Wednesday, August 10, 2011

First Club Competition A Success!

The following is a summary of the evening, written by Bill D., who included the text below into an email to Geary's Brewing Co. in Portland, ME.

On Tuesday evening, August 09, Patrick Scanlon won the Geary's Pale Ale competition of the Indiana Pennsylvania Alesmiths (IPAs) homebrew club held at Ray Schamus's Pennsylvania Barbecue in Indiana, PA.

In April, 2011, Bill Dietrich, under the direction of president Nate McElroy, circulated copies of the recipe for the Geary's Pale Ale clone from "Clonebrews" ( T & M Szamatuiski, 1998, pg. 149). The objective was to have each member brew the same beer to see which came out best. Tom Montgomery of Montgomery Underground Winery, and our local homebrew supplier, made kits for both all-grain and extract brewers.

In all, there were thirteen brews to try plus a six pack of Geary's Pale Ale brought from the brewery on Bill's recent fishing trip to Maine.

The event was a success and all of the ales were very good. A first-time brewer and two brewers who had not brewed in a long time entered the competition. Twenty three beer enthusiasts tasted and voted for the best Geary's Pale Ale clone. The winner, Pat Scanlon, brewed an all-grain recipe on his home-built recirculating brew system. He was awarded a glass, some cozies and bottle opener from Geary's.

A good time was had by all.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

August Club Meeting - Our First Intraclub Competition!

On Tuesday, August 9, we will meet at PA BBQ (2045 S. 6th St.) at 8pm for the Indiana, Pennsylvania Alesmiths (IPAS) first ever intraclub homebrew competition.

In May, it was suggested by club member Bill D. that we should all brew the same recipe and have a big tasting to see how each of us approached brewing. Bill handed out a recipe for a rough clone of Geary's (both extract and all grain) and we decided to set August as D-Day (drinking day).

Not sure yet how many people took up the challenge, but probably at least 10 folks will be bringing their beer for tasting on Tuesday. Though we've been meeting at the Coney on a regular basis, club member Ray S. (owner of PA BBQ) offered to host this special event after the restaurant is closed for the evening. It promises to be an education!