Strand Brewers ClubBrewing the Best Damn Beer

2014 Anchor Brewing Co.California Homebrew Club of the Year

Entry

Inside….

• Who is the Strand Brewers Club?

• A nod to our beginnings

• Summary of the accomplishments of the Biggest Small Club in the Los Angeles South Bay

• The Strand Brewers Club – your 2014 Homebrew Club of the Year

The Strand Brewers Club

In 1991, six friends led by Pete Chin Sang sought out to learn about brewing their favorite beverage and formed the Strand Brewers Club in the South Bay of Los Angeles

Pete’s enthusiasm for brewing education is the foundation of the club

Originally meetings were at members’ homes where recipes and brewing experiences were shared and documented in the “Dribbles from the Glass” newsletter and occasionally in a longer version “Dregs from the Keg”

“The Dregs” went monthly in 1996 and is jointly produced by the officers and members

SBC continues to publish “The Dregs” and maintains an online electronic archive of 95% of all past issues. In addition, we have an active Facebook group to supplement the website.

In 2011 the SBC moved their meetings to South Bay Brewing Supply, Torrance, CA which opened in 2010

Remembering Pete Chin Sang

Every meeting begins with a toast: “Chin Sang!”

To Pete! For defining the club’s culture which continues to this day

The club remains true to Pete’s vision to:

Brew the best damn beer!Share knowledge about the art and science of brewing within

the homebrewing community--from local to international.Promote the craft of brewing to the general publicSupport and participate in all aspects of brewing

competitions

2014 Accomplishments

• Philanthropy • Donated to Hannah’s Voice and Make a Wish foundation• Poured at Crafted at the port of Los Angeles benefitting the San Pedro Art Association• Donated beer to a local church’s spring Fiesta fundraiser

• Outreach to Los Angeles area Homebrew Clubs and Homebrewers• Hosted a monster brew with five different club and non-club participants ranging from The

San Fernando Valley to Alhambra to Long Beach• Hand delivered multiple clubs entries to California State Homebrew Competition and the

California State Fair Homebrew Competition• Hosted a bus trip with members of at least five clubs attending

• Brewing the best damn beer• Hosted tasting sessions to prepare for a BJCP taste exam• Focused on brewing education at every meeting

• Iron Brew competitions• Single variable recipe variation (SMaSH)• Educational presentations on mash temp and attenuation

• Competed and judged many homebrew competitions from as far away as Tehachapi to as close as the Pacific Brewers Cup (PBC)

Philanthropy

Philanthropy to the Los Angeles Craft Beer Community

The Strand Brewers Club is honored to support the following organizations and companies who have helped to fuel the craft beer movement in Los Angeles as well as having been early supporters of the homebrewing community.

$200.00 to I am Hannah’s Voice to raise awareness of Selective Mutism in support of a Strand Brewing Company founder Joel Elliot’s daughter

Joel Elliot’s daughter was diagnosed with Selective Mutism but denied special education at her public school. (More here: http://youtu.be/HOhxWjzAbIE)The Strand Brewing Company owners are ex-Strand Brewers Club members and were one of the first craft breweries in the South Bay setting the bar for other South Bay breweries to reach

$200.00 to Make a Wish Foundation on behalf of Sam Samaniego Stuffed Sandwich is a foundation of the Los Angeles Craft beer community importing and featuring craft beer before it was popular and creating interest in quality beer

Both companies have been top sponsors for the annual Pacific Brewers Cup homebrew competition

Donating Beer to support Non-Profits

AB1425 and later AB1269 passed in 2014 enabling Strand Brewers to donate homebrew to support the community

Strand Brewers embraced this opportunityDonated 10 gallons of beer to our Lady of Guadalupe in April of 2014 benefitting the schoolPoured more than 9 different beer styles and 13 meads at Crafted at the Port of Los Angeles helping to raise over $1000 for the San Pedro Art Association

•Outreach to LA area Homebrew Clubs and Homebrewers

LA Beer Week Monster BrewHosted a Monster Brew during LA Beer week withKing Harbor Brewery

Over 50 homebrewers in attendanceFive homebrew clubs represented including:

Crude Brew CrewLong Beach Homebrew ClubMaltose FalconsPacific GravityStrand Brewers Club

Connected homebrewers with clubs in their areaParticipants arrived from locations as far away as the San Fernando Valleyto Alhambra and Long Beach

Bus Trip to the AHA rally in San DiegoIn addition to the AHA rally visited Lost Abbey and White Labs

Over 40 homebrewers in attendance with five homebrew clubs representedPacific GravityLong Beach Homebrew ClubStrand Brewers ClubMaltose Falcons Yeastside

White Labs provides an educational component to the day

Brewing the Best Beer

BJCP Taste Exam

A Strand Brewers Club member is Proctoring a BJCP taste Exam on 12/6

As preparation for the taste exam practice meetings have been held throughout the year

About 20 prospective judges from local clubs attended sessions:Judging mouthfeelScottish and Irish alesSensory perception with 24 samples, including off-flavors

Brewing Education

Meetings includes an educational aspect – a presentation by a member, a guest speaker, or a structured tasting

This year we have covered the following topics:Single variable recipe variation

12 different pale ales with different dry hopping at the April meetingBase grain with a single specialty grain at the June meetingCarbonation level at the November meeting

Tasting of BJCP styles 3B, 11a, 11c, 12a-c, 13a-e, 16dAttenuationMash temperature effects on beerSaison tasting and BJCP style discussionSmoked beer tasting (BJCP styles and experimental)

Iron Brew CompetitionsSince 2012, Strand Brewers Club has hosted 3 “Iron Brewer” Competitions per year

Inspired by the “Iron Chef” TV show, 3 random ingredients are selected: one hop variety, one specialty grain or adjunct, and one fruit/spice/herb/vegetable that must be used in crafting a beerThe goal is to promote creativity, brew outside of traditional styles, and learn the character of specific ingredientsIn 2014, the ingredients were:

Round 7: Calypso Hops, Special B, and CoconutRound 8: Tettnang Hops, Victory, and HazelnutRound 9: Willamette Hops, Marris Otter, and Coffee

Tasting and judging occur quarterly

Competitions

In 2014, Strand members have brought home over 16 competition medals

Highlights include an NHC first round 1st place(Note: detailed list included as a separate spreadsheet)

25% of the club are BJCP certified including a GM II and Associate Exam Director who is the highest ranking judge south of Santa Barbara and west of Georgia

This year we have judged and stewarded competitions ranging from Tehachapi to the Pacific Brewers Cup

Every year an intra-club competition for homebrew of the year is held with points awarded for:

Winning homebrew competitionsContributing knowledge to the club in presentations or Dregs articlesSharing homebrew or hosting a homebrewing session

Barrel Aging

Cabernet Barrel AgedDark Sour Ale Solera ProjectIn early 2011, a club member acquired a recently emptied 55 gallon Cabernet Wine Barrel (Minnesota Oak) from San Antonio winery

Several members had an interest in sour and wild fermentations, so we decided to brew a Strong Dark Cabernet Sour Ale a la Russian River Consecration.

Over 2 separate group brewing sessions, 4-5 members brewed batches of the same Belgian Dark Strong Ale recipe and fermented with WLP530Separate cultures of Wyeast Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, Brettanomyces Bruxellensis, and Brettanomyces Lambicus were grown (with a lot of help and advice from Jess Claudill at Wyeast) to a slurry of several gallonsAfter primary fermentation in April 2011 all the batches and the microbes were blended in the barrel

Strand Brewers Club has maintained the barrel with a Solera method topping off with fresh wort when needed.

Two versions of the sour were poured at crafted Over 20 gallons of wort added to the barrel this year alone

The beer placed 1st at the 2012 Pacific Brewers Cup in Category 16 (entered as 16E), out of 40 entries (the most entered category) and continues to be a favorite with local homebrewers and professional brewers alike

Over 10% of club members maintain their own smaller barrels and produce sour beers

Conclusion

Strand Brewers are the 2014CA Club of the Year Because…

We are a relatively small club that has thrived for 23 years

We promote brewing knowledge and support the home brewing community at all levels – locally to internationally

We promote home brewing to the greater public community and inspire them to start brewing or at least gain an appreciation for craft

We actively compete in, judge at, and help run local competitions

“We brew the best damn beer!”