Hey all, I wanted to recap the last couple of meetings and our Bangers & SMASH event for those who couldn’t make it (or maybe just can’t remember all of the details for some reason…). First off, and yes it has to be said, Bangers & SMASH was, well, an absolute Smash! What a great time we had; the weather was perfect, the beers were killer, the food was incredible, and Todd & Susan are wonderful hosts. Here’s the run-down of SMASH brews:
The May and June meetings both included a wide variety of brews, from ciders and pilsners all the way thru Strong Belgian Goldens and whiskey stouts; in May, Nate introduced us to his “Belgian Hefeweizen” and this month Chris & Frank shared their invention, a 34-ibu, 7.5% abv “Imperial Kolsch”. Jason at Roots also pulled out a sample of a pear mead that he & I brewed YEARS ago when we both worked at Ommegang. 2 topics of note were discussed; one, consuming yeast before drinking to limit your intoxication (?)…there are studies showing that it’s possible to reduce your drunkenness this way, and apparently, Jim Koch of Sam Adams swears by it. Matt & Todd, being of similar age, weight, and whatnot, have agreed to be guinea pigs for a HOPS-conducted experiment on this matter, more to follow. And 2, we discussed FINALLY putting together a club “field trip” to the newly open WORLD OF BEER pub in the Crossgates mall in Albany sometime in the near future. Todd, Chris & I are going to work on this idea further, but for now we’re thinking 2 vans/SUVs should hold enough of us…So who’s got a large vehicle they’d be willing to utilize for the club for an afternoon? Obviously we will also need a couple of designated drivers. More to come on that as well.
The July meeting will be at my house, 13 Maiden Lane, Cherry Valley, on July 25. Bring a chair, a dish to pass, a tent if you’d like to crash (feel free to show up early and set up your tent) and hopefully, some brew! We’ve had a blast the last 2 years, this one should be fun as well!
Who wants to host the August meeting? Chris Cleveland, and Matt, Frank & Chris have expressed interest so far.
See you all soon! Cheers,
Wes
- Tim- Maris otter ESB w/ Pacifica
- Chris- Maris otter w/ Centennial, fermented w/ White Labs American Ale blend WLP060
- Dale- Dingmann’s Munich lager w/ Hallertauer, fermented with WLP833 Bock yeast
- Matt- Munich pale ale w/ NZ Motueka hops, fermented w/ British ale yeast
- Frank & Chris- “Sunsmash”, a 9% IIPA w/ Maris Otter & Apollo hops, fermented w/ WLP002
- Wes & Mike- “Cluster Smash” Briess Pale Ale w/ homegrown Clusters, fermented w/ Safale US-05
- Josh Paulson- Briess 2-row pale ale w/ Cascades, fermented w/ Irish ale yeast
- Nate- (notes are fuzzy here…) a Triple IPA (12+% abv) with EIGHT OZ. of Mosaic! Fermented w/ Wyeast Chico strain
- John (who was there in spirit)- Ithaca Cascazilla clone made w/ Munton’s pale ale single-malt DME and Cascades (of course), fermented w/ Safale US-05
- Bernie- Pils w/ homegrown Sterling, AND…
- a second Pils, brewed with maple sap instead of water, hopped with Perle.
The May and June meetings both included a wide variety of brews, from ciders and pilsners all the way thru Strong Belgian Goldens and whiskey stouts; in May, Nate introduced us to his “Belgian Hefeweizen” and this month Chris & Frank shared their invention, a 34-ibu, 7.5% abv “Imperial Kolsch”. Jason at Roots also pulled out a sample of a pear mead that he & I brewed YEARS ago when we both worked at Ommegang. 2 topics of note were discussed; one, consuming yeast before drinking to limit your intoxication (?)…there are studies showing that it’s possible to reduce your drunkenness this way, and apparently, Jim Koch of Sam Adams swears by it. Matt & Todd, being of similar age, weight, and whatnot, have agreed to be guinea pigs for a HOPS-conducted experiment on this matter, more to follow. And 2, we discussed FINALLY putting together a club “field trip” to the newly open WORLD OF BEER pub in the Crossgates mall in Albany sometime in the near future. Todd, Chris & I are going to work on this idea further, but for now we’re thinking 2 vans/SUVs should hold enough of us…So who’s got a large vehicle they’d be willing to utilize for the club for an afternoon? Obviously we will also need a couple of designated drivers. More to come on that as well.
The July meeting will be at my house, 13 Maiden Lane, Cherry Valley, on July 25. Bring a chair, a dish to pass, a tent if you’d like to crash (feel free to show up early and set up your tent) and hopefully, some brew! We’ve had a blast the last 2 years, this one should be fun as well!
Who wants to host the August meeting? Chris Cleveland, and Matt, Frank & Chris have expressed interest so far.
See you all soon! Cheers,
Wes
