SOB’s gathered at Bare Bones

  Brewery to share the beer that was produced from the wort share back in early April. It was hard to imagine that so many flavors could come from a single base beer.

  New Faces:

  We had the privilege of welcoming two new faces to the club this month. Tom Kontos discovered beer while in Germany serving the U.S. military. Although he has attended Casks and

  Caskets in the past, he has not yet brewed his own beer. Jeff Duhacek first started brewing when he lived in Jersey, although the hobby didn’t follow him to Wisconsin. Instead, Jeff’s love of beer led him to help at Emprize Brew Mill in Menasha and co-purchasing the Cellar in Oshkosh.  We welcome both to the club and hope to see you again soon.

  Treasurer’s Report:

  As a reminder, dues are coming up next month. Club fees are $20.00 for a single membership of $30.00 for a couple. We assure you that $20 will get you ample beer, fun, and companionship.

  Please pay Kurt at the next meeting.

  Big Brew Day Review:

  How can we get so lucky? Sitting under the warm spring sun, brewing beer, and munching on BBQ from DD’s BBQ adds up to the perfect day for the SOB’s. About 10 brewers stopped out to

  the event and many more community and club members attended. We even filled a spot in the Oshkosh Herald. Way to go SOB’s on an awesome Big Brew Day!

  Annual Competition:

  July is staged as the SOB’s 3rd

  annual club competition. We’re switching it up a little this year, so pay close attention. There is no cost to enter the competition and any BJCP style is allowed.  Simply sign up and have your beer scored. This year the July meeting and competition will be held at Fox River Brewing Company in Oshkosh. Additionally, we are limiting entries to beer only, as wines, ciders, and meads will be judged at the September meeting at Rushford. On top of that, BJCP judges will score beer with the winning beer being brewed by the Fox River crew.

  Brewing Law Changes:

  In an attempt to raise more money at Casks and Caskets this year, we are trying to update brewing laws to allow for charity-based home brew events to charge admission. To do this we

  are formulating letters which anyone can sign and send to their local representatives. Moreover, we are creating a petition for all club and community members to sign. Help us change laws to benefit the community!

  June Meeting:
• We’ve been meeting at many venues this year, but the June meeting will once again be held at O’Marros. At this meeting expect a discussion on grains and a visit by beers from Knuth Brewing Company out of Ripon. With so many events happening this year, please keep on eye on the SOB website calendar.

  Fellowship of The Barrel:

  Many of our favorite beers are aged in whisky, bourbon, or wine barrels, which can be hard to come by for the average homebrewer. Luckily the Fellowship of The Barrel is forming anew to deliver some barrel aged goodness to the club. A meeting will be help on June 12th

  at Oblio’s to discuss the logistics of the brew. Look for an email soon for more information.

  Casks and Caskets Update:

  The Hilton Garden Inn locate in Oshkosh is more eager than ever to host the SOB event. However, this year we will be pushing the fest a few weeks earlier on October 19th. A committee

  is currently forming to plan for the event. See Mike Engel if you’re interested in planning.

  Proximity Maltster:

  Proximity is a malting company out of Milwaukee that is on the cutting edge of malt. They are interested in hosting a group of SOB’s in the future for a tour of their facility in Milwaukee. Perhaps this would be a good time to tour more breweries from the Brew City. Stay tuned for more information.

  Bare Bone’s Beer Sampling:

  We can’t thank Jody and the Bare Bone’s crew enough for allowing us to bring home wort and ferment it into so many wonderful beer renditions. The club sampled 13 beers made from the

  same wort, but not even one tasted alike. There were additions of pecans and coffee, pitches of Belgian and Norwegian yeasts, and of course Jody’s tried and true Nemesis Brown Ale. During the tasting ample notes were taken of comments for flavor, aroma, and mouthfeel. See the June

  newsletter for the results

April 2019 Meeting

April Meeting Minutes:

The SOB’s found ourselves back at O’marro’s this month for an evening of informative sipping and laughter. We welcomed several new faces and enjoyed a wide variety of beverages.

New Member Welcome:

This month you SOB’s did a great job of spreading the word and inviting guests. Colin and Rodney are two fine fellas who are just getting into brewing. So far, they’re doing a great job; they’re extract brewers who brought in a few bottles of beer to share. More on those later. Jonathan and Micah were introduced next. Jonathan has a few years of brewing experience and is starting to get into all grain brewing. Micah, on the other hand,has a year’s worth of brewing experience and is utilizing an extract set up. Last but not least, Stafford and Tom are a brewing pair sent over by our friends at Barebones. Tom has a long history of brewing but now sticks mostly to wines and helping Stafford in his brewing explorations. Stafford began brewing a few months ago with IPAs, only recently finding the decadence and excitement of brewing darker style beers. Thanks to all of you for inviting such fun groups of people. We hope to see allthe new faces at upcoming events and meetings.

Treasurer’s Report:

That time of year is once again approaching – membership renewals. See Kurt to renew your membership by June. The cost is still $20 for the year. New members can also see Kurt to officially register. If you have been waiting for membership cards, they’re hot off the press. Again, see our esteemed treasurer for your proof of membership.

Survey Results:

We got the survey results in and are using them to improve the SOB experience. Moreover, the club gave away a brewing clock to one lucky survey participant. Congratulations Matt Saunders and thank you for helping us!

Barebones Wort Share:

Earlier this month the SOB’s were at Barebones to help Jody brew and English Brown Ale. The wort produced during the day was shared amongst the group to be fermented and flavored however they see fit. Some brewers are adding strange yeast strains, some are adding sugars, while others are adding funky adjuncts. These beers will be shared at the May meeting which will be held at Barebones. Stay tuned for more on that!

Big Brew Day:

This year national Big Brew day is held on Saturday May 4th. We’re hosting a big brew at the Cellar to celebrate. We’ll begin brewing at 9AM. Feel free to brew or just stop in for some samples and company. The AHA has announced that blonde ales and NEIPA’s are this year’s “official’ styles (no need to brew either.) Sign up HERE if you are planning to stop by. So, get ready for the big day and spread the word far and wide!

Bus Trips:

The bus trips have been planned! This Spring we’re taking a bus tour to the Wausau/Waupaca region. On the itinerary are stops at Red Eye for lunch, Bull Falls, 22 Lakes, and HH Hinder. The bus will depart May 11th at 9:30 AM from the old JCP parking lot in Oshkosh. We will return the same day at approximately 7:30 PM. Anticipated cost is $35 which includes bus fares and a tour at Red Eye (pay at the bus). If you’re interested, sign up HERE. Additionally, the SOB’s are offering a bus ride to the Chilton beer fest on May 19th. The cost is $10 for the bus ride; there are still (2) tickets available for the event at a cost of $40 (contact Jeff Eaton). The bus will depart the old JCP parking lot at 11:30 AM on the 19th and return at 7:00 PM. To get on the bus sign up HERE. Remember to pay Jeff and Becky for event and bus ride tickets.

SOB Club Competition:

Every July the SOB’s host a club competition for members. We’re changing things up this year. First, the competition (and July meeting) will be held at Fox River Brewing Co. in Oshkosh; the winning beer will then be brewed at Fox River. Second, the July competition will only accept beer entries. We will be hosting an additional competition at our September meeting at Rushford for all mead, wine, and cider entries. You heard that right, two competitions this year! We are investigating the possibilities of having BJCP judges for the events, making this a great opportunity to receive feedback on your brews. More information will be coming soon. Until then, whip up some grade-A beverages, set aside (4) 12-oz bottles (or the equivalent), and prep for the 3rd annual club competition!

Lake Arrowhead Beer Camp:

We have once again been invited to the beer camp/walk at Lake Arrowhead campground. This year the event takes place on the weekend of August 23rd-25th. Three campsites will be set aside for SOB’s to occupy during the event at no cost; all you need to do is bring beer to serve during the walk. Last year three groups camped during the event, two brewed, and more stopped down to serve. A sign-up sheet will be available at future meetings.

Contacting Representatives:

The SOB’s are on a mission to update homebrew laws that would allow us to charge admission at events where homebrew is served. This will help us to raise more money for charity at events like Casks and Caskets. To aid in this effort, the SOB’s are drafting a letter that you can sign and send to your local representatives. This letter will be available at future meetings and events (particularly Big Brew Day.)

Member Beers:

Ty Shippee brought in two versions of “quick” lagered beers. His bohemian rye lager took only 10 days to lager utilizing gelatin for clarity, a kegerator to maintain temperatures, and a diacetyl rest that raises the beer slowly raised the temperature to 65℉ for a few days (until it stops stinking.) Both of Ty’s rye and vienna lagers are fine examples of the style, with only a slight diacetyl character. Not bad for a short lagering period. New member Rodney and Colin brought in some of their first brews, which are recipes available at the Cellar. Rodney’s Irish red and Colin’s Blonde are both excellent interpretations of Dave’s original recipe. They’re clean, easy drinking, and true to style. Keep up the good work, fellas! Chuck shared a few bottles of cinnamon cider that he’s been aging since 2014. It smelled like fall and the 19 (ish) ABV was easily disguised behind a dry, enjoyable drink.

Lion’s Tail Beers:

This month we focused on beers from Lion’s Tail Brewing in Neenah. Head brewer Alex Wenzel is a chemical engineer by trade with an obsession for water. Each beer he brews is carefully treated with the appropriate water adjustments to create the perfect water profile for that style. Alex brews a wide range of styles, including traditional styles like Rock the Block Bock (which donates 50% of the profits to Habitat for Humanity) and Too Caught Up IPA which is a tried and true centennial IPA recipe. More adventurous beers like Pineapple Milkshake Pale Ale and the upcoming Golden Stout Collaboration can also be found on tap. Thank you to Alex and the crew at Lion’s Tail for sending us delicious samples of your amazing beers!