About QUAFF
Quality Ale and Fermentation Fraternity (QUAFF) is a 501(c)(7) organi- zation made up of men and women dedicated to the enjoyment and promotion of homebrewing and beer evaluation in the greater San Diego area. We share knowledge, methods, new brewpub and micro- brewery discoveries, and good homebrew at monthly meetings and special events. From it’s humble beginnings with only a handful of members, QUAFF has grown to over 300 active members. Having changed the monthly meeting location numerous times to accommodate the growing size of the club, QUAFF meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month and takes up the entire outdoor patio space at Randy Jones All-American Grill in Mission Valley, San Diego, CA.
In addition to the monthly meetings, QUAFF manages two large homebrew competitions every year. America’s Finest Homebrew Competition (AFC) occurs every February and QUAFF manages one of the National Homebrew Competition Round 1 locations.
As part of the San Diego brewing scene, there is no shortage of volunteer opportunities for QUAFF mem- bers to participate in beer festivals, homebrew competitions and other beer related events. For exam- ple, Stone Brewing has their anniversary party every year, requiring hundreds of volunteers, and the en- tire proceeds are distributed to four local charities. This year, the 17th anniversary, Stone announced that it had raised over one and a half million dollars through the anniversary event alone.
Every year QUAFF participates in Big Brew Day and Mead Day. This year’s Big Brew Day was spent at White Labs and Mead Day was held at a QUAFF members house, the Bixby’s. For the past several years QUAFF has hosted and / or participated in Spring and Fall campouts. All of the local homebrew clubs are invited and the campouts provide the opportunity for the homebrewers to socialize, share their homebrew and wonderful cooking skills for the potluck events.
BJCP study meetings are held twice a month with one held for the North County QUAFF members at Holiday Wine Cellars in Escondido and a second held at KnB Wine Cellars in the Del Cerro area of San Diego. Topics differ from month to month but generally focus on an ingredient, off-flavor or beer style. Several beers are enjoyed related to the topic.
A homebrewing swap meet was held at Societe Brewing this year. The event offered the opportunity for brewers to get rid of equipment they no longer needed. It also didn’t hurt that the event was hosted at Societe and, while not perusing the wares, brewers could enjoy a beer.
A homebrew evaluation seminar was held at KnB Wine Cellars headed by Dominic Fountain. Several brewers brought in their latest creations to have them reviewed for comparison to guidelines as well to assist in identifying any off-flavors or issues. The evaluators also helped the brewers review their reci-
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About QUAFF
pes to provide input for any areas of improvement.
This year a new QUAFF forum was brought online to assist homebrewers in sharing their ideas. QUAFF has long utilized a mail list to share information, but many topics were repeated and it was determined the best way to support these kinds of issues was in a forum. While not necessarily enjoyed by all QUAFF members, the hope is that these recurring topics will be more accessible on the forum.
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Letter from the President
As we review the events of the past year our members should be proud of the contributions and support to the brewing and beer loving community.
Traditionally our first major event is the America’s Finest City Homebrew Com- petition. QUAFF has been sponsoring this event for many years. This year we had a record number entries from all over the United States. Our members cooked meals for over 110 people, supplying a dinner, breakfast and lunch. This year, AFC was a qualifying event for the Master Championship of Amateur Brewers, MCAB.
AFC is followed a couple months later with the first round judging for the National Homebrew About QUAFF Competition. Once again this year judged a record number of entries.
In March some of the members went international by traveling across the border to help judge the first Ensenada, Mexico Homebrew Competition. This is now an annual event.
One of the highlights of the year was the opening of the “Kegged and Bottled” exhibit at the San Diego History Museum. This exhibit chronicled the history of brewing in San Diego from its founding to today. Of particular interest was the exponential growth of this industry in the last 20 years. Prominent in this growth was QUAFF and its members. The exhibit had a large display that featured a panel about the QUAFF Homebrew Club and how its members went on to kick start the San Diego craft brewing revolu- tion. Never before has a homebrew club been featured so prominently in a museum display.
QUAFF members were a major factor in supporting the exhibit. A number of members served as docents for the display, guiding and explaining the exhibit to its many visitors. Additionally QUAFF was instrumental in organizing a major “Introduction to Homebrew” event within the exhibit. This event brought homebrewers and homebrew from all the San Diego clubs together for a large public tasting. This was instrumental in exposing many people to the wide variety of beer styles and flavors.
In May over 40 club members lent their expertise to the North Park Craft Beer Festival. In its 4th year the North Park Festival brings together over 30 local brewers. QUAFF members have always been the first to volunteer to assist with the setup, management and pouring for the event.
In June over 25 members traveled to Philly for the National Homebrew Conference. Club members served as judges, stewards and administration for the final round of the competition judging. One of our members also gave a presentation.
In October over 20 club members traveled to Denver for the Great American Beer Festival. Members served as table captains, stewards, officials and support for the competition. QUAFF has a history of par-
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Letter from the President
ticipating in this great event.
2013 was a good representation of how QUAFF gets involved in the community. I’m sure we’ll see this continue and grow in 2014. It makes me honored to be the current president of this outstanding fra- ternity.
-Larry Stein
President, QUAFF Homebrew Club
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Club Updates
San Diego Suds Sorority by Juli Goldenberg, founder
In October 2013, QUAFF sponsored the formation of San Diego’s first women’s homebrew club, San Diego Suds Sorority. Our mission is to build a social network of women brewers in San Diego, and to encourage interested women to become involved in homebrewing. Our members range in experience from BJCP- certified judges to interested women that have yet to brew.
At our monthly meetings, we provide a place to share homebrew and hold discussions in a small and friendly forum (currently 6-10 attendees at each meeting). Additionally we hold one weekend activity per month. In January we hosted a Brewing 101 tutorial to get all members up-to-speed on the basics of brewing. This tutorial will be repeated quarterly for new members. Our February activity will be bottling the beer from our tutorial. For our March activity, we have been invited to participate in International Women’s Collaboration Brew Day. Here we will have the opportunity to assist two women brewers from Stone Brewing in brewing their collaboration beer at Hess Brewing.
San Diego Suds Sorority continues to encourage and support women homebrewers. I am so proud of our progress over the past few months, and I am excited to watch the club continue to grow!
Club Only Competitions by Eric Woltz, Club Only Competition Coordinator
In early 2013, I assumed the role of Club Only Competition Coordinator, replacing Kim Sparrow. Shortly thereafter, in May 2013, the American Homebrewer’s Association eliminated the Club Only Competition and associated Homebrew Club of the Year award and replaced it with the Radegast Club of the Year Award.
In an effort to continue improving the quality of member’s beers, the QUAFF board wisely supported my decision to continue performing QUAFF club only competitions within the club. In addition, this has al- lowed a greater degree of creativity in the types of competitions and the styles brewed in an effort to im- prove the brewing abilities of the members.
QUAFF club only competitions are now performed every other month with points awarded for entering and additional points for placing in the competition. The brewer with the most points at the end of the year obtains the coveted QUAFF Homebrewer of the Year award and title. In 2013, Travis Hammond was awarded the QUAFF Homebrewer of the Year at the Oktoberfest picnic.
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January
January 4, 2013 Rip Current at O'Brien's by Bill Batten
Friday, January 4th, rang in the official debut of Rip Current beers at O’Brien’s, and many QUAFF’ers were in attendance to help fellow QUAFFers Paul Sangster & Guy Shobe celebrate. Of course, they had already launched their beers the day before at Churchill’s in North County, but I for one was glad to see these beers this far down south.
While Red Flag seemed to be a big hit, the Milkstache Stout was also popular that night judging by all the ‘staches’. Of course the Paddling Out Pale and the Barrier Reef Brown also drew much praise from pa- trons, many of whom weren’t even aware of Rip Current Brewing before tonight.
My personal favorite was Red Flag, which had a nice, clean hop flavor, but not over-the-top like some big IPAs. But at 9.1% I was destined to try some of their other beers. So, perhaps in the wrong order, I had Paddling Out Pale next and found it very fresh and hoppy enough for this hop- head’s taste. I’ll be having some more of that beer in the near future for sure. For the dessert portion of my liquid dinner I had their Milkstache Stout, which was roasty and slightly creamy with a nice coffee finish. This was an ex- tremely easy-drinking stout and I could have easily drank another one or two. And while I didn’t get around to the Barrier Reef Brown tonight, I did manage to stop referring to the new brewery as ‘Rip Tide’… sorry Paul, I’m sure you’ll get just a few more of those..
Meanwhile, Paul & Guy spent much of the evening entertaining questions about their new brewery, beers and plans for the future. They both seemed appreciative and grateful for all the genuine interest in Rip Current. Looking forward to more Rip Current beers in the near future!
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January
January 19, 2013 Brew with Chris White Event by Stan Sisson
The "Brew With Chris White" event at the White Labs facility on Satur- day, Jan. 19th went well. We had 4 brewers involved, plus the WL head brewer, so 5 beers being brewed overall.
Many thanks to the WL crew for allowing us to brew with them, they were very accommodat- ing. It was nice being able to chat with Chris White in a re- laxed setting, he is a very down to earth guy.
The brewing started on time at 8 am, and WL was nice enough to open the tasting room shortly after for us to share donuts and homebrew. A food truck serving Mexican food showed up around noon and stayed till nearly 4 pm, so food was readily available.
When the tasting room got ready to open to the public, we moved all homebrew to the back of the room. Due to WL’s license restrictions, all alcohol consumption must occur in- side the tasting room.
Chris White seemed happy to have us there, and mentioned that it would be good to have us brew there in the future, so stay tuned for events at White Labs down the road.
Thanks to all who attended for making it a fun day. It would be good if all the beers brewed during the event could be brought to the Feb or Mar meeting for sharing.
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January
January Monthly Meeting On January 22nd, QUAFF member John McKay presented a brewing system he created for fellow QUAFF member Mike Sangiorgi. John talked about brewing systems and other brewing gadgets.
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February
February 22 - 23, 2013 America's Finest City (AFC) Homebrew Competition
On February 22nd and 23rd QUAFF hosted the AHA / BJCP sanctioned America's Finest City (AFC) Homebrew Competition at St. Dun- stan’s Church in La Mesa.
Entries for the competition were collected at Ballast Point Homebrew Mart on Linda Vista Road up until February 13th and on Saturday February 16th a dedicated group of QUAF- Fers gathered at Homebrew Mart to review, sort and label over 500 entries.
America's Finest City Homebrew Competi- tion included all 2008 BJCP beer styles, as well as all cider and mead styles.
February Monthly Meeting
On February 26, QUAFF member and AFC Competition Organizer Dominic Fountain hosted the AFC awards ceremony. (Results for QUAFF members who placed in AFC can be found in the Appendix)
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February
March / April Club Only Competition Results - Barleywine
On February 13th, Ben Frymark and Harold Gulbranson judged six Barleywines entered into the competi- tion. The competition covered BJCP categories 19B and 19C.
The results were: 1st Place - Michael Habrat, Chris Bartik, Brett Goldstock, Suzy Pessutti with "Neural Rust" (19C: American Barleywine) 2nd and 3rd Places - Travis Hammond with "Ben is Back" (19B: English Barleywine) and "60 Minute Hop Harvest" (19C: American Barleywine)
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2013 Events
March 22 - 24, 2013 Baja Beerfest and Homebrew Competition by Travis Hammond
In 2010, Nathaniel "Nate" Schmidt of Cerveceria Agua Mala in Ensenada, Mexico commuted north across the border every Wednesday night for 13 weeks to attend BJCP Exam classes organized by Quaff. http:// aguamala.com.mx/?lang=en Toward the end of the review class series, Nate mentioned that craft beer was growing in popularity in Mexico. It wasn't all just about Coronas with lime (not that there's anything wrong with that) anymore. Nate told fellow Quaffers that there was a small but dedicated group of homebrewers who were now selling their products to bars and building quite a following.
In 2011, the Asociacion De Cervecerias Artesanales De La Baja California (ACABC) held the first ever Baja Beerfest in Ensenada accompanied by a com- petition amongs the 20 or so breweries in the area. The ACABC invited Quaff's BJCP judges to come down and judge the competition. In 2012, the number of breweries and entries grew, and once again, Quaff supplied judges for the competition.
On March 23, 2013, the third annual Beer Fest and Competition was held in Ensenada, and the ACACB sent a 15 passenger van and driver up to San Diego on Friday afternoon to take 8 Quaff beer judges in- cluding Kim Sparrow, Kazuko Masaryk, Kevin Ma- saryk, Josh Stone, Travis Hammond, Don Rutherford, Eric Woltz, and Matt Patterson down to Mexico for the weekend to support the exponentially growing competition.
We were put up for two nights in downtown Ensenada, and taken to an up and coming beach area north of town for dinner on Friday night. In the morning, we were given our fill of huevos rancheros,
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March
chilaquiles, and huevos Mexicanos to give us a good base upon which we were to judge the 70 or so en- tries in the competition.
Judging was held on a nice grassy lot on a cliff overlooking the ocean. A bit distracting, but a very relax- ing place to judge beers. In the end, there were some outstanding beers that were crowned at the top of the class, and we were shuttled off in the early afternoon to attend the beer fest. With our "Organizador" name tags, the judges were pulled into the 40 or so breweries booths to sample what was on tap, and hopefully to find out which beers did well in the competition.
The beer fest went on into the late night with bands on stage, street taco vendors, and of course plenty of great beer. Though the average brewery in Baja is not quite up to San Diego's high standards, there were some really fantastic beers and enthusiastic brewers who will no doubt drag Mex- ico through a craft beer revolution like we have seen in the US.
With many of the Mexican breweries driving regularly to San Diego to visit local homebrew stores and White Labs for supplies, Quaff has an oppor- tunity to have a real impact on Mexi- cos craft beer future.
Quaff members are currently planning to organize a BJCP exam in Tijuana for December 2015, and we will once again be sending a van full of judges down to Ensenada in March 2014 to help judge the competition.
http://www.ensenadabeerfest.com/
Viva cerveza!
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March
March Monthly Meeting
On March 26th, QUAFF members and owners of Rip Current Brewing Guy Shobe and Paul Sangster pre- sented "Water: The Forgot- ten Ingredient".
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April
April 6, 2013 Grand Opening of “Bottled & Kegged” Exhibit at the San Diego History Center
The San Diego History Center is running an exhibit that explores the production of beer in San Diego, from before Prohibition to the present day. The exhibit is appropriately titled “Bottled & Kegged –San Diego’s Craft Beer Culture”, and runs until January, 2014.
Part of the exhibit includes Happy Hour events on the last Friday of the month. Generally, one local brewery is featured, typically one that has played a significant role in the history of local craft beer. These are paid events, not included with admission to the ex- hibit, and take place inside the exhibit after it is closed for the day.
The exhibit acknowledges the prominent role the local homebrew community, es- pecially QUAFF, has played in making San Diego one of, if not the, best city in the country for craft beer enthusiasts. In recognition of this role, the happy hour event for August will feature beer, mead, and cider brewed and poured by members of local homebrew clubs.
The event occurred at the SDHC in Balboa Park on Friday, August 30, from 5:30 to 7:30. This is not a homebrewers party, this is an event aimed at the public. The intent is to continue to educate people who have relatively little knowledge about craft beer and the role homebrewing has played and continues to play in the craft brewing community.
About 20-30 homebrewed beverages will be served, with about 200 attendees ex- pected to enjoy the free event. Most of the local clubs are participating, with QUAFF leading the way in terms of number of members volunteering to brew and serve at the event. Even though the event is
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April
free, non-brewers need to get tickets through the SDHC website so that attendance can be managed.
Looks like it will be a great event, and I’m glad that the local homebrewing community is stepping up to help out.
April 12 - 13, 2013 National Homebrew Competition First Round
On April 12th and 13th, QUAFF hosted the AHA/BJCP sanctioned National Homebrew Competition (NHC) First Round at St. Dunstan’s Church in La Mesa. Entries for the competition were collected at Ballast Point Homebrew Mart on Linda Vista Road and on Saturday April 6th a dedicated group of QUAFFers gathered at Homebrew Mart to review, sort and label over 700 entries. NHC included all 2008 BJCP beer styles, as well as all cider and mead styles. (Results for QUAFF members who placed in NHC can be found in the Appendix)
April Monthly Meeting
On April 23rd, Rob Keller presented “Beer throughout History”.
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May
May 4, 2013 Big Brew Day at White Labs
On May 4, 2013, several QUAFF members gathered at White Labs to participate in Big Brew Day 2013. Larry Stein used the opportu- nity to showcase his brew in a bag system and documented the process for a future QUAFF monthly meeting presentation.
May 4, 2013 Grand Opening of Intergalactic Brewing Company
On May 4th, Intergalactic Brewing Company, owned and operated by QUAFF member Alex Van Horne, held it’s grand opening. (Additional details regarding Intergalactic Brewing Company can be found in the “Breweries Opened by QUAFF Members” section of the Appendix)
May Monthly Meeting
On May 28th, QUAFF member and future owner / head brewer of Absolu- tion Brewing Company, Wes McCann performed a presentation on “European Amber Lagers”.
May Club Only Competition Results - Extract Beers
On April 26, 2013, Mike Habrat and Brian Trout judged 15 entries made into the Extract Beers Club Only Competition. The competition covered BJCP categories 1-23 where at least 50% of fermentables were from malt extract.
The results were: 1st Place - Travis Hammond with "Dirty Blonde" (6B: Blonde Ale) 2nd Place - David Routenberg with “Belgian Golden Strong” (18D: Belgian Golden Strong Ale) 3rd Place - Sylvia Jeung and Karl Schu with "Darkside Porter" (12B: Robust Porter)
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June
June 6, 2013 Stan’s Cider Judging
On June 6th several QUAFF members gathered at the home of Harold Gulbranson to judge seven ciders. The ciders were the result of a study being performed by Stan Sisson. Stan had won one of the first AHA sponsored research grants. The same Kirkland apple juice was fermented with seven different White Labs yeast strains, by seven different cider makers. Fermentation temperatures were kept in the recom- mended range for each strain.. The judging results were compiled and presented at the AHA conference by Chris Banker.
June 15, 2013 QUAFF Swap Meet at Societe
On June 5, 2013 several QUAFF members gathered at Societe to socialize and sell their no longer needed home brewing tools and ingredients.
June 27 - 29, 2013 National Homebrew Conference and Competition - Philadelphia, PA
Several QUAFFers traveled to the city of brotherly love to enjoy the National Homebrew Conference and Competition. (Results for QUAFF members who placed in NHC can be found in the Appendix)
June 28, 2013 Grand Opening of Benchmark Brewing Company
On June 28th, Benchmark Brewing Company, owned and operated by QUAFF members Matt and Jim Akin, held it’s grand opening. (Additional details regarding Benchmark Brewing Company can be found in the “Breweries Opened by QUAFF Members” section of the Appendix)
June Monthly Meeting
On June 25th, Alex Van Horne, owner and brew master of Intergalactic Brewing Company spoke about the brewery and how he got into brewing. (Additional details regarding Intergalactic Brewing Company can be found in the “Breweries Opened by QUAFF Members” section of the Appendix)
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July
July 13. 2013 QUAFF Padres Tailgate Party at Qualcomm Sta- dium
On July 13th the annual QUAFF Pa- dres Tailgate Party was held at Qual- comm Stadium. Jered Greenwald, QUAFF member and owner of HG Sausageworks provided some wonderful sausages and a good time was had by all. At the game, the San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres nine to zero.
July 29, 2013 Release of R & R Coconut IPA brewed by Robert Masterson & Ryan Reschan / Rip Current / Stone
On July 29, 2013, R & R Coconut IPA was released by Stone Brewing Company. The beer was a collabo- ration stemming from Robert Masterson, QUAFF member, and Ryan Reschan’s winning entry into Stone’s Homebrew competition conducted earlier in the year. The collabora- tion was between the homebrew- ers, Stone Brewing Co., and Rip Current brewing, owned by fellow QUAFF members Paul Sangster and Guy Shobe.
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July
July Monthly Meeting
On July 23rd, Larry Stein, QUAFF Vice President, performed a presentation on “Brew in a bag” utilizing photos, video and notes taken from the Big Brew Day at White Labs earlier in the year. (PHOTO)
July Club Only Competition - Session Beers (ABV < 5%)
On July 18, 2013, Harold Gulbransen, Kevin Masaryk, Larry Stein and Brian Trout judged 23 beers en- tered into the first Club Only Competition of the season. The competition covered BJCP categories 1-23 where ABV < 5%.
The results were: 1st - Louie Ilievski with “Sessationale” (14B: American IPA) 2nd - Greg Lorton with “Premium Bitter” (8B: Special/Best/Premium Bitter) 3rd - Brian Trout with “Helles of the North Park” (1D: Munich Helles) Honorable Mention - Brian Trout with Sir Maxwell Mild (11A: Mild)
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August
August 3, 2013 Brewfest Encinitas and Homebrew Competition by Jenny DuRose
The third annual BrewFest Encinitas was held at the San Elijo Campus of MiraCosta College on Saturday August 3 rd .
The festival had 16 breweries present, most from San Diego. Newcomers for this year’s festival include Aztec Brewing Company, Mike Hess Brewing, Rip Current Brewing, Ninkasi Brewing, and Culture Brewing Co. Local big name breweries include Stone Brewing Company, Ballast Point Brewing, Green Flash, Pizza Port Brewing Com- pany, The Lost Abbey, Coronado Brewing Company along with regional breweries Sierra Nevada and Fire- stone Walker. Rounding out the lineup are Lightning Brewery, Iron Fist Brewing Co., and Stumblefoot Brewing Co. The VIP tent was definitely worth the $75 admission fee as there was free food and amaz- ing beers were poured like Lost Abbey’s Cuvee de Tomme and Firestone Walker’s Sucuba and Parabola to name a few.
In addition to the awesome beer at the event there was live music and amazing food trucks. Lobster grilled cheese sand- wiches and truffle fries from the Devili- cious food truck totally hit the spot. The environment for the festival was very re- laxing, in the parking lot of the San Elijo Campus there was a pleasant ocean breeze and lots of shade from the tree lined lots. There was plenty of space and the lines were short so all in all it was a great festival.
BrewFest Encinitas is a fundraiser for the Encinitas Coastal Rotary Club to support various local charities that include the MiraCosta College Foundation, Boys & Girls Club Griset Branch, Community Resource Center, Magdalena Ecke Family YMCA, Military Outreach Ministry (MOM), Encinitas Educational Foundation, Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the Rotary Club itself. Over the last three years the event has raised over $30,000 for these charities.
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August
New to this year’s BrewFest was the addition of a BJCP sanctioned Homebrew Competition sponsored by Mother Earth Brew Co. and run by local home- brew club (QUAFF) members Jenny and Eric Du- Rose. The BJCP categories accepted for the Brew- Fest Encinitas HBC included the most competitive beer styles: 10: American Ale, 13: Stout, 14: IPA, 16: Belgian & French Ale and all Specialty Beer styles including categories 20 – 23.
Judging was done at the BrewFest site under a large canopy of trees with the ocean breeze keep- ing it cool. There were just under 100 beers judged by 28 of San Diego’s best BJCP judges. Two judges drove out from Arizona to specifically judge at the event. The judging started at roughly 1pm and the last min-BOS was wrapped up by 4pm.
The first place winners of each category were moved onto a BOS judging around 5:30 by an all-star cast of judges including QUAFF’s own Cole Davisson, Jeff Bagby, and Iron Fist head brewer Brandon Sieminski.
After the BOS was completed all of the 1 st – 3rd places in each cate- gory were announced and medals and prizes were handed out to the winning homebrewers. QUAFF members did very well in this competition as we took 6 of the 15 places and all 3 Best of Show places.
The competition winners were awarded some really awesome prizes donated from Ballast Point Home- brew Mart, Hydrobrew, and White Labs as well as medals and plaques for the BOS winners. We have hopes this competition will be continued next year as the inaugural competition was a great success. We hope to expand the number of categories and hope it will grow into one of North County’s premier home- brew competitions. (Results for QUAFF members who placed in the Encinitas Homebrew Competition can be found in the Appendix)
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August
August 3, 2013 Mead Day by MaryAnne Bixby, aka “Ma Bixby”
It was a beautiful day in El Cajon for Mead Day 2013, not the usual deathly hot temperatures. Around 25-30 people showed up at the Bixby's to share and appreciate the ancient beverage mead. We had traditionals including Har- old's NHC winning mead and many examples of melomels and metheglins. Commercial meads came from as far away as Ontario, Canada and as close as Golden Coast here in SD County.
The food was plentiful as with all QUAFF events. But a new feature this year was mead cocktails created by Sean Cole and enthusiastically enjoyed by all who tasted them.
Thank you to all who shared food and beverage. Hopefully more will join in next year in learning and tasting one of the world's oldest drinks.
August 11, 2013 Ballast Point 17th Anniversary Party at the Maritime Museum of San Diego
On August 11th, Ballast Point celebrated their 17th Anniversary at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. Having not had an anniversary party the previous two years, Ballast Point outdid itself with the event. Jockey boxes were set up throughout the museum so patrons were able to enjoy the museum while enjoying a tasty brew. Several QUAFF members volunteered their time to assist in beer pouring and working at the entrance to the event. The proceeds of the event benefit the Maritime Museum of San Diego.
August 16 - 17, 2013 Stone 17th Anniversary Party
With so many beer-related events held throughout San Diego every year, it can be hard to determine which events to attend. Stone’s Anniversary event is one of the few events that should not be missed. Currently held at California State San Marcos, there were over 40 guest brewers from throughout the United States on hand
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August
and over 100 beers flowing. Be- sides attending the event, several QUAFF members were on hand volunteering at the event to raise money for the different charities. The event grows every year and takes up a larger portion of the campus. All proceeds from the event go to benefit the Surfrider Foundation, The Boys and Girls Club of San Marcos, The Palomar Family YMCA and Fight ALD. To date over one and a half million dollars has been distributed to these organizations with funds raised from this event.
August 30, 2013 Homebrew Happy Hour - Homebrewers Tasting Event (Part of Bottle and Kegged) by Stan Sisson
This event occurred on Friday evening, August 30th, at the San Diego History Center in Balboa Park. The center has been running an exhibit focusing on the rise of craft beer in San Diego, and homebrewing has played a big role in the craft brewing scene here.
Homebrewers from QUAFF, Foam on the Brain, Society of Barley Engineers, Barley Literate, North County Home- brewers, and the Mashheads gathered to share their beers, ciders and meads with the general public, and present the hobby of homebrewing in a fun and educational way.
Several different methods of presentation were employed, including jockeyboxes, picnic faucets, and handpumps. Harold Gulbransen presented a beer 3 ways, on CO2, nitro, and a handpump to showcase the difference in mouthfeel, flavor and aroma the method of serving makes in the perception of the beer. About 30 beverages were presented in total.
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August
Larry Stein did a fabulous job making some very classy signs for many of the beers that explained what the style was about, and in some cases even included a brief recipe for the beer. This really helped attendees understand what they were try- ing, especially those that were very new to craft beers and homebrew.
An estimated crowd of about 150 enjoyed trying the different beverages, and learning about styles they were unfamiliar with, and what a great hobby the homebrewing community is involved in. Many people could be overheard making comments about how good the beverages were, and sharing amongst themselves. Everyone was obviously having a great time, and were sampling right up until the event shut down.
In addition to the homebrew clubs, Joanne West from Queso Diego, the local cheesemaking club, was in the house serving a homemade cheese, and there was a table selling swag from the clubs. Pubquest and SDSU also were at the event, as well as the History Center offering memberships. There was even live music to help set the mood.
A big thanks to all the people that made this event happen, and run so smoothly. A shout out also to Matt Schiff and Nicole George from the San Diego History Center for inviting us to share our hobby and community with people who might not be aware of what a great group of people we are.
Cheers!
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August
August Monthly Meeting
On August 27th, Cosimo Sorren- tino, head brewer at Monkey Paw Brewing Company spoke about the brewery and how he got into brew- ing.
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September
September 14, 2013 Brewery Crawl by Horace Bixby
I hope everyone that was on the brewery crawl had a good time. I thought the brewers did a good job with exception of Belching Beaver - what hap- pened to the discount promised? Rip Current did well providing tasters and pizza. St. Archer opened early and offered discounts. Rough Draft had fine beers and offered QUAFF $3 pints. We especially liked the barrel-aged Freudian Sip Strong Ale. I saw a few bottles being purchased for later enjoyment.
St. Archer opened an hour early for us. Those arriving early could partake at St. Archer's nice large tasting room. Yiga formerly for Port Brewing won a few medals for Port Brewing at The Great American Brew Fest in Denver, CO two years ago.
From St. Archer we headed to Rip Current whose head brewer/owner, Paul Sangster has won top awards at the AHA's National Home Brewing Conference. We had a pizza lunch at Rip Current. All the beers were excellent.
Next we went to Belching Beaver in Vista. I was pleasantly surprised by how good the beers were here especially the milk stout.
Our next stop was Rough Draft Brewing near St. Archer in the Miramar Rd. area. Beers were good here. They have popcorn here made with a popcorn machine.
Finally we arrived back at St. Archer around 5 pm. Several people enjoyed St. Archer beer before heading home. Discounts were in place at all stops.
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September
September 20, 2013 San Diego Festival of Beer
The 19th iteration of the San Diego Festival of Beer occurred on September 20th. Several QUAFF members donated their time to volunteer and support San Diego Professionals Against Cancer (SDPAC). The entire event is run and supported by volunteers with ALL of the proceeds going to charity. Over the 19 years, the event has raised over $600,000 to to support cancer re- search, patient treatment, and services.
September 21, 2013 Octoberfest Picnic by Eric DuRose
Once again the QUAFF Oktoberfest was a great and successful event for our club, our membership and our families. We had an amazing spread of food, beer and of course donations for our clubs largest fundraiser the QUAFF raffle.
This year we had 30 extremely generous businesses donate to our raffle out doing last years 22 donors. The prizes that were donated were all really cool and some of them were just over the top … like the Year Of Beer from Rough Draft Brewing, the 7 cases of 22’s from Heretic, 50 lbs of malt from Ballast Point, 10lbs of hops from the Best Damn Brew Shop to just name a few.
Our raffle committee consisted of Jenny and Eric DuRose, Andra Fromme and Randy Barnes. However, there were a few of our board members who were unofficial committee members and did the majority of the pickups, which is as important as soliciting the donations. Eric Woltz picked up nearly 80% of our donations and his poor liver is proba- bly still recovering from visiting all of the great breweries and pubs around San Diego. He had to make two trips up to Alpine (bummer). Bob and Linda MacKay were our north county reps that picked up nearly all of the donations in N. San
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September
Diego. Also thank you to Andra, Stan, Chuck, and Joaquin for your help with pickups.
We executed the raffle like last year where we picked 15+ tickets every hour or so awarding the smaller prizes first and moving to the larger more grandiose prizes in the afternoon. Thank you to Aric Henschen’s daughter Juliana for all of her help pick- ing the winning tickets for each raffle. We finished with the grand prize drawing around 4pm and it was rather appropriate that the Homebrewer Of The Year, Travis Hammond won the 50lbs of malt. Very cool!
In the end we were able to award over 60 really great prizes to lucky members and raised just over $1,300 dollars for our club.
September 27 - 29, 2013 Octoberfest Campout - Lake Skinner by Mike Buck
The Oktoberfest campout is the last weekend in September every year and we will have seven different clubs present. It is a kid friendly family campout at the Lake Skinner group camp.
This event originally started as a Barley Literate event over 15 years ago. I have been coordinating it for about 10 years now. We started with 5 sites at Lake Dixon in Escondido. After the Southern California Homebrew Festival moved to the Central Cali- fornia Homebrew Festival, I wanted to create an event closer to home. I started opening it up to other clubs about five or six years ago and it has gained in popularity from there. The multi-club presence is the largest that it has ever been. For camping and\or tour information,
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September
please contact me.
This year, the annual Oktoberfest Campout at Lake Skinner was a huge success with an estimated 175 participants. The event featured the following seven Southern California homebrew clubs: Barley Literate, QUAFF, FOTB, North County, Barley Engi- neers, Temecula Valley and Riverside Brew Crew.
The homebrew at the event was great. There were roughly 60 taps pouring from three unique bars (Barley Literates, Riverside and Temecula) and sev- eral campsite jockey boxes and picnic taps. Friday night trick or treating is always a blast.
Saturday morning 20 people were picked up from camp by Brewen’s Red Trolley and taken to two brew- eries, two wineries and fed lunch at a local BBQ restaurant before returning to camp.
Saturday evening potluck with all the incredible food did not leave much room for beer, but we managed. We are looking forward to an even better event next year. If you have not been, we look forward to having you join us next year September 26, 27 & 28
September Monthly Meeting
On September 24th, Brett Goldstock and Mike Habrat made a presentation on “Strong Ale”.
September Club Only Competition - Amber Hybrids v. English Brown Ales
On September 19th, 2013, Harold Gulbransen, Skip Virgilio, Eric DuRose and Jenny DuRose judged 20 beers entered into the second Club Only Competition of the season. The competition covered Amber Hy- brids and English Brown Ales (BJCP categories 7 and 11).
The results were: 1st - Eric and Jenny DuRose with “JenEric Steam Beer” (7B: California Common) 2nd - Travis Hammond with “1,000 Miles from Hamburg” (7A: Northern German Altbier) 3rd - Alvin Dixon with “Alt who goes there” (7C: Dusseldorf Altbier) Honorable Mention - Oscar Minero / Carlos Robles with “La Surena” (11B: Southern English Brown) Honorable Mention - Nick Corona with “June Bug Brown” (11C: Northern English Brown)
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October
October 2, 2013 Mini Big Brew Day by Travis Hammond
On Sunday October 2nd, we held a "Mini Big Brew" Day at Brett Goldstock's house.
In September, I won the 50 lb sack of 2-row malt in the Quaff Oktoberfest picnic raffle. While enjoying a few beers after the raffle, I mentioned that I typically don't use 2 row in my beers. I'm more of a Maris Otter and Munich brewer.
Brett suggested that we should get a few brewers together for a "Big Sack" brew day to use up all 50 lb. at one shot.
I brewed an American Barley Wine using 25 lb of the malt, Brett Goldstock brewed an Imperial Red Ale with cocoa using 15 lb, and Adrian Avgerinos brewed a California Dark Lager with 10 lb.
The beers are likely going into kegs this week, and we'll get together in a few weeks to try them all out.
October 5, 2013 Mother Earth Homebrew Competition by Greg Lorton
QUAFF Shines in the 1st ever “Mother Earth Brew Co. Rhythm & Brews Home Brew Competition” – October 5th, 2013"
On Saturday October 5th, 2013, Mother Earth Brew Co. hosted their 1st ever homebrew competition in conjunction with the Vista Village Business Association’s 2nd Annual Rhythm & Brews Music Festival. 1st place winners were selected for five categories, including Blonde Ale (BJCP 6B), American Amber Ale (BJCP10B), American Pale Ale (BJCP 10A), India Pale Ale (BJCP A/B/C), & Stout (BJCP 13 A-F). Each first place winner was awarded a $100 gift card with the Best of Show Grand Prize Winner having the oppor- tunity to brew their winning recipe at Mother Earth Brew Co with brewers Daniel Love & Kamron Khan-
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October
nakhjavani.
Once the dust settled, QUAFF members found themselves on top in 4 out of the 5 categories as Nick Co- rona took 1st in the blonde category with his “Nick’s Kandy Blonde”, Bob MacKay took 1st in the pale category with his “Late Lupulin Loveliness”, Alvin Dixon took 1st in the amber category for his “Amber Waves of Grain”, & Ryan Reschan took first in the IPA category for his “Tropical IPA”. Rounding out the competition in the stout category was Chris Barry for his “Fuggin Cocoa Stout” who was also awarded the Grand Prize as the Best of Show Winner! While QUAFF entries didn't garner the grand prize, their domi- nation of the categories' top awards continued QUAFF's legendary status as one of the greatest all-time homebrew clubs in the nation.
October 8 - 12, 2013 Great American Beer Festival (GABF)
Several QUAFF members traveled to Denver, CO for the Great American Beer Festival to assist in the GABF beer judging competi- tion. Beer judges from around the world gathered for five differ- ent three hour judging sessions over three days and judged over 5,000 beers utilizing the Brewer’s Association’s 84 category judging guidelines. As stewards, table captains, cellar crew and comment card handlers, the volunteering QUAFF members were instrumen- tal in conducting the competition.
October 25 - 27, 2013 Fall Campout - Agua Caliente
The annual QUAFF fall campout at Agua Caliente was held from October 25th through the 27th. Similar to the Octoberfest Campout earlier in the year, QUAFF members reserved adjacent camping spots at Agua Caliente County Park. Lots of great food and homebrew was consumed.
October Monthly Meeting
On October 22, 2013 Larry Stein posted the results of the membership survey conducted earlier in the month. In addition, QUAFF member Brian Trout performed a presentation on “Yeast Starters”.
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November
November 1 - 10, 2013 San Diego Beer Week
November 1-10, 2013 was filled with beer pairing dinners, tap take- overs, festivals and other assorted beer events as part of San Diego Beer Week. Many members volunteered for assorted events, but most attended them.
November 5, 2013 First Meeting of San Diego Suds Sorority
On November 5, 2013. the first meeting of the San DIego Suds Sorority was held at Societe Brewing Co. San Diego Suds Sorority is a women-only brewing club within QUAFF. The goal of Suds is to build a social network of women brewers in the San Diego area, and to encourage interested women to become in- volved in homebrewing.
November 9, 2013 Tribute to QUAFF Homebrewers Gone Pro at Downtown Johnny Brown’s by Sean Cole
A notable San Diego Beer Week event was held at Downtown Johnny Brown's on November 9th. QUAFF member and new owner of Downtown Johnny Brown's since 10/23/13, Sean Cole, hosted a "Tribute to QUAFF Homebrewers Gone Pro." The Taps were taken over with Alesmith, Benchmark, Heretic, Light- ning, Rip Cur-rent and Societe beers along with a Pro-Am beer crafted by homebrewer Travis Hammond and brewmaster Grant Fraley of ChuckAlek brew-ery. The eventful night included an appearance by QUAFF President Larry Stein who was the picture of health and his only complaint about flatness had nothing to do with the beer! He was last seen be-ing carried into the GasLamp by a group of liba-cious and bodacious homebrewers …
Owners and representatives of each of the breweries made appearances throughout the night with our very own Jamil travelling down from Fairfield, California to represent his own Heretic Brewing Co.
Also, on tap were selections of Black Raspberry and Dry Hopped Meads and the ever popular "Civic Cen- ter Meader Maid" cocktail. A sentimental toast to our youngest QUAFFer and newborn grand-daughter of the Bixby's - Emma was made with proud grandpa Bix raising a glass of mead to cele-brate! Giveaways were abundant and included gift cards to several local homebrew shops (The Home-brewer, HomeBrew- Mart, and Best Damn Beer Shop), event t-shirts, and copies of Brewing Classic Styles which were immedi- ately autographed by Jamil himself.
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November
All in all it was an excellent evening and in the words of Stan Sisson - "Homebrewers Gone Wild" needs to be an annual event. Mark your calendars for the Second Saturday of Beer Week 2014 and plan to at- tend the "2nd Annual Tribute to Homebrewers Gone pro" - which QUAFFers will be new the scene by then? With a year of planning under their belts the second annual event at Down-town Johnny Brown's should not fail to impress!
November 16, 2013 Grand Opening of Groundswell Brewing Company
On November 16, 2013, Groundswell Brewing Company, owned and operated by QUAFF member Kevin Rhodes, held it’s grand opening. (Additional details regarding Groundswell Brewing Company can be found in the “Breweries Opened by QUAFF Members” section of the Appendix)
November Monthly Meeting
On November 26, 2013, QUAFF member Mike Sangiorgi performed a presentation on “Brewing a Parti- Gyle”.
November Club Only Competition - HOLIDAY EDITION
On November 21, 2013, Jonathan Shufelt, Jenny DuRose, Eric DuRose, Kevin Masaryk, Juan Diaz and Joaquin Quiroz judged 36 beers entered into the first edition of the HOLIDAY Club Only Competition. The competition covered EVERY BJCP category and each entry was required to include a Holiday Cheer / Spe- cial Ingredient that was provided to the judges.
A few facts about the competition: 36 entries 23 brewers / brew teams 16 BJCP subcategories including one melomel, one metheglin and two ciders 12 entry descriptions included the word pumpkin 11 of the entries included nutmeg
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November
The results were: 1st - Brian Trout with "Holiday Cherry Pie Cider" (28D: Other Specialty Cider/Perry) 2nd - Patrick Colchin with "The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Porter" (21B. Christmas/Winter Spe- cialty Spiced Beer) 3rd - Greg Lorton with "Holiday Mead" (26A. Metheglin)
In addition to the beer judging on November 21st, a side competition was conducted to determine the most original HOLIDAY-related name and for the originality of the Holiday Cheer / Special Ingredient. Af- ter two rounds of voting by QUAFF members, the results of these competitions were:
Most original HOLIDAY-related name: 1st - Dan Pearce with "Death by Fruitcake" 2nd - Brian Trout with "Ye Olde Grinchy Bastard" 3rd - Travis Hammond with "Sleigh Fuel"
Originality of the Holiday Cheer / Special Ingredient: 1st - Josh Wagoner & Mike Sangiorgi with "This is filled with Christmas love. While being carefully crafted, we sang Christmas carols and wore Holiday attire. As we added our Christmas love, Pandora graced us with hours of Holiday spirit. During the "12 Days of Fermentation", the Spirit of Jolly Ol St. Nick was called forth upon the fermentor, with 30-60 min. of more music each day. (My wife would't allow me to make offerings of Gold, Frankincense, and myrrh). The keg was then nestled all snug in its bed, While visions of ginger and molasses danced in its head space. And I in my my ‘kerchief and cap had just passed out for a long winter’s nap. Ginger, molasses and holiday spices added. Naughty or Nice, drink lots of this is my advise. The ABV is high It will keep you warm by and by." This is also the LONGEST en- try in the competition. 2nd - Travis Hammond with "Semi-sweet, Standard strength, Still Melomel with peaches. This potent beverage will help you get through your pre-holiday depression, help you tolerate Dad's bipolar disorder, and have you carving wooden pickles for gifts.. If you find yourself making naked snow angels, you have exceeded the recommended dosage." 3rd - Ian Young with "Special ingredients: pumpkin, cinnamon, mummy dust, yeti hair, nutmeg, tinsel, eye of newt, toe of frog, cloves, vanilla."
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December
December 14, 2013 QUAFF Holiday Party
The QUAFF Holiday Party was held on December 14th at Marina Village. The event is QUAFF's way of enjoying the spirit of the season by treating itself to great food, drinks and friends. The party replaces the regular monthly meeting.
The QUAFF bar was set up and served a cornucopia of member’s home- brewed beer on all 20 taps. In addi- tion, a separate area was set up to support bottled homebrew to share, growlers and large bottles (22 oz. or 750 ml.) of specialty beer. In addition, QUFF supplied two kegs of commercial beer.
The event is a potluck dinner with the club supplying the meat by reimbursing club members. In addition, the club provided wine, soda, plates and utensils. Based upon member's last names, they were asked to bring their own special side dishes, appetizers, salads or desserts, along with proper serving utensils.
36
December
The Holiday Party was a great success. We had an excellent turn out and a fine time was had by all who attended. The great food, the outstanding beer, and most of all, the camaraderie of our QUAFF mem- bers, make this so much fun for everyone! This was the fourth year we’ve held the party at Marina Vil- lage, and it seems to work out quite well for the club. In addition, we had 21 rooms booked at the Hyatt hotel this year, double the number in previous years.
Once again, the club participated in the San Diego Regional Law Enforcement's Annual Teddy Bear Drive for Rady Children's Hospital, now in it's 22nd year. We collected medium sized stuffed animals for chil- dren spending time in the hospital during the holiday season. Many Teddy Bear's were collected and passed on to Law Enforcement to distribute to the children at the hospital.
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Breweries opened by QUAFF Members
May 4, 2013 Intergalactic Brewing Company Alex Van Horne We have a slogan at Intergalactic, “To Boldly Brew.” It can mean a lot of different things in a brewery, but to us it simply means we brew with un- abashed passion. Our goal is to deliver a beer that leaves you satisfied and happy. Beer is about memories, it’s about remembering the good times you have had drinking with friends or that peach pie your mother used to make, the sage brush you walked through with your old dog or that small little brewery in some small town that had a brown ale just like ours.
The biggest pleasure we get out of brewing is not the beer itself, but it’s the stories our customers tell us of beers they have had like ours, or things and memories they remind us of. Sometimes those things hap- pened at our brewery and in those moments we know our goal has been reached.
Since we have opened we have had 60+ Beers flowing through our taps and all from a 1BBL System in our first year. That is more than a new beer every week and just showcases how “Bold” we want to make ourselves. We do this because each person tastes beer differently due to the experiences in their lives and therefore everyone approaches beer from a different point of view. We want to find the right beer for you, so we brew and brew and brew.
Our beers tend to focus on specialty ales/lagers or slightly off style brews because we want to push the boundaries and create unique and flavorful brews. We do however have a very core lineup of traditional styles, because sometimes you just really want a nice Brown Ale.
When we decided on the name for the brewery it was a combination of factors that made us choose In- tergalactic. First, its catchy and speaks to our inner child, many people show up just because of the name. Second , it hold a strong place in our hearts, Alex our owner and head brewer grew up watching Star Wars and Star Trek and when you can go to work every day reminded by these things it makes it a happier workplace. Thirdly, it brought about our slogan and our ethics in brewing. Much of the Science Fiction we grew up with has always about exploration, integrity, morality and philosophy. We take that with us when we do business and brew beer.
Alex Van Horne our head brewer and owner is a third generation San Diegan. After attending Mt. Carmel High School and Westview High in Rancho Penasquitos he went to Architecture School at Arizona State University. When done with his undergraduate degree Alex moved home to San Diego and began work- ing for a start up small business while attending San Diego State University for a Masters Degree in Ur- ban Planning. Meanwhile, he met fellow Intergalactic Brewer Anthony Fusco while working a temp job. Within a few months Alex and Anthony were brewing 5 gallon batches every 2 weeks from their drive- way. Only two years later Alex decided to make his hobby his business after being inspired by his job to become a business owner.
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Breweries opened by QUAFF Members
June 28, 2013 Benchmark Brewing Company Jim and Matt Akin
Benchmark Brewing is all about delicious beer, beer that we want to take home and drink. We are not about finding the next huge beer trend, or rare ingredient that can only be sourced in the mountains of Djibouti or the chasms of the Pacific Ocean. We want consistently awe- some beer that you can rely on to be the gold standard of the style. Our year round beers are low in alcohol and high in flavor; we often find that it is nice to be able to enjoy a beer or two and keep your wits about you. We also know that there are times when a ten percent beer is just what you need to keep you warm at night; to that end we will celebrate the seasons, months, weeks, or whatever we feel needs celebration with specialty releases that will vary wildly in alcohol content and style. No matter the style or strength all Benchmark Beer will set the standard for its kind.
Brewmaster & Co Founder Matt Akin is a native San Diegan, he attended St. Augustine High School in North Park and then went on to UCSD. While there he realized that brewing was his passion. He has been a member of the local homebrew club QUAFF since 2002, and he brewed in the backyard every weekend for several years. Bachelors of the Arts in Sociology in hand he decided it was time to pursue a career as a professional brewer. He started scrubbing kegs and helping on the bottling line at AleSmith Brewing Company shortly after graduation. It did not take long for Matt to work his way up at AleSmith, leaving the post of head brewer in 2011 to work on building his own brewery; and so it was that Bench- mark Brewing began as a few recipes and a rough business plan in Matt’s notebook.
Co Founder Jim Akin, the father figure in the management team for Benchmark, is finally getting to do something fun for work. He is a retired IT executive who spent 35 years working at a job that is almost exclusively reserved for computer nerds. Now, he says it’s time to do something fun, and what could be more fun than making beer for a living? From nerd to beer geek, it’s a lateral promotion.
Co Founder Rachael Akin is the design force behind Benchmark. She manages Sales and Marketing as well as all aspects of design for the brewery. She is a fifth generation San Diegan, who attended the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts, and has a BS in Interior Design from the Art Institute of San Diego. In addition to her background in theater management and in commercial interior design and graphics, Rachael has been a member of the local homebrew club QUAFF since 2002 and is a BJCP certi- fied beer judge.
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Breweries opened by QUAFF Members
November 16, 2013 Groundswell Brewing Company Kevin Rhodes
We went to a lot of tasting rooms before we opened. Not for the beer (and if you believe that I have oceanfront property in Arizona you might be interested in) we were trying out the room.
We built Groundswell with a sense of community in mind. We want you to have a favorite barstool; we want you to bring your laptop; we expect to see you studying/working on the couches.
We don’t have food, but we have friends with food trucks. Turns out, they like beer and the arrangement seems to be working out for all. We focus on the beer; they focus on the food. We’ll try to keep the website updated so you know if your favorite truck is in the yard, but just like at home, somedays we show up and there’s a food truck parked out front. (That doesn’t happen to every- one?)
So here’s what you need to know. We are brewers and culinarians.
We want our beer to taste good, but we also want it to taste good with food. We don’t want to blow-out your palate, we want you to explore the hidden flavors and understand the complexities of the taste.
We love beer. We want you to love beer.
We will focus on crafting beers between 4.5% and 7.0% ABV. Our goal is a well-balanced, well-crafted, session beer. We’ll do the hop-thing too, but always with an exciting and culinary-focused angle.
Here’s the other thing. We’re adventurous. San Diego is the brew capital of the world (are we exaggerat- ing here… NO!) There’s lots of great brewers. We found a few of them and held them down, twisted their arm really hard and asked them to brew something new and out there for us. Then, we found a few chefs who thought brewing was good sport. We helped them with the technical stuff and set them loose with the brew equipment.
You’ll see their brew in our taproom…they may have other gigs in the city, and we support their efforts there too. Beer is beer. Drink it here. Drink it there. Drink it anywhere (with apologies to Dr. Seuss).
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Meet the Board
Jim Akin, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member since 2002. Jim handled QUAFF membership from 2008 through 2011 and helped out on the IT side of AFC from 2005 - 2011. Jim now co-owns Benchmark Brewing.
Bill Batten, QUAFF President Emeritus , has been a QUAFF member since 2001. Bill started working at AleSmith Brewing Company in 2002 as a sales rep and then started brewing professionally in 2004. Bill joined the QUAFF board in 2004 and was QUAFF President prior to handing the reigns over to Larry Stein in October, 2013. Bill loves to try all styles of beer but finds himself primarily enjoying those that are hop-driven. Bill is glad to have been part of QUAFF and the local brewing scene for as long as he has as it has given him an appreciation for the community of brewers and thriving San Diego beer scene.
Horace Bixby, aka “Bix”, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member 1995.
MaryAnne Bixby, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member since 1995.
Eric DuRose, IT Guy , has been a QUAFF member since 2007. Eric has been brewing with his wife Jenny DuRose for seven years and is involved with running BJCP sanctioned Homebrewing competitions. When not brewing you can find Eric flying through the air at his local San Diego skateboard park.
Jenny DuRose, Competition Coordinator , has been a QUAFF member since 2007. Jenny has been a homebrewer since 2006 and joined QUAFF in 2007. Jenny became a QUAFF board member in 2008 as the newsletter editor. After three years as newsletter editer, Jenny transitioned to organizing homebrew- ing competitions for QUAFF and local community. Jenny is nationally ranked BJCP judge, and has been
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Meet the Board
the organizer for the first round of the National Homebrew Competition in San Diego, QUAFF Strong Ale Competition, and BrewFest Encinitas.
Dominic Fountain, aka “Dom”, Vice-President , has been a QUAFF member since 2008. With 8 years of brewing experience and a National BJCP judge ranking, Dominic applies his knowledge of brew- ing by holding beginner brewer seminars where inexperienced brewers can bring their beers to receive competition-like feedback regarding style and basic brewing principles. He is also the organizer for San Diego's largest annual BJCP homebrewing competition, America's Finest City Homebrew Competition (AFC). Dominic also enjoys long walks in the dog park with his pug, Mishca, as well as mountain biking in the hills of East County San Diego.
Andra L. Fromme, Membership-Emeritus, Newsletter Editor , was a QUAFF hang around back in 2008, but did not join QUAFF until 2009 and became a board member in 2011. Andra got involved with QUAFF because her brother loved the club, more so the people that make up this club. They were his best friends, hands down. I was embraced and accepted at a time when I needed to be. Where in life do you find a group of folks that accepts you no matter what your station in life is, where you hale from, who you know or who don’t you know. Refreshingly what you do for a living is not important. Beer brings us together, it is our common ground in which we can enjoy each other, and of course great beer. Andra enjoys sours, in your face hoppieness, and saisons. She tends to stay away from malty beers. An- dra’s favorite brewery is the one she is currently in, that is owned by someone she knows, that has great beer and when she is in good company.
Harold Gulbransen, President Emeritus, Treasurer Emeritus , has been a QUAFF member since 1996. On a trip to Europe in 1989, Dr. Harold Gulbransen tasted his first Bavarian style Hefeweizen and was totally mesmerized by the flavors and aromas. He’d never tasted anything like it. When he returned to the US, there were no real examples of the style to be found. When a friend showed him how to brew beer 20 years ago, he was hooked. This began his quest to brew the perfect Hefeweizen. Harold served as the QUAFF President from 2004-2005. He has been active in the judging scene of the Great American Beer Festival as well as the World Beer Cup since 2003. He is also a member of the AHA’s Governing committee and a Master level BJCP judge. He has been the Organizer for the final round of the 2011 National Homebrew Competition and a first round organizer many times. Harold and his wife, JoAnne Gulbransen, Member-at-Large , have been living in San Diego for nearly 30 years. He has three grown daughters and two sons-in-law who are avid homebrewers. Between batches of homebrewed beer and mead, Harold maintains a busy Prosthodontic practice in La Mesa, Cali- fornia.
Aric Henschen, Newsletter Editor , has been a QUAFF member and board member since 2012. Aric is a retired Army Officer, and currently is a Manager for the Navy’s Environmental Services division. Aric's
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Meet the Board
passions include motorcycles, art, gardening and of course beer! Although he doesn’t currently home brew, he did for a short time in the 90s and will start again this year. Aric doesn't have a favorite beer or style as it all depends on the crowd, place, time of year, etc. Aric be- came a member of QuAFF because he knows the reputation of the club and the quality of the people. In his eyes, it’s all about the people. QUAFF members consistently produce high quality beers and ciders because they are willing and eager to help one another. It’s more like a family than a club.
Earl Itrich , Curmudgeon at Large , has been a QUAFF member since 2006 and a board member since 2009. Earl started brewing extract batches in 1992, and was a ‘hit and miss’ brewer until moving to San Diego. He received a QUAFF membership and some brewing equipment for a birthday present,and quickly started learning how much he didn’t know about brewing. Had some success in competitions with beer; now focusing on developing drinkable meads, and learning how to make reasonable ciders. Becom- ing a BJCP judge has helped tremendously in refining his approach to making adult beverages. The won- derful aspect of Quaff is the vast brewing knowledge and helpfulness of the all members to make the learning experience enjoyable.
Greg Lorton, President Emeritus , has been a QUAFF member since 1994.
Bob MacKay, QUAFF President / Activities / Membership Emeritus , has been a QUAFF member since 1996 and a board member since 1999. Bob's favorite beer is any of his homebrew that comes out good! Bob is a self proclaimed Fan of the Dark Side and enjoys English Dark Milds, Porters, Stouts, Dunkels, Schwarzbiers and Dubbels and his fa- vorite brewery is AleSmith Brewing Company. Bob received a Silver medal in the second round of NHC 2006 in Orlando, FL with a Robust Porter and Best of Show at the SD County Fair 2011 with an English Dark Mild. He has been a BJCP Certified Judge since 2001, was a Table Captain at World Beer Cup 2004, 2008 & 2012 and a Table Captain at GABF 2012 & 2013.
Linda MacKay, Member-at-Large, QUAFF First Lady Emeritus, has been a QUAFF member since 1996 and a board member since 2005. Linda's favorite beer is New Belgium La Folie. Linda enjoys Sour, Flemish Red and Brown Ales and her favorite brewery is New Belgium Brewing. Linda was a beer randomizer at World Beer Cup 2004 and helped deal with comment cards at World Beer Cup 2008 & 2012 and helped deal with comment cards at GABF 2012 & 2013. Together with Bob, Linda initiated organized and ran the QUAFF Tailgate Party for 15 years.
Wes McCann, Bar Czar , has been a QUAFF member since 2011. In early 2013 Wes hopes to open Ab- solution Brewing Company in Torrance, CA.
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Meet the Board
Joaquin Quiroz, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member since 2008. Joaquin considers himself a craft beer enthusiast and has been brewing for over 8 years. Joaquin has been a BJCP Judge since 2008 has been helping with Homebrewing as a BJCP grader and regularly judging events.
Mike Sangiorgi, Event & Keg Coordinator , has been a QUAFF member since 2010.
Stan Sisson, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member since 2001. Stan is the resident San Diego Multi-club liaison and he attends the other San Diego-based homebrew club's meetings. Stan likes to brew "weird" beers now and then and he sometimes attempts to organize QUAFF social events.
Jonathan Shufelt, IT Guy , has been a QUAFF member since 2003 and a board member since 2011. Jonathan started brewing extract batches in 2000 but jumped to all-grain soon after graduating from col- lege. He has been an active steward at the Great American Beer Festival as well as the World Beer Cup since 2003. He was also an organizer for the 2011 National Homebrew Conference in San Diego.
Larry Stein, President , has been a QUAFF member since 2009 and a board member since 2011. Larry became interested in home brewing after seeing an ad for the “Samuel Adams Longshot” contest in 2007. He started brewing extract and quickly moved on to all grain. Larry discovered Quaff in 2009 and joined at his second meeting. He participated in the BJCP program as a way to improve his brewing knowledge and become more involved in the club. He’s a BJCP Recognized judge. Larry’s professional experience was as an electronic engineer for 25 years. Owning his own development company for the last 10 years of that time. He then became a professional landscape and fine art pho- tographer and printer. In 2014 he gave that up to open a craft beer pub with his wife. He is currently owner of The Ugly Dog pub in San Diego and working on opening an restaurant and craft beer/wine bar in Tierrasanta.
Brian Trout, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member since 2010.
Josh Stone, Membership , has been a QUAFF member since 2010 and a board member since 2013. Josh is a BJCP beer judge and loves to brew just about any beer.
Chuck West, Treasurer / President Emeritus , has been a QUAFF member since 2000. Chuck really discovered great beer during travels to the UK in the early 1990’s. He began brewing at home in 1994, with an emphasis on British styles. Chuck joined QUAFF in 2000. He’s been a board member since 2001, previously serving as treasurer and president, and is once again treasurer of the club. Chuck has been a BJCP judge since 2001 and has earned multiple awards including Best of Show for beer, mead and cider. As a big fan of Belgian beer, he has traveled to Belgium and Germany, and brewed a number of Belgian styles over the last several years. Chuck has organized three NHC 1 st Round Competitions and was the
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Meet the Board
Project Manager for the 2011 NHC Committee. In addition to homebrewing he enjoys listening to music, playing bass guitar, travel, and spending time with his family.
Eric Woltz, Club Only Competition Coordinator , has been a QUAFF member since 2010 and a board member since 2013. Having never brewed a batch of beer himself, Eric has chosen to focus on assisting other brewers improve their brewing skills by becoming a BJCP judge and heading up the QUAFF Club Only Competitions.
Chad Stevens, Member-at-large , has been a QUAFF member since 2002. When Chad was a kid, he wasn't allowed to use his great-grandfather's big bathroom because something was always bubbling away in there. His grandfather grew Tokay grapes and great-grandad made wine. He learned about yeast converting sugar into carbon dioxide and ethanol in second grade. He went home and made his first brew in his closet from Hawaiian Punch and baker's yeast. Having lived in various locations, he scrounged ingredients, malted his own grains, cultured yeast, bit- tered with cedar berries.... It wasn't until he moved to San Diego and joined QUAFF that his knowledge of, and appreciation for, beer matured. The cultural and knowledge resources embodied by QUAFF have been a big part of his engagement in the beer industry. These accomplishments may have his name on them, but he would have accomplished nothing without the love and direct support of his QUAFF family.
45 America's Finest City Homebrew Competition Results— QUAFF Only February 22nd and 23rd, 2013
National Homebrew Competition Results—QUAFF Only (Page 1 of 2)
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National Homebrew Competition Results—QUAFF Only (Page 2 of 2)
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Encinitas Brewfest & Homebrew Competition Results—QUAFF Only
August 3, 2013
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