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November Club Meeting Recap

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What an awesome meeting.  Let me start off this post in the way that I should have started off my announcements on Saturday by thanking Ian for being such an awesome host time and time again.  Its bad enough when you forget to thank your host so let me just reiterate how appreciative we are to the club members who host our events at their homes.

CLUB ANNIVERSARY BREW

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For those of you unable to attend this past weekend’s monthly meeting, we were busy – very busy!  The day started off around 10am with Dan White mashing in to kick off the day with our 20th anniversary beer.  Dan showed his great support for the club by bringing his entire brew system to Ian’s backyard (with the help of Terry Malloy) so that we could brew up 15 gallons of Belgian Dubbel to be served at this coming February’s Club Meeting / 20th anniversary shindig.  Thank you Dan, Emily and Terry for keeping this brew organized with during the party!

This beer was a very simple recipe but did feature a LOT of dark candy sugar in the boil that a number of club members helped add to the boil:

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And lastly, here is what a beer looks like that is 100% Belgian Pils/Pale before and after you add 5lbs of Dark Candy Syrup to a 15 gallon batch:

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CHILI COOK-OFF

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Saturday was also our annual Chili cook-off.  We had 8 chilis show up – all of which were fantastic.  Everyone submitted their votes and at the end of the day the club member celebrating the most was Neil who took home the prize for the best chili.  Congrats on taking the title this year Neil – you beat out some other awesome chili’s.  The second prize of the day for chili was the most unique chili which was awarded to Kingsley Toby.  Thank you to everyone who brought their chili to the party to make it another successful chili cook-off.

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BOARD ELECTION

November also marks the month where we vote for next year’s board.  I am happy to say that I will be returning for another year on the board to serve as your President along with Ramesh who will again serve as our Treasurer.  Kingsley is stepping down from the board and Tad Johnston has stepped up to fill his shoes as our club VP for 2015.  We have a lot of exciting plans for next year and we will be working hard at the beginning of the year to get a schedule together for all of you regarding the upcoming events so you can all mark your calendars in advance.

CLUB MEMBER OF THE YEAR

I screwed up in October and forgot to ask for nominations for club member of the year so we asked for nominations at the November meeting.  Many of you who were in attendance voted for your choice for club member of the year, but if you forgot to vote or were unable to attend you can submit your vote to [email protected] by Friday @ 9am to cast your vote.  The nominees for Club Member of the Year (as appointed at the meeting) are:

  • Kip Barnes
  • Brian Holter
  • Ramesh Khalili
  • Kingsley Toby
  • Ian Fraser
  • Dean Sussman
  • Terry Molloy

Please cast your vote ASAP!!  We need to get all the votes in by Friday  11/28 @ 9am so we can make the award for the following weekend’s winter party which brings me to…

UPCOMING EVENTS

  • Winter Party – As mentioned at the meeting and on this website, our Winter Party is on Saturday December 6th at Neil’s house.  Ramesh and Carl both brought along sign up sheets for helping to setup Friday Night/Saturday Morning, Cleanup on Sunday, beers for the party, food, etc.  If you can volunteer (please do – the more volunteers the better the party) please email us at board [at] pacificgravity dot com to sign up.
  • Monster Brew @ Smog City – Our first event for 2015 is already planned which will be a Monster Brew at Smog City on January 24th.  Mark it down on your calendars and check back here for more details and updates as we get closer to the event.
  • 20th Anniversary – Our 20th Anniversary is coming up in February.  This will be a club meeting that you cannot miss.  We are still working on the details of when and where this meeting will be, so check back later for more info.
  • LABBC – Our Belgian Beer Challenge is scheduled for March 14th.  We are looking for volunteers for this competition planning – email me or send me a message if you are interested in participating in the planning.  Also, its time to start brewing for this competition!  You have 4 months until the competition, which means if you are going to brew a high gravity belgian beer or maybe finish off a belgian with some brettanomyces its time to get your beer in the tanks.  I suggest you start planning out your brew days!
  • SCHBF – The So Cal homebrew fest is on May 2nd and is returning to Vail Lake
  • NHC 2015 – The National Homebrewers Conference is coming to San Diego in 2015.  Pacific Gravity will definitely have a presence in San Diego for this festival.

If I forgot anything please let me know and I will update this post!  And thanks again Ian!

Learn to Brew/Chili Cookoff Day Nov. 6

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As in past years, Learn to Brew Day (formerly Teach a Friend to Homebrew Day), a nationwide AHA event will take place the first Saturday in November. Due to the Summer Party having been held in August, we were forced to pospone the cookoff until November, so Pacific Gravity will also be conducting our annual Chili Cookoff on that day.

The event will be held at the home of our Competition Coordinator and Brewmaster, Carl Townsend. The address is 3621 Redwood Ave, L.A. 90066. It’s just a few blocks west of Beethoven, north of Venice.
BREW:
Carl will brewing on his all grain system, and there is room for 4 additional brewers. If you want bring your equipment and brew, send an E-mail to me at [email protected], or to [email protected]

CHILI COOKOFF:
For the past 2 years, club chef, Ian Fraser has taken the prize for Best Chili. This year, he MUST BE BROUGHT DOWN! Ian has begun to think he owns the prize, and must be taught a lesson. Who’s gonna do it? YOU, of course.

The competition is simple. Make you best chili, bring it in a crockpot or any other vessel which can be heated. A tasting will take place, votes counted, and a winner announced. All serving utensils, garnishes, rice, crackers, salad and dessert will be provided by the club. Just label your entry.

BEER: Bring some. Kegs, bottles, commercial beers are all welcome.

TIME: Brewing commences at 10am
Chili serving and voting starts around Noon.

Club Brew and Chili Cookoff Coming on September 26th

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gravity-cookoffHey Graviteers,  it’s Chili Cookoff time again!! Get that meat, beans, onions, garlic and lots of chilis mixed up in your own unique way and see if you can be crowned this year’s  King or Queen of Chili.

Can you out-chili the Chili Master?

For the last two years Ian Fraser has been the holder of the title, Chili Master, and fully expects to keep the crown. This is your chance to prove that the Master’s chili is not all powerful, by breaking out your favorite recipe and defeating him in a winner take all competition.

In the past we have had as many as 10 chili entries. Two prizes are awarded, one for Best Chili, and the other for “Most Unique”. Veggie, Sea Food,  and All Meat have been represented in past competitions.

The Club supplies all sides and additions for the chili, as well as snacks and dessert. Attendees are encouraged to bring homebrew or commercial beer to the event.

What is a Club Brew?

This year the event will take place at the home of Eric Moreau in El Segundo. Eric will be using his brew system to brew 10 gallons for the club.

For those who are new to PG, a Club Brew is a 1 batch brew, belonging to the club. The host uses his equipment and skill, and the club gets the beer. Of course, there is the opportunity to help the chief brewer, learn to use the equipment, drink beer, and eat.

EVENT TIME: 10am-6pm.
COMPETITION: Begins around 12:30.
WHERE: 1225 East Maple St. (West of Sepulveda), El Segundo