November 2004

Editors Note: [Please submit any beer related information or articles to the newsletter editor at m@ttjarvis.com or call me at 342-2203. The ‘deadline’ is the 3^rd Sunday of the month.]

Last Meeting: (by Matt Jarvis)

AHA Teach a Friend to Brew Day… A lower than expected turnout was seen this year at the annual ‘Teach’ day out at Denny’s place, as three of us showed up to show off our brewing talents and Brandt came by to socialize. Denny, Nate and myself fired up the brew kettles while all of us sampled several very tasty beers brought by Denny and Nate. We were hoping to have a few out of town folks show up along with some potential new members, but alas, the beautiful weather must have kept folks busy elsewhere. Perhaps next year…. mj

Halloween Party: (Sorry – no write up at press time)

Lori took pictures and Jerry put together a web page which can be found here:

www.oldirish.com/cbs/hp2004.html

Next Meeting(s):

The meeting originally scheduled at Robin and Karen’s is canceled.

Saturday, Nov 13^th 6:30 7pm. Mark and Rose once again are hosting the annual Chili Cookoff – please see Robin’s comments below.

And Now a Word from President Robin Chitwood:

October 27, 2004

The fall season was officially ushered in last weekend as we gathered to sip Jubelale under the ancient oak in Mark and Rose’s back yard. It was such a convivial gathering in fact, that a strange time warp settled over the place and several hours went by unnoticed. Thanks Mark and Rose for a great evening.

Evidently we behaved ourselves well enough that Mark and Rose want us back next month for the chili cook-off. The competition is on November 13th and starts at 6:30 pm. Entries will be judged on the basis of appearance, aroma, flavor, consistency, and bite. “Bite” meaning the thing that chili peppers do so well. And I have it from an inside source that the color should be red or close to it. There will be some nice prizes awarded this year. That’s at Mark and Rose Smith’s, 1232 Dalton Drive.

Karen and I recently spent about three and a half weeks traveling in Spain. It is a beautiful land of mosques and cathedrals, villas and gardens. Rows of orange and olive trees stretch for miles in every direction. But the beer takes some getting used to. Bars typically do not have a selection of beers on tap, though they may offer several bottled beers. Breweries in Spain have virtual monopolies within their regions. So you don’t have to make a decision about which beer to try. There’s one beer on tap. That will be a light lager. And if you don’t say “grande” it will come in a small glass like the one in your hotel room for brushing your teeth. Evidently it’s what people in Spain prefer because they sure drink a lot of it, one small glass at a time. When the temperature hovers around a hundred degrees constantly it’s a light and refreshing beer you want, and I’ll admit I was getting used to it. However, in every major city we visited there were bars that had very good imported beers on tap, it just took some time to find them. There were also Basque cider bars where waiters pour cider from bottles held over their heads into big glasses held just above the knee, and where you are charged for tapas by the number of toothpicks left on your plate. There are actually brewpubs in Spain. In fact, there is a chain of up-scale pubs called “Magister” which claims to brew on premises. However, the one I visited had lackluster beers and the brewery looked unused. All in all, a beautiful country but it’s easier to find good beer in Germany.

There is a growing interest in having another pub-crawl. It could be in Eugene or out of town. We could charter a bus, as we did before. If you have some ideas about a pub-crawl itinerary let’s talk about it at the next meeting. Cheers, RC.

News You Can Use Department:

Rumor has it that our own Ron Hulka has recently started brewing at the McMenemin’s Pub in Lincoln City – way to go Ron!

PLEASE PAY YOUR DUES !!

Haven't paid your dues this year? Please send a check for $20 (individuals) or $25 (families) made out to "Cascade Brewers Society" to Debbie Davis, c/o CBS, 2655 Ridgemont Drive, Eugene, OR 97405. Note that you can subtract $5 if you opt for not receiving a paper copy of the newsletter.

Also, don’t forget that our club website is growing bigger every day! See what Denny has done with www.hbd.org/cascade

Club Information: For over 20 years, Cascade Brewers Society is a sometimes formal, but mostly informal club devoted to the appreciation and art of creating fine alcoholic beverages (you know; beer, mead, cider, and wine). For more information regarding the Cascade Brewers Society, please contact Kent Macdonald at 935-5711 or Robin Chitwood at 342-2397.