Pacific Gravity Summer Party July 29, 2023

Greetings Pacific Gravity!

 

RED, WHITE and BREW
This year’s summer party is set for July 29, 2023 and will be held at Dean Sussman’s Highland’s home located at 1310 Amalfi Drive, Pacific Palisades.

 

The theme for this year’s summer party is the American BBQ! We’ll be spotlighting burgers, smash burgers and hotdogs.

However, this being a ‘bring a plate’ potluck event we want you to bring your favorite dish along to the event as well; any dish is welcome, feel free to bring all your American BBQ side dish classics.

The summer party is a volunteer’s event, and we need lots of Read more

Monster Brew and Yard Sale with Scholb Brewery

There are still spaces available for the Monster Brew with Scholb Brewery on August 5, 2023. Cost is $35 per batch.  This event works just like the Smog Monster Brews in the past.

Scholb Monsterbrew Full Details

They will also hold a Yard Sale for your unwanted homebrew equipment.  Even if you don’t want to get in on the wort, you can bring items to sell or buy.  Please note if you stuff doesn’t sell, you MUST take it back home afterwards.

Important Note:  If you want wort, you must sign up no later than Saturday, July 29th (Summer party day). You can order one or two 5-gallon batches. Sign up at:  https://forms.gle/QBQxqcSJLJdLN9c37

First Saturday July 1st, 2023 – Smog City Torrance

Greetings Pacific Gravity!

July’s First Friday is actually a First Saturday on the 1st of July. Porter has graciously agreed to host us this month at his Brewery and Taproom in Torrance at the 1901 Del Amo Blvd Location. We invite all PG members to come and joins as we support Jon Porter and Smog City as they have supported us throughout the years. Join us starting at 12:00pm

Location:

Smog City Brewing
1901 Del Amo Blvd.
Torrance, Ca. 90501

 

 

https://smogcitybrewing.com/
12pm

Food Trucks:
vchostruck.com
Baserriko Peppers

Pacific Gravity Club Meeting Thursday, June 15th at Tortugo Brewery

Greetings Pacific Gravity!

Our meeting this month will take place on Thursday, June 15th, 2023 at Tortugo
Brewing Co, located at 916 W Hyde Park Blvd, Inglewood, CA 90302.

We will get started about 7:30 PM.

June Monthly Meeting; Thursday 6/15/2023 at 7:30 PM
Tortugo Brewing Co.
916 W. Hyde Park Blvd.
Inglewood,  CA  90302
(424) 227-9963

 

Style of the Month is Pale Beer:
Carl will be hosting this months commercial Pale beer tasting. Please feel free to bring in any of your own homebrew Pale beers if you got them. Of course as always all home brew styles are welcome to share

Dues are DUE!!
The end of this month is your last chance to pay due without penalty, so if you have not had a chance yet, please take care of it. Please note that unpaid dues will need to be paid for entry into our Summer Party July 29th.. Please fill out the wavier as well if you have not already.

Individual Membership – Full 1-year Renewal
Couples Membership – Full 1-year Renewal
Prorated Membership – Partial year Renewal
Membership Application/Liability Waiver at the following link: https://forms.gle/f2xCjNBAp5qoJjFK8

AHA in San Diego: June 22th, 2023:
If you are planning on going to the AHA this year in San Diego, Please reach out to Carl.

Summer Party: July 29th, 2023
Our annual summer party is coming up and we are hoping you all can attend. With so much going on as AHA creeps up and on the heels of Temecula, We are seeking volunteers for both beer and event setup/breakdown. More details to come… in the meantime, let’s get brewing and fill our taps.

Monster Brew with Scholb Brewery: August 5, 2023

NEW Monsterbrew Info – Sign up Now

Once again, we did not get enough wort sales to hold the Smog Monster Brew, but Strand Brewers have set up a Monster Brew with Scholb Brewery on
August 5, 2023. Cost is $35. Scholb has a smaller brew system, so the event is less likely to be canceled.

They will also hold a Yard Sale for your unwanted homebrew equipment.

Sign-up are now open at  https://forms.gle/QBQxqcSJLJdLN9c37

It is gratifying that we have resumed gathering in person, but as always, we encourage and expect everyone will be vigilant about their own health to ensure the groups safety!  Please observe all safety precautions and stay home if you do not feel well.

We hope to see you all at our meeting!

 

Upcoming Styles of the Month

  • June – Pale Beers
  • July – Summer Party (All styles, All fermented Beverages welcome)
  • August – Wheat Beers
  • September – Festbiers and Amber lagers
  • October – IPAs
  • November – Amber and Brown Beers
  • December – Holiday Party

Upcoming Events

  • June 15: Club Meeting at Tortugo Brewing Company Styles includes any Pale Beers
  • June 22th – 24th: AHA in San Diego
  • July 1st or 8th First Saturday – Details TBD
  • July 29th – Pacific Gravity Summer Party 2023 – Get Brewing!
  • August 5th – Monster Brew at Scholb Brewery

Monster Brew Canceled, RIP Fred Waltman

I have two items of bad news, one considerably worse than the other.

It is with deep regret that I report the passing of our founder, Fred Waltman. Fred started Pacific Gravity with Steve LaBrie in 1995 after breaking off from the Woodland Hills-based Maltose Falcons.  He also founded the Culver City Homebrew Supply Company.
He remained passionate about beer with blogs, guides and travel writings that made many of us who knew him envious. He was our cat herder on the annual Europe trips and many of the folks he introduced us too remain friends to this day. Here is a picture of Fred along with his cousin Jim (left) at the Uerige brewery on Sticke day, 2010.

For those of you in the local area, we will hold an impromptu “Lift a Pint for Fred” memorial tomorrow night (June 2) at Firestone Propagator starting about 5 PM.  We will  also have a tribute to his memory at the June club meeting on June 15th at Tortugo Bowery.

Come join us, lift a pint to Fred’s memory.
— Ian Fraser

In other news,  we regret to announce that the Smog City Monster Brew scheduled for this Saturday, June 3rd has been canceled. We were unable to to sell enough batches to make it viable for Smog City (39 out of the 55 minimum needed).  For those of you who pre-paid via PayPal, you should have received separate notice of refunds. Please don’t show up at Smog City Saturday morning, no one will be there until their regular hours. Also, please share this information with anyone you know who might have been planning to join us.

As a heads up, planning is underway to hold a monster brew and yard sale at Scholb Brewery on August 5th, 2023, jointly hosted by Strand, Long Beach, So Cal Cerveceros, and Pacific Gravity brew clubs.  Look for details in the coming weeks.

Thanks
Craig Corley
Treasurer
Pacific Gravity Home Brewers Club

Pacific Gravity Club Meeting Thursday, May 18th at Tortugo Brewery

Greetings Pacific Gravity!

Our meeting this month will take place this Thursday, May 18th, 2023 at Tortugo Brewing Co, located at 916 W Hyde Park Blvd, Inglewood, CA 90302.

We will get started about 7:30 PM.

May Monthly Meeting; Thursday 5/18/2023 at 7:30 PM
Tortugo Brewing Co.
916 W. Hyde Park Blvd.
Inglewood, CA 90302
(424) 227-9963

Style of the Month is Specialty Beer:
Brian and Parker will be hosting this month and will be providing a handful of beers from their Bruery Collection. Please feel free to dust off those big beers, strange brews and finally crack those open to share. As always, please ensure that you have a safe ride home, especially with this tasting in mind, High ABV beers await you. All styles are welcome of course but May we will be exploring Specialty beers.

Smog City Monster Brew June 3rd, 2023
Do not forget the Smog City Monster Brew is just about 2 weeks away.

IMPORTANT NOTE: WE HAVE UNTIL MAY 29TH TO GET ENOUGH BATCHES RESERVED. IF WE DON’T RESERVE ENOUGH BATCHES WE MAY HAVE TO CANCEL…AGAIN

PLEASE SIGN UP NOW.

Porter has said we should not restrict to 2 batches per person, so feel free to go nuts. Note – due to a paypal quirk, you will need to sign up multiple times if you want multiple batches.
Don’t miss out – reserve you batch (or batches) now!!
(Details below)

Dues are DUE!!
The end of this month is your last chance to pay due without penalty, so if you have not had a chance yet, please take care of it.
(Details below)

It is gratifying that we have resumed gathering in person, but as always, we encourage and expect everyone will be vigilant about their own health to ensure the groups safety! Please observe all safety precautions and stay home if you do not feel well.

We hope to see you all at our meeting!

Smog City Monster Brew June 3rd
We are just over 2 weeks away from our 8th Monster Brew at Smog City Brewing Company with our gracious host, Brewmaster Porter (and lucky 13th if you count the ones he hosted previously at Tustin!). These events are always an unreasonably huge amount of fun, so please come join us!

Date: Saturday June 3rd, 2023
Time: ~7am Mash-In;
~12pm Fermenter filling
Location:
Smog City Brewing
1901 Del Amo Blvd
Torrance CA 90501
310-320-7664
If you have never participated in one of these Monster Brews, here is how it works:

Order wort ahead of time.
Purchase yeast and any ingredients desired for modification to the wort – I suggest supporting local South Bay Brewing Supply (call ahead to verify stock)
Arrive at the Monster Brew with a clean plastic or metal fermenter (NO GLASS!) which we will fill with UNFERMENTED wort.
Take it home and modify as desired and pitch your yeast
Ferment until ready for bottling or kegging

For this year’s batch, Porter will be using a base wort based on the ever popular Little Bo Pils that will allow for maximum creativity. Consider this your blank slate. For the hop heads, boost up the bitterness with your favorite English or American hop tea to make an awesome IPA, or darken it up with roasted malts to make a porter or stout. Use your imagination to make the most awesome beer ever. Each person will need to pitch a yeast of their choice, add adjuncts to the wort, dry hop in secondary, or do nothing special to it at all. To see the full recipe and for modification ideas, see Carl’s extensive “How Do I Modify My Monster Brew?”

COST and RESERVATIONS
We need a headcount BEFORE the brew session, so we can plan the batch size. You must make a reservation if you want wort. The cost will be $30 for each 5 gallons of wort. You can now order as many batches as you like (though due to a quirk paypal, you will need to sign up for each batch separately). If possible, please pay in advance. If you want wort but cannot attend the event, you may designate a buddy who can attend to collect your wort. (We do not have a delivery service.)

SIGN-UP
You can sign up one of two ways:

Pay now with Paypal. If you do this your reservation is good to go. [“Smog City Monster Brew 2023 Paypal”]
Drop a line to [email protected] saying how many batches you want. Payment will be due on brew day. We will accept payment at the Monster Brew: cash or check and will be accepted – NO CREDIT CARDS (though of course you will still be able to pay via the paypal link/QR code with credit card).

FERMENTERS
Bring a pre-sanitized PLASTIC or STAINLESS STEEL fermenters for each 5-gallon batch you purchase. Absolutely NO GLASS fermenters will be allowed in the brewery due to the risk of breakage. You may bring small glass vessels with yeast or other additions, however. Fermenters must have a wide opening for the filling nozzle. Plastic buckets are ideal, but Cornelius kegs are acceptable. Again, please do not bring any skinny-neck containers – we may not be able to fill it.

If there is wort left over at the end, we will hold a lottery to determine who may purchase an additional 5 gallon allotment. Bring an extra fermenter if you are interested.

WHAT IS NOT INCLUDED
Yeast and any additional ingredients you wish to add to your wort are not included. You can bring your yeast to the brewery, or pitch it at home. We recommend getting your supplies in advance. I suggest purchasing at South Bay Brewing Supply, which is also happens to be near the brewery if you need last-minute supplies on brew day, but of course supplies may be limited, so it’s better to plan ahead!

PARKING
Please park on the WEST side of the building to keep the tap room lot open.
The tap room will be opening to the public at noon.

FOOD
We will have coffee and some light breakfast snacks in the morning. Later on, the food trucks will be setting up in the parking lot. In addition, Porter will be supplying tasting samples of some of his fine brews mid-morning. Cut off time for free pours will be shortly before the tap room opens for business.
REMEMBER TO TIP YOUR BEERTENDER!!!

It’s Time to Do the Dues!
It’s May and that means after our meeting Late Fees kick in for dues. All club members need to pay their dues to keep their membership active until March 2024. Annual dues are $42 for individuals or $63 for couples and are prorated for members who joined the club within the last year.

Keep in mind that your dues are the primary way we fund such club activities as club parties, monthly meetings, club brews and much more. Your paid membership also ensures that you’ll continue to receive the many club benefits available, access to various brewing activities, discounts and information.

There are several ways you can renew your annual dues. Club Treasurer, Craig Corley will be collecting dues at the upcoming May club meeting and other upcoming club events. You can go old school and send Pacific Gravity a check to PO Box 2451, Culver City CA 90231. And for the ultimate in convenience, you can renew your dues online via the PayPal links below:
Individual Membership – Full 1-year Renewal
Couples Membership – Full 1-year Renewal
Prorated Membership – Partial year Renewal

Along with your dues renewal, we need all members to complete a Membership Application/Liability Waiver and in the case of couples memberships, we need this for both members. You can fill out and submit your Membership Application/Liability Waiver at the following link: https://forms.gle/f2xCjNBAp5qoJjFK8

All current club members should have gotten a renewal notice via email detailing their dues renewal amount and member information on file. This is a good opportunity to update our membership records, so please let Craig know of any changes to your member information (address, email, phone, etc) or include changes with your check/renewal form.

For any individual members who might be interested, the couples membership provides full membership status/benefits to both partners of a couple including membership cards, emails, etc. Note that the couples membership is optional, couples can continue with one partner being an individual member and the other being their guest. It’s an additional $21 to upgrade your individual membership to a couples membership and you’ll need to include your partner’s name and email along with your payment.

Have questions about your dues or how much you owe? Check with Craig at the upcoming club meeting or by email at [email protected].

Upcoming Styles of the Month

May – Specialty Beers
June – Pale Beers
July – Summer Party
August – Wheat Beers
September – Festbiers and Amber lagers
October – IPAs
November – Amber and Brown Beers
December – Holiday Party

Upcoming Events

May 29: Signup Deadline Smog city Monster Brew
June 3:: Monster Brew at Smog City! 7am to 1pm
June 15: Club Meeting at Tortugo Brewing Company Styles includes any Pale Beers
June 22th – 24th: AHA in San Diego
July 29th – Pacific Gravity Summer Party 2023 – Get Brewing!

Monster Brew Rescheduled to June 3rd

OK folks, looks like we get another chance!

Smog City Monster Brew – new date – Sat, June 3rd

I’m pleased to announce that we have a date for the rescheduled Smog City Monster Brew.  After consulting with Smog City, we’ve selected Saturday, June 3rd as the make-up date.  But, keep in mind we still need to get sign-up for at least 20 more batches to make this a viable event.  So please do not procrastinate, or this event might be canceled again!

For those of you who pre-paid and/or signed up before the prior April 29 date, you are automatically signed up for the rescheduled event. If new date doesn’t work for you, let me know and I’ll remove you from the list / issue a refund.

We still need to sell 55 batches to make this work. We only made it to 25 batches on the last try before canceling.

Please share the new date with anyone who might be interested. Full info on the Smog City Monster Brew can be found on our web site at:  http://pacificgravity.com/2023/04/smog-city-monster-brew-apr-29th-sign-up-now/

thanks
Craig Corley
Treasurer
Pacific Gravity Home Brewers Club

Smog City Monster Brew Now Scheduled for June 3 – Sign Up Now

We are now back on track for a Monster Brew at Smog City Brewing Company. This will be our 13th Monster Brew with Brewmaster, Jon Porter, going all the way back to his days at Tustin Brewing.  Everybody has a blast at these events, so please come out and join us!

Date:  Saturday, June 3, 2023
Time: Mash-In: Approx. 7:00 AM
Fermenter Filling:  Around Noon
Location:  Smog City Brewery 1901 Del Amo Blvd, Torrance, CA 90501

If you have never participated in a Monster Brew, here is how it works:
1)  Order wort ahead of time*.
2)  Bring a clean fermenter, which we will fill with UNFREMENTED wort.
3)  Take it home and add whatever yeast and other ingredients you like to customize the batch.
4)  Ferment until ready for bottling or kegging.

*For those of you who pre-paid and/or signed up before the prior April 29 date, you are automatically signed up for the rescheduled event. If new date doesn’t work for you, let me know and I’ll remove you from the list / issue a refund.

Read more

Pacific Gravity Club Meeting Thursday, April 20th at Tortugo Brewery

Greetings Pacific Gravity!
Our meeting this month will take place on April 20th, 2023 at Tortugo Brewing Co, located at 916 W Hyde Park Blvd, Inglewood, CA 90302.
We will get started about 7:30 PM.

March Monthly Meeting; Thursday 4/20/2023 at 7:30 PM

Tortugo Brewing Co.
916 W. Hyde Park Blvd.
Inglewood,  CA  90302
(424) 227-9963

Ziggy, Zaggy, Ziggy, Zaggy, Oi, Oi, Oi
Ok, well it’s not exactly Oktoberfest, but April’s style-of-the-month is German Beer!  Please bring your German Reinheitsgebot objects of liquid art, or modernized riffs on the classics.  Of course, as always, all styles are welcome, so just bring any homebrew you would like to share!
Also, this meeting will be the awards ceremony for our legendary Los Angeles Belgian Brew Challenge competition.  Many thanks to (in no particular order – well, except for Carl, because, come on…) Carl, Eric, Tim, Ian, Craig, Joe, Torrie, Terry, Luis and Parker for making it all happen!
We will also be discussing the monster brew and the so-cal homebrew fest.

Smog City Monster Brew April 29
Do not forget the Smog City Monster Brew is just over a week away!
IMPORTANT NOTE:  IF WE DON’T RESERVE ENOUGH BATCHES, WE MAY HAVE TO CANCEL.  PLEASE SIGN UP NOW
Porter has said we should not restrict to 2 batches per person, so feel free to go nuts.  Note – due to a paypal quirk, you will need to sign up multiple times if you want multiple batches.
Don’t miss out – reserve you batch (or batches) now!!
See full details here

Dues are DUE!!
The end of this month is your last chance to pay due without penalty, so if you have not had a chance yet, please take care of it.
Renew you dues here

Southern California Homebrew Festival May 5-6
Also, do not forget the Southern California Homebrew festival is just over 2 weeks away!
We will have a sign-up sheet for kegs if you plan to serve them at the fest.  Or you can also send Carl an email at [email protected]
(Details below)

It is gratifying that we have resumed gathering in person, but as always, we encourage and expect everyone will be vigilant about their own health to ensure the groups safety!  Please observe all safety precautions and stay home if you do not feel well.

We hope to see you all at our meeting!

Parker Waechter, Vice President

Upcoming Styles of the Month

  • April – German Beers
  • May – Specialty Beers
  • June – Pale Beers
  • July – Summer Party
  • August – Wheat Beers
  • September – Festbiers and Amber lagers
  • October – IPAs
  • November – Amber and Brown Beers
  • December – Holiday Party

Upcoming Events

April First Friday, April 7th at O’Brien’s Pub

Greetings Pacific Gravity!
Our First Friday this month on April 7th, 2023 will be at O’Brien’s Irish Pub located at 2226 Wilshire Blvd. Santa Monica CA 90403
We will get started about 7:00 PM.April First Friday: Friday 4/7/2023 at 7:00 PMO’Brien’s Irish Pub
2226 Wilshire Blvd.
Santa Monica CA 90403
310-829-5303Greetings PG!
April’s First Friday is upon us and, as opposed to the last bunch, we are actually holding it on a Friday!
Come join the fun at O’Brien’s!  They have a section of the bar set aside for us near the front door for 10-15 people, and they plan on tapping a keg of pFriem IPA for us (from Hood River, Oregon).Please don’t forget the Smog City Monster Brew and Southern California Home Brewers Festival (details below).

It still bears repeating that though the plague of Covid has definitely slowed down, we encourage and expect everyone will be vigilant about their own health to ensure the groups safety!  Please observe all safety precautions and stay home if you do not feel well.

We hope to see you all there!

Parker Waechter, Vice President

Smog City Monster Brew

Don’t forget the Monster brew at Smog City Saturday, April 29, 2023 7am – 1pm is just a few short weeks away!
It is a morning of behind-the-scenes brew-geekery at Smog City with Porter and one of his brewers, then taking home 5 gallons of wort to modify and ferment yourself which is not to be missed.  Here are some suggestions on how one might modify one’s monster brew.

This is one of the premier club events of the year!

$30 for 5 gallons of wort, limit 2 batches.
Reserve your batch(es) at https://py.pl/2HGRfr :

It is a very accessible way for a new brewer to experience the process – Bring your own pre-sanitized plastic or metal fermenter (absolutely no glass!) with a wide opening which will be filled with unfermented wort when it is ready.  Take it home and modify as much or as little as desired, pitch yeast and wait for it to be beer!

Please note that this event will be doubling as an early “First Saturday” for May, since the First Friday/Saturday in May will be the Southern California Homebrewers Festival.

Southern California Homebrew Festival

The Southern California Homebrewer Festival will be here before you know it, so reserve your spot today! We still have some tent camping slots available at Camp-PG for $35 per camper for the weekend. Sign up now by contacting Terry Molloy at [email protected].

DON’T FORGET to buy your admission into the festival itself. The longer you wait, the more it costs. You must do this ahead of time – admission can NOT be purchased at the gate.

FAQs:
FAQ #1: If I pay $35 to stay at Camp-PG, am I automatically admitted into the Fest?
Answer: No!! The Camp-PG only reserves a place for you to camp with your fellow PG members over the weekend. This does not cover festival admission, food or any other expenses.

FAQ #2; How can I purchase admission to the Southern CA Homebrewers Festival?
Answer: EACH attendee must follow these simple steps:
1) Go to the California Homebrewers Association website www.calhomebrewers.org
2) If you are already a registered member of the CHA and have a password, sign in, skip to #3.
a. To Register, select “Register” on the Menu line.
b. Fill in the form on the right hand side of the page.
c. Select the “Register” button
d. Note: each attendee must sign up using a unique email address.
3) Select SHOP from the Menu
a. Select Membership / SCHF from the Drop-down menu
b. Add the $10 Membership fee to your cart.
c. Check out using the PayPal site.
4) After you are redirected to the main page, Select SHOP (again)
a. Select Membership / SCHF from the Drop-down menu (again)
b. Add Southern California Homebrewers Festival Admission to your cart ($50 through 1/31, increases $5 every month)
c. Check out using the PayPal site.
5) Check your email to confirm CHA Membership and Fest Admission.
6) Log off CHA website
7) Prepare for a fantastic weekend of sampling brews from over 35 Homebrewers Clubs from around Southern/Central California and Nevada.

FAQ #3: Will there be food available?
1) Rumor has it that Chef Ian is pondering a menu that will be available for an extra fee.
2) Food trucks will be at the Festival on Saturday, you are on your own Friday and Sunday (pending Ian’s final menu).
3) You can set up your own camp-kitchen and cook your own meals.

FAQ #4: Can I bring kegs to serve at the fest?
Yes!! but please e-mail Carl at [email protected] with the Name, Style and ABV% for each keg.  We need to plan out the tap space.  In addition, you will get a festive tap tag for each keg.

Upcoming Styles of the Month

  • April – German Beers
  • May – Specialty Beers
  • June – Pale Beers
  • July – Summer Party
  • August – Wheat Beers
  • September – Festbiers and Amber lagers
  • October – IPAs
  • November – Amber and Brown Beers
  • December – Holiday Party

Upcoming Events