July Meeting 2023 - 20/7/23 Present: Andrew Rostas, Craig Grant, Nigel Hayes, Jeremy Dell, Adam & Sam Walker, Jodie & Stephen McLean, Jake Rowland, Justin Samuels, David Pontin, David Lamotte, Stu Farrelly, Adam Craig: President’s welcome.  Recap of new and continuing committee members: Craig Grant taking over as club President Andrew continues as Secretary/Treasurer Stephen & Jodie McLean - Events/Activities Officer(s)  David Lamotte (continuing) Nigel Hayes - Education Officer(s) David Pontin & Justin Samuels - Comms/Social Media HUB Comp wrap up: Generally positive feedback from all involved. The club managed to make a profit! Which is always a good thing!  Big thanks to all involved in organising and running the event. Next Month’s Meeting is at Foghorn.  Reminder: please don't bring any homebrew for consumption at the venue. Shaun wants to know what topic - yeast blending has been suggested. Looking forward: Bitter n’ Twisted - coming up • 1 keg of beer = 1 ticket • We need helpers and beers • There will be rosters and jobs so keep an eye out. Don't forget RSAs - Andrew will send around an email to those who don’t have their RSA details registered with HUB. Other Business: Next Saturday Eastern Brewers comp 29th - more details coming if they require assistance. The committee has spoken to Grainfed about hosting, just need a date - J&S McLean to confirm Xmas party looking into the first week of December - J&S McLean to confirm  Club fees are due $60 - bank details have been on the last few HUB invite emails.  They are the same as they have been for some time.  Contact Andrew via hunterunitedbrewers@gmail.com (mailto:hunterunitedbrewers@gmail.com)if you need them. Technical Presentation: Nigel Hayes: SMaSH beer plus 1 - Looking forward to the next brew challenge  July Stout Brew Challenge: 7 Stouts presented.  Places were voted: 1st - Jake Rowland 2nd - Justin Samuels 3rd - Nigel Hayes Well done everyone!

Present: 18 people. Petinna, Nigel, Robert, Brendan, Craig, Adam, Scott, Ben, Daniel I, Phil, Unknown, David, Andrew, Tim, Jodie, Steve Appologies: David Lamotte Brendan: State Comp nearly wrapped up. Thanks to all committee members for their assistance. Need to finalise a few physical and digital prizes. Uber Brewery tour has been postponed - more details to come at a later date. Bitter and Twisted Organisers confirmed with us in May but we haven’t heard anything until around 3 weeks ago. We would like a revised list of beers for Bitter n Twisted, 1 week out (Phil has sent this email out - please fill in details ASAP) Tim, brewed a Strawberry Blonde for his wife’s birthday as part of a charity “Miss October” against domestic abuse. This will be a media interest story for the club. Dave Lamote has also sent through a history about HUB involvement with Morpeth Beer Festival. Member’s List is also required - please fill in if you are attending with (“RSA” or “No RSA”) next to your name. This is also in the email Phil sent out. 3 education sessions (11:00am, 12:30pm & 2pm) on Saturday 10am - 6pm, 3 sessions on Sunday 10am - 4pm You be the judge: Brief style guides, how to judge/evaluate beer, 5 homebrew examples Commercial examples (Pale Ale, IPA, Euro Sours) When signing up for jobs, please indicate if you have an RSA Tas and Rob have volunteered to assist with Friday setup + Keg Collection Thomas has said he can store some kegs at Thirsty Massiah before pickup - drop off time TBC 100mm x 100mm label for the jockey box for your beer. Please make sure you submit a design to HUB email and Brendan has kindly volunteered to print it off. Labels sell the beer! If you are behind the stall, please don’t drink while you are there. Organisers will be cracking down on RSA practices There will be a serving roster for both days. Please ensure that we cover ALL periods of the day. See if we can offer to help with other breweries throughout the day. Xmas Party booked on 3rd December from 12pm - 5pm with exact time to be finalised. We would appreciate any assistance with organising the xmas party. Food - Costco platters etc Beer (commercial or homebrew) You Be The Judge - 4 winners Style Appreciatoin - Amber Bitter European Beer: Vienna Lager 7A, Altbier 07B & Kellerbier 27 Burnley Brewing - Vienna Lager Burnley Brewing - Altbier Weinstephanen kellerbier

Present: Brendan, Andrew, Craig, Adam, Rob, Thomas, Brain, Jake, Jodie, Stephen, Sam, David, State comp was a success. Let's not do 2 comps back to back again. Look at perhaps moving HUB comp earlier in the year as it was too close to State. Bitter and Twisted Form up for beers you are going to brew for BnT. Please fill out the form if you are planning to brew something. BnT organising committee is a little different so we are waiting on details as to our involvement in the festival. Details to come. Members who brew a keg of beer for the festival get free entry. Register your beer here. N.B. RSA is required if you want to pour beer. Reminder, the club will subsidize the cost of getting your RSA by $50. Don't leave RSA too late if you want to get it. You Be The Judge - October meeting. Bring in a beer that you would like to have judged. This is essentially a popularity contest. No styles, just put your best beer forward. N.B. Due to the limited time between the October meeting and BnT, please make sure that you have at least 6L in reserve should your beer be selected to be featured at BnT. Uber brewery tour, mid-October. Date to be advised soon. 16th October tentative date. November Meeting December Meeting is Xmas 4th December Cardiff South. Family members are invited. Mix of commercial and homebrew beers. Club will reimburse the cost of a brew should you wish brew something. Warners at the Bay beer festival 23rd October. Off flavour training pt2 Continued tasting off-flavours using the taint kit. Off flavours included: Papery Ethyl Hexanoate DMS, and ethyl acetate

Present: Brad (prospective member), Andrew Rostas, Brendan Clarke, David Pontin, Andrew Palmer, Allan, Daniel Ivey, Brian, Nigel, Phil The organising committee have decided that we'll phase out the Zoom meetings and move to fully in person meetings by around the middle of the year. We feel that it is not paying off for the number of people utilising calling in via zoom. While it has been useful to keep the club going through lock-downs, it is a poor substitute for actually coming together as a community and sharing each other’s company and craft. Brew comp date. Proposed date of Saturday 4th June, 2022. Closing date 10 days before. Change of venue this year to Thirsty Messiah, Broadmeadow. Thomas Delgato is very keen to play host for the comp and we are excited for the change. Minutes will now be posted on the Hunter United Brewers website as forum posts. This way, only registered members of the website will be able to access them. If you want to read past minutes you will be able to find them here. New HUB event coming up. Local independent beer venue crawl. Possible venues include: Rogue Scholar, Thirsty Massiah, Method Brewing, Grainfed, Shout, Carro Park Bowling Club, Meantime, and more. There are of course the well established venues such as Foghorn, Grain Store, Modus etc but the club feels that it should support the smaller guys. Suggesting approx 5 venues. Dates to be put forward as a pole. Rather than booking buses, etc. We plan to put out a rough itinerary and get RSVPs so we can book tables. Club members will Uber (or similar) between venues and the club will reimburse travel to club members. Stroud brew comp - any details? Brew challenge coming up - Dave Lamotte has imported some new Yakaima Valley hops to use in a brew challenge. Details to be confirmed before the next meeting. Covid has changed people's behaviours. The organising committee has been discussing options about what day of the week is best for members to meet and the potential of a switch of venue. We will put out a survey to all financial members to get member feedback before changing anything. Tech Talk: Theoretical Introduction To Distillation And The Differences To Beer Brewing, presented by Andrew Rostas Members brought some homebrew to taste: Pilsner - Phil Imp Stout - Andrew

Present: Brendan Clarke, Andrew Rostas, Craig Grant, Brian, Rob C, Andrew Palmer, Dave Lamotte, Phil Coleman, Jake Rowland, David Pontin, Trent Maier, Craig Brockwell Brendan: Newcastle is back in lockdown Stewart Upton from Sydney had approached HUB to see if we would be interested in hosting a statewide comp. We had decided to decline. 2nd year that NSW state comp has not been run. A reminder that membership fees are due. Bitter and twisted is still on at the moment - we haven’t heard anything You Be The Judge: May need to do things differently this year. 8L of beer required per beer Forum post for You Be The Judge on website Forum post for the kegs for bitter and twisted Style Appreciation 22B

HUB Meeting: September Date: 17/9/21 Present: David Pontin, Andrew Rostas, Craig Grant, David Lamotte, Robert Cornege, Jake Rowland, Rob Donaldson, Andrew Palmer, Phil Coleman, Brandan Clarke Meeting Start: 7:42pm Tech Talk - Dave and Craig on Yeast No news RE: Bitter and Twisted Xmas party is hopefully going ahead but waiting to get more information. BJCP Adjudicator - will go ahead shortly but awaiting more info and availability to book in exam dates.

Meeting Summary 20/8/21 - Online only via Zoom Present: Brendan Clarke, Andrew Rostas, Craig Grant, Brian, Rob C, Andrew Palmer, Dave Lamotte, Phil Coleman, Jake Rowland, David Pontin, Trent Maier, Craig Brockwell Brendan (club president): Newcastle is back in lockdown Stewart Upton from Sydney had approached HUB to see if we would be interested in hosting a statewide comp. We had decided to decline. 2nd year that NSW state comp has not been run. A reminder that membership fees are due. Bitter and twisted is still on at the moment - we haven’t heard anything You Be The Judge: May need to do things differently this year. 8L of beer required per beer Forum post for You Be The Judge on website Forum post for the kegs for bitter and twisted Style Appreciation 22B - Strong Ale 22B - American Strong Ale Vital Statistics OG 1.062 – 1.090 FG 1.014 – 1.024 IBU 50 – 100 SRM (7 – 19) EBC (13.8-37.4) ABV 6.3% - 10.0% Description Aroma: Medium to high hop aroma, most often presenting citrusy or resiny notes although characteristics associated with other American or New World varieties may be found (tropical, stone fruit, melon, etc.). Moderate to bold maltiness supports hop profile, with medium to dark caramel a common presence, bready or toasty possible and background notes of light roast and/or chocolate noticeable in some examples. Generally exhibits clean to moderately fruity ester profile. Moderate alcohol aromatics may be noticeable, but should not be hot, harsh, or solventy. Appearance: Medium amber to deep copper or light brown. Moderate-low to medium-sized off-white to light tan head; may have low head retention. Good clarity. Alcohol level and viscosity may present “legs” when glass is swirled. Flavor: Medium to high dextrinous malt with a full range of caramel, toffee, dark fruit flavors. Low to medium toasty, bready, or Maillard-rich malty flavors are optional, and can add complexity. Medium-high to high hop bitterness. The malt gives a medium to high sweet impression on the palate, although the finish may be slightly sweet to somewhat dry. Moderate to high hop flavor. Low to moderate fruity esters. The hop flavors are similar to the aroma (citrusy, resiny, tropical, stone fruit, melon, etc.). Alcohol presence may be noticeable, but sharp or solventy alcohol flavors are undesirable. Roasted malt flavors are allowable but should be a background note; burnt malt flavors are inappropriate. While strongly malty on the palate, the finish should seem bitter to bittersweet. Should not be syrupy and under-attenuated. The aftertaste typically has malt, hops, and alcohol noticeable. Mouthfeel: Medium to full body. An alcohol warmth may be present, but not be excessively hot. Any astringency present should be attributable to bold hop bitterness and should not be BJCP Beer Style Guidelines – 2015 Edition 43 objectionable on the palate. Medium-low to medium carbonation. Impression: A strong, full-flavored American ale that challenges and rewards the palate with full malty and hoppy flavors and substantial bitterness. The flavors are bold but complementary and are stronger and richer than average strength pale and amber American ales. Comments: A fairly broad style that can describe beers labeled in various ways, including modern Double/Imperial Red/Amber Ales and other strong, malty-but-hoppy beers that aren’t quite in the Barleywine class. Diverse enough to include what may be viewed as a strong American Amber Ale with room for more interpretations of other “Imperial” versions of lower gravity American Ale styles. Many “East Coast” type IPAs might fit better in this category if they have considerable crystal malt or otherwise more of a malty-sweet finish. Ingredients: Well-modified pale malt as a base; some character malts would be appropriate, medium to dark crystal malts are typical. Citrusy or piney American hops are common, although any American or New World varieties can be used in quantity, provided they do not clash with the malt character. Generally uses an attenuative American yeast. Commercial Examples: Bear Republic Red Rocket Ale, Great Lakes Nosferatu, Terrapin Big Hoppy Monster, Port Brewing Shark Attack Double Red, Stone Arrogant Bastard, Commercial examples we chose were: Mismatch Brewing Co - Red Rye IPA 7.0% Kaigu - Betelgeuse 10% White Bay - Rusted On Red IPA 7.9% All were pretty good examples of the style. To accompany the style appreciation, we had an online trivia created by Craig Grant on Kahoot. The winner received a refund of the commercial value of the beers being tasted. The winner was David Pontin; congrats! We'll be in contact to organise your prize!

It was a small turnout on a cold winter's evening. However, there were some new faces who came along which was great to see. Minutes Present: Brendan Clarke, Craig Grant, Andrew Rostas, David Pontin, Dave Lamotte, Stu Farrelly (potential member) and Jake Rowland (new member) HUB Bus trip to Caseys and Mountain Culture has been postponed due to COVID situation. Once things settle down, we will be looking to re-book this. Brendan discussed options for Bitter and Twisted: - Organisers are keen for us to brew a beer for their 15th birthday featuring one or more of three key ideas: locally sourced jail honey, locally sourced mulberries and/or birthday cake. Andrew has suggested brewing a beer of his (Black Forest Cake Imperial Stout) which should cover mulberries and cake. We talked about how many kegs we would need and the possibility of brewing multiple kegs of it so we had enough for both days. (Description below). There was talk about other possibilities for beers to brew including mulberry sour, short mead, melomel, and others. - In addition to these special 15th birthday beers, we will be putting up a form for members to nominate beers that they would like to brew to be served at our stall at Bitter and Twisted. - The organisers would also like HUB to undertake public education sessions for the general public. We have held a "You Be the Judge" mini comp in the past as well as some style appreciation/guided tastings of commercial beers. - Financial members of the club who assist with the running of the HUB stall receive free entry to the festival (an RSA is required in order to help to serve the alcohol - HUB rebates $50 towards the cost of members acquiring their RSA). - Annual fees of $60 are now due. Please make sure you pay to the HUB account (details found on July meeting email. Bitter n Twisted - Anniversary Birthday Cake Beer Black Forest Cake Imperial Stout In honour of this year's Bitter n Twisted Beer Festival being the 15th Anniversary Edition, Hunter United Brewers will be serving a very special birthday inspired Black Forrest Cake Beer. Black in colour like its namesake, this beer celebrates the decadent and rich flavours of a black forest cake; by combining a rich blend of base malts, speciality malts and special ingredients to create a bold, sweet and chocolatey malt backbone. The addition of lactose representing whipped cream and ripe seasonal berries (cherries, sour cherries & mulberries) will add a full mouthfeel and sweet, caramel flavour to compliment this dessert of dessert beers Tech Talk - Craig Grant gave a tech talk on Digital Hydrometers.