November 29th, 2017

November 2017 HOPS Club Meeting Minutes

Meeting was held at American Legion in Oneonta on 11/17/17 at 6:30 p.m. with (10) members in attendance
Discussion topics included:

1. The visit to the Hartwick Center for Craft Food and Beverage on October 27th was a success. Thank you to Aaron McLeod for hosting us for the off-tasting panel. A return visit for an expanded panel was discussed for the spring.
   
2. It was noted that 212 Brewing is moving some/all production operations to the old spring water bottling facility on Route 23 in Harpersfield. More information will be gathered regarding a possible tasting room or tours.
3. Sweet Meadows in Davenport will be hosting a vendor’s market on December 9th & 16th. Free tastings of various foods and beverages will be available to the public.
4. The Oneonta Little League was floated as a potential event charity. Matt Brown will be looking into more specifics.
5. Next month’s beer style is going to be Christmas/Seasonal/Winter. Also as a reminder, here is a list of the beer styles for the new few months:
   1. January: American Barley Wine
   2. February: Cereal Beer (25% of the grain bill needs to be a commercial cereal)
   3. March: Irish Stout
   4. April: Gluten Free (with sorghum or rice for example)
   5. May: Porter

We are still soliciting ideas for the subsequent months. Here are a few styles that were tossed around at the meeting: Berliner Weisse; Cider/Mead. Any additional style ideas are welcome.

1. Beers (a-d were the Beer of the Month; Doppelbock).
   1. Commercial example: Celebrator by Ayinger – alcohol forward.
   2. Commercial example: Anderchser Dunkel by Andechs – lighter in body, ironic as it is the “dunkel” version, and sweeter than the Celebrator.
   3. Commercial example: S’muttenator by Smuttynose – a cellared version from 2010, more chocolate and dark fruit notes than the other examples.
   4. C&F’s Doppelbock – Very young and hot; needs time to mature.
   5. Wes brought his first all-grain beer, a SMaSH IPA with local homegrown hops & Maris Otter. There was a noticeable off-flavor, which was identified as phenolic (thanks again to Aaron for the recent panel!) Potential remedies were discussed.
   6. Alden brought an Anchor Steam porter clone, from a kit. He says he’s ready to put together his own spin on the recipe for the next batch.
   7. Matt brought his strong Belgian golden, which has over-carbonated in the bottle. Potential remedies were discussed.
   8. New member Eric brought his first original recipe beer, a maple pumpkin ale.
   9. Mike brought his pumpkin rye ale. Pleasantly thick mouthfeel with a nice rye spice kick.
   10. Steve brought his chocolate stout, will all the chocolate coming from the roasted grain.
   11. Matt also brought his Russian imperial stout back, for any opinion on its evolution.
   12. Eric also brought his hard apple cider. The sulphuric nose was strong, but anticipated for the style.
   13. Mike also brought the habanero version of the pumpkin rye, which has only gotten more intensely hot as it has aged.
   14. Finally, Mike brought a ginger tipple from Belgium, gifted to him by the brewer at a recent Kosher Fest. Very dry, but palate cleansing.
2. Next month’s meeting will be held on Friday, December 15th at 6:30 p.m. at a Todd & Susan’s house (8 Ravine Parkway, Oneonta). Please bring a food dish to pass if you are able (appetizers or desserts are recommended). We will also have our annual gift exchange, so, if you would like to participate, please bring a wrapped beer-related present (max value of $15). See you there!