From the club President 

The meeting this month due to be held on Wednesday 25th of April ANZAC Day, has been moved to the following Wednesday, 2nd. May.  Our May meeting will revert back to the normal last Wednesday of the month, 30th May.

It has been pleasing to see that a number perspective  members have come along to our meetings and have taken the next  step and joined the club and partaking in the activities of the club.

Congratulations to new member Perran Cook who won our in house Belgium Ale competition with his barrel aged (2 months only) Belgium Strong.

The ANNUAL DINNER is to be held in July. To prepare for this a MONSTER BREW DAY has been arranged for Sunday 27th May at Pete's warehouse. It is always a fun day and gives the opportunity for new members and inexperienced brewers to see what other members of our club brew on and how they go about their brew day.

Since our last newsletter Merri Mashers conducted their IPA competition. John Keske, Roger Cheeseman and Hayden Henderson all placed in various categories. Well done boys, however we didn't have many entries in this comp.

At our last meeting there were good numbers that showed interest in getting the Meat Club up and running for 2018.

Haig has been the main stay in organising the meet club over recent years and we thank him very much for that. However, he wants to stand away from the organisational side of things and we need others within the club to take up the challenge to make it happen !

It won't be long before the annual meeting is with us again in June. All positions become vacant. Some on the committee won't be continuing having served the club admirably, we will need to find replacements to fill these positions. So if you would like to make a positive influence why not get on board and be part of the decision making process.

Look forward to seeing you at Pete's warehouse on the first Wednesday of May.

Ian Bennett

President

The next meeting.

The April meeting this month has been changed because of Anzac day to Wednesday the 2nd of May with some discussion done on recipe design.

 Brewer of the month.

This months member is.... Colin Roberts

Beerfest 2018.

Scott Trainor independent brewer, being presented with his 1st Prize for American Pale Ale  at Beerfest 2018.

 Our sponsors  put up some fantastic prizes this year in support of the Home Brewing Community. Lets show them some love back and get behind them when you next do your shopping or recommend a store to a new brewer. It's these sponsors that keep our competitions running so lets return the favour and support them any way you can!

Our major sponsors:

Lame beer joke of the month.

“Poor Old fool,” thought the well-dressed gentleman as he watched an old man fish in a puddle outside a pub. So he invited the old man inside for a drink. As they sipped their beer, the gentleman thought he’d humour the old man and asked, “So how many have you caught today?”

The old man replied, “You’re the eighth.”

The Old Dick.

Since 1999, the Club Brewer of the Year trophy has been an unusual mechanical device, affectionately known as “The Old Dick”.

The trophy was built about 22 years ago by former Member Dick Seville who was a popular and eccentric Member of the Melbourne Brewers and the ABAV which preceded it. “The Old Dick” is designed to hold a 750ml bottle of beer and to gradually tilt it in order to pour the contents without disturbing the sediment, thereby obtaining a crystal clear beer.

Dick an engineer by trade would regularly take the device with him when dining at BYO restaurants and drinking his own beers, mostly bottle conditioned brown ales.

Longstanding Members will remember Dick as the quietly spoken gentleman who would bring a large plate of cheese and onion sandwiches to every club meeting which would be unveiled late at each meeting after the standard Club nibbles had been consumed. These would rapidly be devoured and were a traditional part of Club meetings for many years.

Dick was an inventive guy having a hand in building one of the first commercial washing machines ever built in Australia. Unfortunately, Dick passed away several years ago but much of his brewing equipment was donated and subsequently auctioned by the Club so many current Members have equipment designed and built by Dick and his legacy lives on.

The Old Dick was donated by Dick’s family and Colin Penrose. So next time you see “The Old Dick” remember that it, like our Club, has a rich history built on the efforts of eccentric good blokes like Dick Seville.

Membership.

Your membership comes with these great benefits plus many others so support the club and help keep it going.

Things to keep you busy.

Upcoming club events.

Cider day.

Monster Brew Day. Sunday the 27th of May.

The Annual Dinner. July, more details to come.

Get a brew happening for:

21st of April, Belgian Beerfest.

30th of May, internal comp on Stouts. 

1st of July, Stout Extravaganza by Westgate Brewers.

25th July, Internal Competition on American Pale Ale.

Pale Ale Mania by Worthogs, date to be confirmed.

Vicbrew 2018, date to be confirmed.

26th of September, Internal Competition on Bitter Ale.

Octoberfest by Bayside, date to be confirmed.

28th of November, Internal competition on Pale Lager.

Go to our Calendar and sync it with your own so you never miss an event.

Get some reading done after you buy some books through our book depository link.

Last but far from least, help keep the Club alive and don't forget to pay your membership fees for this financial year!