Out of Steam

by Charlie Webster

March's Draught Board meeting was quiet and uneventful. The style was Lager Ales, and no one brought one. Not even a bottle of the ubiquitous Anchor Steam, much less one of St. Stan's Alt, or something more ambitious. Steam beers were once a popular category for homebrewers, I wonder why it's popularity has faded?

Only about eight members showed up, sharing only a few (four I think) beers. One highlight of the tasting was a side-by-side comparison of Bruce's Barley Wine. One sample of which was "as brewed," the other had additional bittering added using a hop tea made in the pressure cooker. The BW with the additional bittering was judged to be much better than that without, but the flavor was definitely influenced by the lack of carbonation in the first sample.

The highlight of the meeting was Bob Jones' presentation of a letter he is sending to the Dept. of Std. Measures in Sacramento regarding the "pint of beer should be 16 oz of beer" issue. Bob has written a description of the issue so that the State Dept. of Std. Measures can investigate. In my personal opinion, the most likely solution will be that pubs stop advertising "pints" of beer and start advertising them only as "glasses."

The meeting broke up early.

Next month’s meeting will be held at The Brewmaster on Saturday, April 13th, 2:00 pm. The Style of the month is Dark Lager so bring your examples to share!

Grain will be the subject of next meeting. Charlie will bring many different roasted barley samples to see, smell, and taste the differences. You won’t want to miss this experience!