Since its inception in 2012, the South Australian Brewing Club (SABC) has swiftly grown to become the largest and most successful brewing club in Adelaide and the country. The club embodies a diverse membership of individuals with a broad range of brewing expertise, all coming together to share knowledge and enhance their homebrewing skills. Central to the club’s calenda is the popular monthly meeting on the third Wednesday of each month, regularly attended by over 30 participants, thanks to the generous support of The Wheatsheaf Hotel. In addition to these gatherings, the club also hosts special events and brewery visits in Adelaide and the surrounding region. Find out more on our About SABC page.
A reminder that the Feurary meeting this Wednesday will be at Yellow Matter Brewing. The outside seating area will be reserved for SABC. We have some exciting announcements regarding upcoming events and group activities and winners from the Summer Competition will receive their trophies. We’ll also have the results of the best-of-show judging to see which of the 5 winners gets to brew their beer at the Wheaty.
See Feb 5th post below (or click here) for venue details and directions.
West Side Workshop
Speaking of the Wheaty, next Saturday (24/02) they will be hosting Briony from Flavour Logic to celebrate Local Beer Day. There will be a guided tasting of 8 beers from six local west-side breweries. As a bonus for SABC, members who purchase a ticket to the event will receive a free fancy.
I have a large number of jugs previosuly used for SABSOSA that are no longer required. If anyone wants some please reach out to me directly or email info@sabrew.com. They are mostly plastic but there’s also a few glass.
Thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s summer competition. I feel it was a pretty successful year this year. The club presenting some fantastic beers yet again.
Special thanks to Glen for driving the majority of judges and stewards to and from the venue. Please thank him when you see him again if you haven’t already.
Thanks to the sponsors lonegum farmhouse and beer no evil for hosting us at their venue, unit 3, for the competition. I think it’s safe to say that after the comp, there were a lot of ooohhhs and aaahhhs when drinking some of the beers that Ryan has produced.
Thank you to major comp sponsor, the wheaty who is generously offering to rebrew the best of the best beers from each category.
On to the winners of each category and a massive congratulations to all, you are onto the final step for the wheaty rebrew. We will need to receive another sample of your beer to be presented to Jade at the wheaty to judge with a panel to pick the best of the best. This tasting will likely happen on Thursday 15th February so if you could have a sample to a committee member before this date, that would be great.
Low Alc: Tali Warnock with a Scottish Light
Amber & Dark: Adam Forbe with a Schwarzbier
Specialty IPA: Luke Beard with a Brut IPA
Porter: Bj Macey with an American Porter
Belgian: Mark Murray with a Belgian Single
Best of Show was awarded to Mark Murray with his Belgian Single. Mark will have his name engraved on the summer comp trophey! Well done Mark!
Id finally like to say thank you to all the judges. It was fantastic to see some fresh new faces to the judging panel and being guided by some fantastic experienced judges. It brings great benefit to the club to have the experience of others passed onto new members.
If there is anything you feel we could do better when it comes to comps, please let me know and we will look to incorporate it into future comps. This doesn’t matter if it’s negative or positive feedback or suggestive. Please feel free to reach out to me and I will bring it to the committee for discussion.
It’s Februrary which means Fringe 2024 is nearly upon us, and this also means a change of venue for the monthly meeting while the Wheaty hosts fringe events. This month we’ll be heading to Yellow Matter Brewing in Brooklyn Park. There is an outdoor seating area which will be reserved for the club to run through our formalities as a group, but you’ll be able to venture inside to checkout the stainless and/or make use of the free pool table.
The kitchen will be open and serving their regular pizza menu, and there’s a solid line up of beers to try. Feel free to swap beers in bottle bingo, however we have not arranged for any club tastings so please only consume drinks purchased at the venue.
Yellow Matter Brewery When: Wednesday 21st Feb, 7PM Where: 108-120 Marion Road, Brooklyn Park, 5032
If you’re taking public transport from the City, catch the J1/2 or 163 and get off at stop 6B just before Marion rd. It’s a 5 minute walk from the stop.
As many of you are already aware, Gary will be hosting another BJCP styles study group to enable members to learn some theory (and practical) before sitting the BJCP exams.
The format will along the lines of the following:
BJCP Styles study group will be Limited to 6 people. 3 people have already taken slots
Location will be at Gary’s house on yhe 2nd Thursday of every month at 7pm
February – Lagers cats 1-9 . Practical Discussion. Malt
March – British 10-17 . Water
April – American 18-21 . Hops
May – Euro 22-26. Yeast
June – Historical. Brewing process
July – Wild,fruit,spiced,smoked,wood& specialty. Judging & stewarding
Aug – Bjcp rules & regulations. Beer faults & flavors
Sept – Online exam practical. Faults
Oct – Revision & online tests
Nov – Tasting Exam
If you wish to participate please reach out to Gary in the first instance or any other club committee member who can point you to the bst means to contact Gary.
If you have your beers made and ready to go, don’t forget to register, pay and print your labels. I know I almost forgot with it being a busy time at home (first day of school tomorrow).
There was a slight admin error on the comp portal where we had British Brown Ale instead of London Brown Ale registered as a style. As a result, we have agreed to have both sub styles within the comp. If you wish to recategorise your British Brown to London Brown, please send me a PM and I can arrange for this to happen on the back end. Although the British Brown is not a low alc style of beer, it will be judged in the low alc category for the sake of keeping 5 main categories. Please bare in mind that it is not being judged against the other styles, but against the style guidelines.
The bus is being confirmed in the next day or 2 and so far there are only 9 judges registered in the portal. If you are available to judge or steward, please register on the portal or let me know. The sooner the better as the difference in price for a 12 seater bus and a 25 seater bus is significant. Those who have registered, I will be in contact tomorrow to confirm if you would like to avail the bus service. Or if you are reading this and know you want to get on the bus, just send me a PM.
Bottle drop off is available to Unit Three up until 10am Sunday morning, they are happy to take entries and store them on site until then. I have a number of entries for member which I will bring with me and happy to take others if there is a need.
We will be hosted by Beer No Evil and Lonegum Farmhouse at their new venue in Lonsdale, Unit 3 Collective.
Some members may remember us holding the summer comp here a couple of years ago when they first acquired the premises, and it was a great afternoon.
We will be organising transport to and from the venue and it will be for judges/stewards and staff only. Transport will be booked on number of people registered on the competition portal to travel so registering for this is essential if you wish to utilise the transport. There will be 1 pick up and drop off location unless there is a second on route to the venue. This can be discussed at the next meeting. ************************************************************************************************************************
This year we have 5 Categories with 3 styles per category. We will be limiting entries to 5 max entries per person and 1 max entry per category. This is a good one to spread your styles out or rebrew your old favourites. With the wide range of styles to choose from, there is a bit of comfort for everyone as well as the option to try a style you may never have before.
Belgian • Biere de Garde • Belgian Single • Belgian Golden Strong
Not only is there the potential for bragging rights and winning the SABC Summer Trophy, but Jade from the Wheaty has put forward the option of rebrewing the winning recipe with you assisting and picking the brains of the Wheaty Brew Corp team.
Giving the nature of the prize, all beers are required to be All Grain, kits brews will not be considered for a rebrew.
Small disclaimer, the winning beer of the comp doesn’t win the rebrew. The top beer from each category will go to a second Judging panel for a “Best of Show” so should you win a category, we will need a second bottle of your beer for judging.
The competition portal is now live so head on over and register and get those beers entered.
Just a friendly reminder to make sure you are all carbonated this week, bottled up and ready to drop beer this coming weekend if you haven’t already done so.
Also dont forget Russel will have an esky to take any entries at the members meeting on the 16th of August at Bowden.
19th Aug is the final bottle drop at the Irish club in the city.
Goto https://enter.abcsa.org.au for all the critical dates and times regarding the ABCSA State competition.
Did someone say Extra prizes!?
There will be extra prizes drawn for people who participate in the ABCSA comp this year.
This year for every entry into ABCSA, participants will be assigned a ticket into the random draw to win one of two available prize packs valued at $200 each!
If you are helping out with judging or stewarding on the judging session days. We have prizes for you too! There will be 2 door prizes drawn at the end of each day valued at $100 each!
Next weeks meeting will be held at Bowden Brewing. Alex and the team will be taking us through the brewery and talking us through a few tastings. Kick off at the usual time of 7pm, and their kitchen will be open if you need a feed.
Address: 12 fourth street, Bowden.
If you end up at the Wheaty by mistake, it’s only a 20 minute walk! (or stay at the wheaty for the whisk(e)y tasting)
Winter Competition Results and Winners.
Results for the Winter Compettion 2023 have now been posted and are available on the competition portal – https://comps.sabrew.com/. This year it was a extremely close with 13 medal winners out of 24 entrants. Big congradulations to Mark Lehman for winning Best of Show – thats off the back of taking the honors at the Summer Comp as well!
ABCSA Reminder (formerly SABSOSA)
A general reminder that ABCSA registrations are open. Head over to the ABCSA website to find all the relevant information and entry portal – https://www.abcsa.org.au/ .
New Club Committee
The AGM was held at the July monthly meeting and there have been a few changes to the committee.
President: Gary Waters Vice President: Sam Beard Secretary: Marina Baker Treasurer: Lachlan Johnson Comp Coordinator: Gerard Flynn General positions: Julien Gibson Nick McAuley Brendan Macey Nick Hauschild Chris Kerr Russ Saint Rachel Edwards
Pirate Life Brewers Shout
A reminder that the Pirate Life Brewers Shout is on the first Thursday of every month and all members are encouraged to attend. The next one is sheduled for 7th September and happens to coincide with a certain club presidents 60th! Mark it in your diaries now so you don’t forget (like I did for the August event…)
Where : East Torrens Kensington Gardens Tennis Club, East Terrace & South Terrace, Kensington Gardens SA 5068
When : Sunday 9th of July 2023 12.00PM
How much : $5 per entry as many entries as you like
Judges : Please register in the portal by clicking the box under “your account details”
Bottle drop off locations : SA Brewing Supplies 2-4 Kalimna Rd Nuriootpa SA beforeCOB Friday 7th of July. Or ETKG Sunday 9th of July between the hours of 11.30am to 12.30pm only If you are unable to make those two locations please make arrangements with another member.
Eligible styles : These remain the same as published in April and June Mash Tun and are available in the competition portal.
We are looking to update the logos and artwork for our respective State and National Competitions ASAP. If you have skills and/ or ideas in this space please contact Gary Waters 0417893321.
Pirate Life Brewers Shout.
Date reminder for the next brewers shout Thursday 29th of June at The District. The subject will be dark beers and this will be part 1 with several beers available to support the presentation. A Facebook event will be put up once artwork is available either RSVP there or via info@sabrew.com please.
The first winter edition – ironically writing in the 19C sun of today (Monday 12th)! Anyway, this month’s happenings in your club below. Email info@sabrew.com or contact Mark W via Facebook for any submissions.
June Meeting – The Wheaty.
Wednesday, June 21st at 7PM. This month fresh from his success at the Australian International Beer Awards, we have special guest Brenton Schoemaker to talk about Kick Back Brewing. Following the great presentation from Russell regarding his equipment, Nick McAuley will follow up with a part two on his system. Other topics will be the Winter Competition and any ABCSA and AABC updates.
As always bottle bingo – Please bring a bottle to swap and sample other brewers beers… at home.
SA Brewing Supplies will be at this month’s meeting again and will bring any orders down freight free. Just order via the website, click pick up and add a note for Jon or Josh to bring Wednesday night. Nick M and Mark W.
Stop! Fun Police.
It’s been brought to the Committee’s attention there was an issue of the consumption of BYO alcohol at a recent meeting. The serious side to this, is it could not only ruin it for the club, but in extreme cases cost The Wheaty or our hosting venue their liquor license. The other side is The Wheaty has supported the club for many years, the least we could do is buy a pint. Sometimes a small sample with The Wheaty’s blessing and under RSA requirements will be provided to support presentations. Bottle bingo must be taken home and enjoyed. Thanks, The Committee.
AGM.
Our AGM will be held on Wednesday, 19th of July 7pm at The Wheaty. Most of the current committee members are happy to renominate for their roles but we do need a couple (at least) of fresh faces. Everyone that feels they have something to offer is encouraged to nominate in early July via the email info@sabrew.com or contacting a current Committee member. One of the spots that will be vacated will be Clinton Fisher’s. Clinton has not only been an invaluable member of the committee over many years but a real asset to the club helping members personally. He was Brewer of The Year 2017 and we look forward to continue to see him around the judging table and tasting his beers. The Club and Committee sincerely thank him for his service. Mark W
AABC Facebook Page.
The Australian Amateur Brewing Competition facebook page has been set up. Aside from the website and entrant emails, it will be the primary source of up to date information for the national competition. While its still under construction somewhat, head over and give it a follow. Search for the full name or head to this link: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092356732937 Mark W and Gary W.
Judge Registration.
A great question was raised via email about volunteering for judging at our competitions. It is important to register as a judge in the competition portal once it is open, primarily for two reasons. The system will automatically not assign you to a judging flight that you have entries in and it enables the competition organiser to assign the less experienced judges with a head judge in advance. Hopefully this is a clear step by step.
Go to www.sabrew.com. Log in with your details created when you became a member. Top menu in the middle is the competition tab, scroll down and click on competition portal. Portal open dates will be announced closer to the competition. Once open, this will take you to the current comp and you can enter your beers (if any). Click the judging box, don’t forget to add your BJCP judge number if applicable and save.
Even if you think you lack judging knowledge or ability, from personal experience I highly recommend jumping in! Beer judging is based on perception so there is no wrong answers and the head judge is there to guide you. You get to taste some awesome beers that some styles are not available commercially and learn about faults that will improve your brewing. Mark W
Winter Competition.
As previously communicated this will held on Sunday, 9th July at ETKG Tennis Club and a great prep for ABCSA. The portal will be open in early July and the categories are… Clinton F and Gerard F
1 LOW ALCOHOL (≤ 4% ABV)
23A. Berliner Weisse
14A. Scottish Light
14B. Scottish Heavy
1A. American Light Lager
27. Historical Beer: London Brown Ale
13A. Dark Mild
5A. German Leichtbier
3A. Czech Pale Lager
11A. Ordinary Bitter
27. Historical Beer: Piwo Grodziskie
14 BELGIAN ALE
25B. Saison
24C. Bière de Garde
26B. Belgian Dubbel
26A. Belgian Single
26C. Belgian Tripel
25C. Belgian Golden Strong Ale
26D. Belgian Dark Strong Ale
15 STRONG ALES & LAGERS
4C. Helles Bock
6C. Dunkles Bock
9A. Doppelbock
9B. Eisbock
17C. Wee Heavy
17A. British Strong Ale
17B. Old Ale
17D. English Barley Wine
22B. American Strong Ale
22C. American Barleywine
27. Historical Beer: Sahti
18 SPECIALTY BEER
32A. Classic Style Smoked Beer
32B. Specialty Smoked Beer
33A. Wood-Aged Beer
33B. Specialty Wood-Aged Beer
31A. Alternative Grain Beer
31B. Alternative Sugar Beer
34C. Experimental Beer
34A. Commercial Specialty Beer
34B. Mixed-Style Beer
19 MEAD
M1A. Dry Mead
M1B. Semi-Sweet Mead
M1C. Sweet Mead
M2A. Cyser
M2B. Pyment
M2C. Berry Mead
M2D. Stone Fruit Mead
M2E. Melomel
M3A. Fruit and Spice Mead
M3B. Spice, Herb or Vegetable Mead
M4A. Braggot
M4B. Historical Mead
M4C. Experimental Mead
AABC and ABCSA
Date reminders for brew scheduling this month:
ABCSA: Irish Club – Bottle sort Saturday, 19th August and judging Saturday, 26th and Sunday, 27th of August. AABC: The District SkyCity Saturday, 21st of October.
Mead Day and Crafty Robot Brewery Visit.
On the 20th of June, a smaller group made a different style of mead from the first lesson under Raf’s guidance. Raf’s knowledge on mead is well known and many thanks for volunteering to share this knowledge with the group.
The mead day was followed on with a club visit to new kids on the block, Crafty Robot. Damian and Tim (head brewer) were incredibly welcoming and showed us around. Both the guys were happy to share all aspects of the business and the beers were very well made indeed. Drop in for a pint if you haven’t! Mark W
Pirate Life Brewers Shout.
The first Brewers Shout was held 1st of June at the district. Unfortunately most of the committee were unable to attend due to GABS and family etc. Hopefully the talk was valuable for our club members. Pirate Life are another great supporter of the club and the next Brewers Shout will be held on Thursday, 29th of June on the subject of dark beers.
Brightstar Dark Lager Fest
For those who joined on Friday 2nd June it was a fantastic event! Steve Brockman from Brightstar hosted the event and even with tech issues plaguing the presentations, managed to pull through and talk about the other 7 breweries and beers on tap, in a fabulous effortless way. The festival was aimed at dark lagers, although Burnley had a Festbier of EBC around 20 and there was also a Vienna DDH Lager that was the opposite of dark!
The star beer of the show was the SA Dark Lager that club member Raf was involved in brewing on behalf of AMSAT. They provided the specialty malts for the beer, and Raf’s colleagues were there talking about where their grain is sourced – all from SA! The beer is only approximately 4 weeks old, and it was noted this will clear up plenty over the next few weeks while on tap and will be on tap for Beer & BBQ.
The festival was open to the public, but the way Steve presented almost made it feel like the event was an SABC event, as he talked through grain bills, yeast styles, aroma; even throwing some facts in for the smoked beer with 0.5% of the grain bill.
SABC have previously visited Brightstar, and Steve has offered to host us again for a club event or meeting in the near future. Stay tuned! Nick M
GABS Sydney.
What an epic couple of days! A few members travelled over to immerse themselves in the craft beer culture of GABS and the Inner West Beer Trail. Many new friendships formed and way out beers sampled it was kinda like a candy shop! Rumour is there is already a few permission slips in for Brisbane and Surfers trip next year. Join us!
Well its that time already! It may be heading towards winter but your committee have worked hard to fill the calendar. Pour a dark brew and read all about the latest updates and club happenings below. Email info@sabrew.com or contact Mark W via Facebook for any submissions.
May Meeting – The Wheaty
This Wednesday 17th Mayat 7pm – Mash equipment talk, Russ S and Nick M are bringing equipment in to talk about mashing systems, single vs 3 vessel. ( Late edit this needs to be confirmed as one of the presenters has been struck down with the flu – either way the beers will be cold and tasty as always. Mark)
Christmas case swap ideas planning – there are a couple guys (Glen and Josh) who have started the talk about it so we’ll get a show of hands for contenders. It’s an awesome way appreciate fellow brewers beers/meads/ciders etc – note bottles to be wrapped so no one knows the contents before unwrapping at Christmas!
Bottle bingo – Please bring a bottle to swap and sample other brewers beers.
SA Brewing Supplies have all become financial members of the club. They will be in attendance at this months meeting and have offered to bring any orders down freight free. Just order via the website, click pick up and add a note for Jon or Josh to bring Wednesday night. Nick M and Mark W
Raf’s Mead Day
This Saturday 20th May at 12pm – Mead making workshop version two, just in time for ABCSA 2023. Raf will be teaching us about a different style of mead (24A BJCP) compared to the first making day. This will be hosted at my house again so there will be a limit on numbers – RSVP if you are definitely attending on the Facebook event or SMS 0408812024 (Mark). I will hold one or two spots for those not on facebook and will see this only by email. Pizza oven will be on at 12.30pm – bring your favourite topping to share, I will sort ready made bases. Mark W.
Crafty Robot Brewing Visit
This Saturday 20th May at 4.30pm – Time to visit the new kids on the block, members who have been already have rated the beers well. The owners / brewers will be on hand to answer questions and serve beers. They may be booked for another group and as they have just opened are busy, so please RSVP BEFORE May 17th on the Facebook event or info@sabrew.com if you are attending so we can ensure we have enough room. Those attending the mead day – there will be a shared Uber running. Mark W and Lachlan J.
Pirate Life Brewers Shout
Thursday 1st of June at 6pm – As communicated last newsletter, Pirate Life reached out to expand the Brewers Shout at The District to incorporate our club. Pirate Life brewers will present a brewing topic each month (May is Non Alc), take questions and provide free beer. Anyone that attended the barrel brew day will confirm not only the generosity of Pirate Life but this promises to be informative and interesting evenings. Again please RSVP for numbers on the Facebook event or info@sabrew.com. Gary W and Mark W.
Brightstar Dark Lager Fest
Friday 2nd of June at 4pm. Recently one of our members Raf A brewed a dark lager at Brightstar using only SA ingredients. If this will be ready and tapped for this evening has not been confirmed, however rest assured the beers will be at the normal high standard. Please RSVP via the Facebook event or info@sabrew.com. Nick M
“We invite you to explore the dark side of lager over 3 incredible days here at Brightstar Brewing at our very own DARK LAGER FEST….Sample the best new release dark brews from local and national brewers at our 3 day tap takeover.
Brightstar Brewing King River Brewing Bridge Road Brewing Burnley Brewing Hawkers Molly Rose Crafty Robot Our team have also created a very special ‘Beef & Schwarzbier Pie’ to celebrate the darker side of brewing….”
GABS Sydney 2023
Several of our members will be travelling to Sydney on Friday 2nd of June for a few days in the name of research, hitting up the Inner West breweries and of course GABS! Let Mark W, Gary W or Lachlan J for details if you are interested in heading over.
Competitions – Presidents Update
IT’S JUDGING SEASON AGAIN
We’ve got the big three left to run this year
Winter Comp: Sunday 9th of July This is the serious one, it’s wide open with its categories, so get brewing a winner , you now have the best chance to bag some silverware and the bragging rights to go with it. It’s also the best way to sort what you want to present at the Amateur Brewing Competition of South Australia (formally SABSOSA )We will need help from stewards and Judges, we especially need new faces to stand up and help. Please let us know if you can help in any way.
ABCSA: Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th of August Last year was a true success with just over 300 entries with an amazing amount of fresh faces either entering for the first time or placing on the podium.
AABC: Saturday 21st of October The top three places of each category judged at ABCSA are allowed to enter those beers in the the AABC “Nationals” Australian Amateur Brewing Competition. It was that close last year we as a club came 2nd on a count back . Well that’s old news, the good part we have it here this year and the last 2 times we hosted we won, let’s go for the 3rd title . More news will follow. For those wanting to enter your beers, you will never get a better chance than right here this year………..Happy Brewing! Gary W.
Volunteer Call Out – ABCSA and AABC
Call out for Volunteers to help run ABCSA and AABC , we will need help contacting sponsors, judges and stewards to make sure we have the numbers and dollars to run these events. There will be the usual help required to collect bottles from drop offs, bottle sort, kitchen cleaning to name just a few.If you are able to help please SMS only to Gary Waters 0417893321 and we will set up a committee and run a fun series of comps. Gary W.
AABC Facebook Page
A basic Facebook page has been recently set up for the AABC. Updates including results will be published here. Search for “Australian Amateur Brewing Competition” Also if you have graphic design skills, we are looking for a slick modern facebook banner, posters for the main event and a possible updated logo. Please reach out to Gary W or info@sabrew.com so we can take the designs to the national delegates for approval. Gary W and Mark W.
Beer Sensory Course TAFE
This course starts again on Tuesday 20th of June. Run by Briony from Flavour Logic, having done this course and several one off evenings under her guidance I highly recommend considering attendance. While I am no “super taster” it certainly has improved my tasting abilities including the retraining needed after COVID. Mark W
“Keen to top up your beer knowledge? Want to taste over 18 different styles including some classics? Come along to a short course to explore beer styles, brewing ingredients, and hone your tasting skills. Beer Basics Sensory Workshop starts 20 June at the Adelaide City TAFE campus (Wine and Spirits School). Delivered over 3 weekly x 3 hour sessions, this course is suitable for all levels of beer experience.” Info here.
What an epic evening! Around 70 members and guests enjoyed a fine evening of beer, BBQ and laughs. The weather gods looked after us, the beer and food was on point, we signed up a few new members and most importantly the net cost to the club was very minimal. Lachlan J pretty much arranged the evening on his own. Thanks mate. Thanks to the chefs and those that brought beer to share. Thanks to Nick H the Shapeshifter group brew challenge was run and won, congratulations to all the winners. Much appreciation to Shapeshifter, they were really supportive of this challenge with providing beers to taste and prizes. Call in for a pint or two! Most importantly the peoples choice award for the best beer of the night was won by Wolfgang Trenkler for his dark lager. Wolf is no stranger for providing the best beer of the night for these type of events!
For those not on Facebook unfortunately Pirate Life have had to change the date of the brewers shout to 1/6/2023 due to another booking. Please change your calendar.
