Top WAHA News - April-May 2011 Print
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Written by Mark Emiley   
Monday, 04 April 2011 19:30

We're in the spring homebrew homestretch!  It has been a fantastic spring.  We've hopped our heads off at the GEBL Hop Madness, Exbeerienced the Cascade Brewers Cup, been down to Joint Base Lewis McChord for a Brewfest, and judged a ton of great beers at the first round of the National Homebrew Competition.  But we aren't done!!!

We've got a few more events going through April that we want you to be a part of!  We have Jess Caudil from Wyeast Labs coming down to Big Al's to talk about yeast and Berliner Weisse.  Then we've got the Parkway Tavern Am-Pro for a shot to have your beer brewed to be served at the Parkway Tavern in Tacoma.  And finally we have the Puget Sound Pro-Am where you can enter to have a chance to have your recipe brewed by one of 15 breweries and have a chance to go to the GABF Pro-Am competition.  We want you all to be a part of these events (and if you are a judge, judge a few more to wrap up the spring competition seaon).

Keep reading for details on all of these events.  You can always check the 2011 WAHA planning calendar for everything major going on in homebrewing.  (You can follow the links through this article for more information on the various topics).  We know the following list is a bit absurd, but we want as much help from everyone to make these events successful!

Upcoming Events:

April 8th - Wyeast Educational Speaker
April 10th - Seattle BJCP Exam
April 17th - Parkway Tavern Am-Pro Comp
April 30th - Puget Sound Pro-Am Comp
May 7th - BIG BREW!!!

WAHA Events

Educational Speaker-Wyeast
April 8th

NEW - WYEAST EDUCATIONAL SPEAKER TO BE WEBCAST AND WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO TAKE QUESTIONS ONLINE!  If you can't make it in person, tune in here at 7:00 pm: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/waha-broadcasts 

The Washington Homebrewers Association would like to invite all homebrewers and beer lovers to hear the fifth speaker of the WAHA's Educational Speaker Program - Jess Caudill of Wyeast Laboratories.  Last year's talk was a great success and Wyeast has agreed to come back and talk some more.

Come to Big Al Brewing on April 8th to hear Jess speak about Berliner Weisse fermenting microbes and answer all of your yeast questions and answers. Admission is free and the event is open to all homebrewers and beer lovers.  We ask that people RSVP in advance at http://tinyurl.com/wyeasttalk. If you home some around, please bring a few bottles of homebrew for Jess as a token of our thanks!

Event Details:
Date: Friday, April 8th, 2010
Time: 7:00 pm
Location: Big Al Brewery
9832 14th Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98106
(206) 453-4487

Webcast can be viewed here: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/waha-broadcasts

Other Washington Homebrewing Events

Parkway Tavern Am-Pro
Big Beers Competition 

Entries due April 10th, Judging April 17th

Do you brew great big beers?  Here's your chance to have your homebrew recipe selected to be brewed and served on tap at the Parkway Tavern in Tacoma.  Entries are due April 10th at several locations in the Tacoma area.  Judging will be April 17th so come on down and help judge.  Entries are $5 each and require 3 10-12 oz bottles.  Find out more information about the competition here.

Puget Sound Pro-Am
Competition
- GABF Pro-Am Qualifier
15 Breweries!

Entries due April 26th, Judging April 30th

This is the country's largest GABF Pro-Am qualifying competition with as many as 15 breweries selecting homebrew recipes to scale up (more breweries still being added!)  Last year the PSPA sent 12 of the country's entries into the GABF Pro-Am and brought home the gold medal in 2008! 

This is an AHA/BJCP sanctioned competition and WHOTY qualifier aimed at providing award winning homebrew recipes to be brewed by Puget Sound breweries with the goal of capturing a medal from the Great American Beer Festival’s Pro-Am Competition.  The Puget Sound Pro-Am is unique in that it will have FIFTEEN breweries looking for their favorite homebrew beers to scale up and brew on their systems.  Winning beers of AHA members may be sent on to the GABF for a shot at national glory! 

Start dreaming and brewing up your entries today!  Check the competition website at http://www.bewbc.org/pro-am for the latest details including participating breweries, desired styles, contest rules, and links to online registration.  Entries (three 10-12 oz brown bottles) are due April 26th with an entry fee of $6 per entry (several drop-off locations accepting entries beginning in early April).  Judging will be held on April 30th at Larry’s Brewing Supply in Kent (if you are interested in judging, stewarding, or helping with event execution, contact Mark Emiley or register online on the website through the same link that allows you to register beers and volunteer as a judge).  Winners will be selected in the weeks following with a webcast announcement planned on May 8th.  To have the best shot of having your beer brewed, you need to be an AHA member by the time of the competition, so join today!  Invite your friends to join the AHA and submit beers as well (all beers will be judged and ranked regardless of AHA membership).  Good luck!

Other Washington Homebrewing News

National Homebrewers Conference Participation

The 2011 National Homebrewers Conference will be held in San Diego, CA from June 16th - 18th.  Washington plans to make a strong showing and we hope that you'll be a part of it.  BREW, GEBL, and the WAHA will be hosting tables at club night.  Registration for the conference is open and hotel space is running out.  Go to www.ahaconference.org for all of the details you need.

The WAHA is helping with coordination before the conference.  You can go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WAHAAHAConf2011/ and sign us as a part of our group.  We'll work together to figure out shipping down kegs and equipment, help people find roommates, and make sure Washington has a great showing down in California.  Get registered and signed up today!

BJCP Exams

The WAHA has been working to coordinate a bunch of BJCP exams for people interesting in taking the beer judging exam.  There are still tests scheduled in in April and May.  For those interested in self-study for upcoming tests, you can find materials and online video recordings of classes HERE.

The next exams with spots available are one on April 10th (contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) and a test in Yakima on May 7th (most spots reserved for Eastern Washington residents - contact Steve Antoch). 

There are also exams scheduled in October and November.  Both of these exams will have prep classes.  The October class will be held at Larry's Homebrew Supply (contact Mark Emiley), and the November class will be held in Issaquah (contact Steve Antoch).

Given the very high demand for exams and limitations on exam scheduling, we are having to book exams further and further out.  If you have a group that may be interested in having an exam near you, please contact us and we can help you get rolling! 

Last Updated on Sunday, 19 June 2011 18:08