ROTARY - WHAT's BREWING Newsletter: HOLIDAY 2015 Edition

WHAT'S BREWING?

BREW and WASRAG

The 10 BEST Christmas & Holiday Ales

10 Home Brewing Gift Ideas for the Holidays

Accra Brewery in Ghana hosts BREW For Brunch

The BREW 4- Way Test

Rotary Club Beer Fests Fundraisers

BREW FACEBOOK GROUP PAGE

BREW has its own Facebook Group. Join the group and post your events and comments
Click Here For BREW Facebook Group Page

OFFICIAL BREW
WEBSITE

The Official BREW

website is open. This is where you can get information about our BREW Fellowship and the projects we support.

You can also pay
or renew your
Membership

Click Here to Visit the BREW Official Website

OFFICIAL BREW
PINS

The annual dues for BREW are just $20 and besides the Newsletter you also get this sharp looking Blue BREW Pin!

Lifetime dues are $100 and includes this very special lifetime member pin.

If you have not received your pin please E-mail us at [email protected] with your name, address and E-mail so we can mail it to you.

DECEMBER 2015

Season's Greetings and w elcome to our Holiday edition of WHAT'S BREWING the official newsletter of B.R.E.W.

This edition highlights the best holiday beers and provides great gift idea for the home brewers on your gift list .

We also report on a fabulous brewery tour for BREW members by Accra Brewery Limited (ABL), Ghana's premier beverage manufacturer.

WASRAG is still working to identify 6 water projects globally for our Fellowship and their Action Group to partnership to support clean water.

After all, without drinkable water there is no beer.

Finally, we share a humorous BREW 4 Way Test that we recently saw and think would be a great test for us to adopt unofficially.

We wish you a wonderful holiday season and i n the New Year may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, but never in want. (Irish toast)

Cheers!

Steve Lack

B.R.E.W.
Vice President/Editor

BREW COLLABORATION WITH WASRAG

The primary ingredient In beer is water and
it seems natural to join efforts to bring clean water to those people in the world who don't have access to clean water.
BREW is officially collaborating with the Water and Sanitation Action Group to support WASRAG projects located around the globe.

WASRAG is still working to identify projects in the following locations that BREWERS and BREW members will be able to financially support:

1) Ethiopia 2) Uganda 3) Phillipines

4) India 5) Mexico 6) Fiji

We believe that the world's brewers and our members eagerly support bringing water to those in thirst and that collaborating with WASRAG will ensure that appropriate, effective and sustainable water projects are sponsored.

Stay tuned for more details of the BREW/WASRAG
collaboration in this newsletter

Top Ten Christmas and Holiday Ales Brewed in America Beerinfo.com

# 1 Silent Night brewed by Mother Earth Brewing - Kinston, North Carolina
Invite friends, stoke the fire, and uncork a bottle of indulgence. Silent Night offers a coffee aroma and the taste of an exceptionally rich malty flavor. Robust yet smooth and black as coal, each sip is a delightful gift. Old man winter gave you just what you were hoping for. Silent Night is a Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout. Our Head Brewer says, "Embellished with a hint of coffee and a touch of molasses, you'll enjoy a bold, yet delightfully smooth brew. I pronounce this Barrel Aged Imperial Stout a sipper.

#2 Great Lakes Christmas Ale
Great Lakes Brewing Company's Christmas Ale is a repeat World Beer Championship Gold Medal winner. The full-bodied, spirited beer is copper in color and has a combination of cinnamon, fresh ginger, and sweet honey tones. Christmas Ale is crafted from American two-row wheat, roasted barley, and English crystal hops, among other ingredients and is designed to complement most holiday meals.

#3 Sierra Nevada Celebration
The long, cold nights of winter are a little brighter with Celebration Ale. Wonderfully robust and rich, Celebration Ale is dry-hopped for a lively, intense aroma. Brewed especially for the holidays, it is perfect for a festive gathering or for a quiet evening at home.

#4 Sweetwater Festive Ale
SweetWater Festive Ale is a strong ale brewed with generous amounts of rich malt, coupled with a taint of cinnamon and mace to keep you warm and toasted all winter long. ABV- 8.5% and is available in six packs, Liter bottles, 15.5 Gallon ½ bbl kegs (US Sankey) and 5 gallon torpedo kegs. Malts include 2 Row, Munich, 40L, 70/80, Carapils, Chocolate, and Black. We use Centennial, US & UK Golding hops. We Double Dog Dare You To Try It.

#5 Alpha Klaus Brewed by Three Floyds Brewing
Pours black with barely any light getting through. It has a fluffy khaki head that fades slowly and leaves nice lacing and retention. Smells like chocolate and Pine-Sol. The aromas are full of dark chocolate and lots of citrus. Lots of lemon and pine needles in the mix. Subtle malt notes. The flavors are pretty bitter. Huge hop presence. Tons of lemon zest and hints of grapefruit rind. Lots of chocolate. Some roasted malts in the mix. There's a nice amount of pine needles and pine resin. Drinks more like a Black IPA than it does a porter. Mouthfeel is very nice. It's medium-bodied, but feels like it could be on the lighter side of full-bodied. Active carbonation and smooth and fluffy. Alcohol goes unnoticed. It's easy and fun to drink

#6 Sixth Day Brown Ale by Goose Island Brewing

                        #7 Troegs Mad Elf Ale &
                   # 8 Rogue's Santa's Private Reserve Ale

            #9 Fireside Chat Spiced Ale by 21St Amendment &
                    # 10 Winter Solstice by Anderson Valley

10 Home Brewing Gift Ideas For The Holidays!

by David Ackley

David Ackley is a beer writer, brewer, and self-described "craft beer crusader." He holds a General Certificate in Brewing from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling and is founder of the Local Beer Blog

It's that time of year to start thinking about home brewing gift ideas for your favorite homebrewer. With so much equipment and ingredients to choose from, where do you start?

The best way to figure out what to get a homebrewer is to simply ask them. Chances are, they already know exactly what they need to expand their home brewery. Maybe it's time for a bigger brew kettle. Maybe what they really want is a keg. If you want to make sure they get what they really want, just ask discreetly - or not so discreetly!

If you're still having trouble coming up with some home brewing gift ideas? Consider one of these ten options!

Homebrewing Equipment Kit - Maybe your special someone has been talking about homebrewing, but hasn't quite made the jump. Help them get started with a Steam Freak Homebrew Start Kit!

Homebrew Recipe Kit - If your homebrewer already has all the gear, help them get a new batch going with a recipe kit. We have dozens of kits to choose from, from stouts, to IPAs, to wheat beers, and more. (Maybe you can get them to brew your favorite style this time!)

Designing Great Beers - For the technical brewer who enjoys building recipes, this beer book is one of the best home brewing gift ideas you could go with. Ray Daniels goes over most of the major beer styles and some of the ingredients and techniques that make each one special. This is a great addition to any homebrewer's library!

Gift Card - If you're still not sure what to get them, let them choose for themselves. A gift card guarantees that they'll get something they want - and they're easy to wrap, too!

New Carboy/Fermenter - Once they get started, many brewers want to make as much beer as they can. One of the ways to do that is with additional fermentation space. A new homebrew fermenter will help them make more beer more often!

Temperature Controller - Speaking of fermentation, temperature control is one of the key elements of a successful fermentation. This temperature controller from Johnson Controls will help regulate the temperature of a dedicated fermentation fridge. Its "plug and play" design is easy to install.

Refractometer - A refractometer measures the specific gravity of unfermented beer, making it easy to calculate the potential alcohol content of the beer. It's a nice upgrade over a hydrometer because it requires only a few drops to take a reading - that means more beer for drinking

Keg & Carboy Washer - One of the more tedious tasks involved with homebrewing is clean-up. Help your homebrewer save some time and energy with a keg and carboy washer! It's one of the better time-saving home brewing gift ideas.

Stir Plate - A stir plate is one of those upgrade that can make a significant improvement in beer quality. It stirs the yeast prior to pitching, making sure the yeast is healthy and ready to go. It's great for making yeast starters.

New Brew Kettle - If your homebrewer has been brewing on the same equipment for a while, chances are they've thought about upgrading to a larger system. Brew kettles can be a big investment, so maybe you can help them out on their journey to bigger and better beer.

Accra Brewery hosts Rotarians
to a Brewer's Brunch

Source: Ghana | Myjoyonline.com

Date: 06-11-2015

Accra Brewery Limited (ABL), Ghana's premier beverage manufacturer, has hosted the Ghana Chapter of the Beers Rotarians Enjoy Worldwide (BREW) fellowship of Rotary International at its premises, exposing them to its beer making process dubbed 'from grain to glass'. The BREW fellowship fosters and encourages fellowship between and among Rotarians of all nations who have love for Beer and it operates in accordance with the Rotary International policy. The event dubbed 'Brewers Brunch' is in line with ABL's ambition to create a sociable world were its products are developed, marketed and consumed responsibly.

The event was an interactive one and included a tour of the new ultra-modern multi-million dollar bottling plants which were inaugurated in February, this year by President John Mahama

The event host, ABL's Brew Master, Andras Nemeth, stated "We will endeavour to make beer the natural choice for the moderate and responsible drinker".

Brew members taste the beer directly from the tank

He also stressed ABL's position that alcohol consumption is for adults and adds to the enjoyment of life for the overwhe lming majority of consumers.

"ABL is a company that gives back to the society in which it operates. That has been the compelling reason in opening our doors to members of the fellowship to interact with us and see for themselves how our beer is made" added Andras Nemeth.

The President of the BREW Fellowship Moses Aryee commended the company for investing millions of dollars in the new plant so as to generate more jobs as well as meet the growing demand for ABL products.

"It is very refreshing to be given the opportunity to see at first hand the beer producing process. It is an eye-opening experience we relish and we are grateful for this rare opportunity" he noted.

Accra Brewery has been a major player in the Ghanaian alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage industry since 1931 and offers a wide variety of brands such as Club Premium Lager, Castle Milk Stout, Stone Lager and Eagle Lager, which have become strong favorites of Ghanaian consumers.

An unofficial 4 - Way Test Just for Beer

1. Is it ice COLD?

2. Is there ENOUGH for ALL concerned?

3.Will it build GOOD TIMES and MUCH BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?

4. Can it get any BETTER than this?

ROTARY BEER FESTS

Rotary Clubs around the globe are holding more and more beer festivals as fundraisers that are successfully raising the funds needed for a variety of community service projects locally and globally.