Next Meeting: February 19 @ Elixir Kombucha
Join LAGERS at Elixir Kombucha on Monday, February 19, at 6:30pm for our regular monthly meeting. We will learn more about how to make kombucha and get a tour of their facility. Share the Facebook event, and bring your homebrews for our monthly BBOT.
We need a headcount for this meeting! Please RSVP via Facebook. (If you don’t have Facebook, send us an email at lagersclub@gmail.com)
Previous Meeting Recap: Holiday Party
We did not hold a regular January meeting, but we did throw a party! Thank you to those who attended our annual holiday party. We raised money for the club through the raffle and enjoyed each other’s company as well as many terrific homebrews.
Coming Soon: Noble Funk x LAGERS Collab
Congrats to Alex Rezmerski for winning the chance to brew at Noble Funk through the holiday party raffle. Alex met with brewer Johnathan Shrader to discuss what they will brew together.
More details coming soon! But be on the lookout for a Barrel-Aged Imperial Oktoberfest coming to a LAGERS event this year.
Gordon Biersch Happy Hour
Thank you to those who joined LAGERS at Gordon Biersch and to brewer Maggie Bray for hosting us.
We also got a tour of Gordon Biersch’s brewery!
Tailspin Competition: Congrats, Evan!
Congratulations to Evan Brill for winning the 2024 Tailspin Homebrew competition with FLP, his Belgian Saison. To round out the top 5:
Second – Evan Brill – Lost Slone – Vienna Lager
Third – Evan Brill – Didn’t Hear No Bell – Hazy IPA
Fourth – Jon Wurth – Why U Salty? – Salted Caramel Stout
Fifth – Craig Gardone – Russian Imperial Stout
That’s right! Evan swept the top three!
As the winner, Evan’s beer is the official beer of Tailspin Ale Fest – Louisville’s Winter Warmer 2024. He brewed his saison with Apocalypse Brew Works this past week to be served at the fest by LAGERS. He will also receive two tickets to the event so that he can brag to everyone there that he’s the only homebrewer to have a beer served at the festival.
Thanks to everyone who participated! All the judges agreed that there were lots of great beers entered. We’ll be back again in 2025 with a few modifications to the competition. More details to come this summer.
LAGERS @ Bluegrass Cup
LAGERS members competed and judged at the Bluegrass Cup. (Full results.) Our winners were:
Jon Wurth
1st Place: American Amber and Brown Ales
3rd Place: British and Irish Stouts
Alex Rezmerski
1st Place: Spice, Herb, Vegetable
1st Place (and HM): Pale Malty European Lagers
2nd Place: American Amber and Brown Ales
3rd Place: Dark European Lagers
Evan Brill
1st Place: American IPAs
2nd Place: Fruit, Seasonal, Alternate Fermentables
2nd Place: American Stouts
Scott Black
3rd Place: Smoked and Mixed Styles
Thinking about judging or stewarding at Bluegrass next year? BOCK hosted a wonderful event with homemade lunch and a raffle full of great prizes.
ICYMI: NHC Updates
The National Homebrew Competition will open registration on Tuesday, February 27. The closest First Round location to Louisville is Indianapolis. (Indy is receiving from April 22 to May 1 and judging on May 17-18.)
Check out the update from the AHA for more details.
BJCP Class and Tasting Exam Update
LAGERS has been sponsoring a BJCP class at Total Wine in St. Matthews. We are hoping to have more LAGERS judges at the State Fair and other regional competitions.
The class has tasted a commercial example of nearly all the BJCP styles we’ve had access to and begun to fill out practice score sheets.
Please email lagersclub@gmail.com if you are interested in a future BJCP class! We will determine when to host the next class depending on interest.
Want to sit for the tasting exam to improve your score? Seats for current BJCP judges may open around March 26 for the April 3 exam depending on availability. (Preference is given to those currently taking the class.)
Coming Soon: LAGERS Cup
There is still time to brew your Kentucky Common! (And if you love your Common, make sure to save at least 64oz for our March meeting!)
Look for more details about the competition in our March newsletter. The inaugural LAGERS Cup will be held at Akasha Brewing Company during our regular meeting on March 18 at 6:30pm.
