Thank You!

I just wanted to thank everyone that has supported BIMP from the beginning. Beer Is My Passion has been such an exciting challenge for me. Writing about beer, participating in tastings and beer festivals, and sharing my development as a homebrewer has been a truly rewarding experience. I’ve taken some much needed time to reflect on where I felt the future of Beer Is My Passion would take me/you, and I have some exciting news. Beer Is My Passion will be combining efforts with a fellow homebrew club (Krausen Growers Bureau) to form a brand new homebrew club. The Circle City Zymurgy club has officially filed with the American Homebrewer’s Association, and as of today I will be focusing my attention on making CCZ the best homebrew club it can be. Make sure to visit us at circlecityzymurgy.com for events, tastings, and news on all things fermented. Thanks again for the ride, and I hope you continue to make beer your passion!Circle City Zymurgy - Indianapolis Skyline - Beer Background

BIMP @ BCBF 2015!

BCBF 2015Come visit BIMP at the Bloomington Craft Beer Festival this weekend. Tickets are surprisingly still on sale (I would snag the Early Bird if I were you 😉 ) The weather is supposed to be awesome, and I can’t think of a better way to spend it than at the Woolery Stone Mill in Bloomington. BIMP will be pouring between 2 and 3pm (just after our comrades from the KGB).  Some picks to look out for would be Tin Man’s Damascene, Upland’s Bockness Monster, and 18th St. The Contessa French Saison. Have a great time, and remember to be safe.

Here’s the address to the Woolery Stone Mill. Believe it or not, it’s at the intersection of Tapp and Kegg Rd.

BCBF Map

 

Brewer’s Cup in the Works

So much work goes on behind the scenes of the Brewer’s Cup. Commercial and homebrew alike, there were a ridiculous amount of entries to process for this event. We happened to snag some photos of the process this year. Good luck to all who entered!

 

UpCup 2013 Revisited

UpCup 2013 was a blast this year. Beer Is My Passion had four entries including an American Barleywine (Kyle Alder), an English IPA Spruce Beer (Michael Mustin), a Wood Aged Old Ale (Erik Howell), and a Southern English Brown (Jenn Myers). Upland really knows how to host an awesome homebrewing event. This is by far my favorite competition of the year. We all enjoyed Upland beer on tap, good conversation with  brewers from around the state, and awesome food catered by Upland. This year’s UpCup winner was homebrewer and beer judge Thomas Wallbank of the Indianapolis Foam Blowers with a Berliner Weisse. He’ll have his name added on the UpCup trophy with the other winners, and he’ll get to keep it until next year’s competition. Second place went to Ron Smith’s Saison, also a Foam Blower and beer judge. I’m very happy to announce that our own Jenn Myers ended up taking third place with her 221b Baker St. Southern English Brown this year 🙂 If you happen to bump into her make sure to congratulate her. We’re all super proud of her!

IMG_0620Here’s Jenn just after they announced she had taken third place.

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Jenn received a free case of any Upland beer of her choice out of Upland’s massive beer cave. Rad Red? Don’t mind if I do 🙂

We all had an awesome time, and as you can see from some of the pictures there may have even been some kung fu fighting in the parking lot 🙂 BIMP later took the party to The Tap for some celebratory brews.

Upland Announces the 2013 UpCup Homebrew Competition

It looks like Upland Brewing has slated June 8th, 2013 as the date for this year’s celebrated homebrew competition. Entries are judged in accordance with BJCP Style Guidelines by certified beer judges. Upland has been very inviting to homebrewers that aspire to be something more. Each year the winner of this competition wins a trophy, and gets to brew a batch of their winning beer with Caleb Staton using Upland Brewing’s equipment. The beer is then served at their location in Bloomington, and also their location at the Tasting Room in Indianapolis. The UpCup was my first homebrew competition, and remains as my favorite to date. Don’t miss out on this awesome event. Upland’s website does not currently have any specific details on the event yet, but they will come soon. My advice is to start brewing your batches now. You only get one entry, so make it your best!

Good luck to all participants!

NoAdhesive Homebrew Labels

No-Adhesive-Beer-LabelI just stumbled across this product late last week. NoAdhesive.com has a great solution for homebrewers who would like to create their own beer labels. Its a super simple solution. You create your own label using whatever means you like (Beerlabelizer.comFreelabelmaker.com, MSPaint, Instagram,  or finger paint :)), then you print off the label, then you take your custom label and slip it under a NoAdhesive Label sleeve and dip it into boiling water to shrink wrap it to your bottle! The result is a professional looking beer label that will survive the scurge of any cooler you store your precious brews in.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=u6beInVHUwg]

 

Cleanup is great too. You don’t have to worry about wax or glue scumming up your bottles when you want to re-use them. Just cut off the old label and add a new one. Simple idea, but very useful for those that want to add a personal touch to their beer. No-Adhesive has a list of retailers you can purchase these sleeves through, but they will also send you a free sample if you are interested.

Oak, Bourbon, and Homebrew Volume I

GF Templeton Rye Barrel 01

John Byer of Great Fermentations recently posted a helpful article on the basics of oaking beer. John is currently helping lead GF’s wood aging project, which has already led to a pretty fantastic Templeton Rye Barrel Aged Imperial Porter. This project will definitely be something to watch in the months/years to come. There has even been some speak of lambics and sours in the future. Here’s his post via GF’s blog:

Oak, Bourbon, and Homebrew Volume I.

2013 AHA National Homebrew Competition

AHA National Homebrew Competition - GoldIt’s time to start thinking about what you are going to brew for the American Homebrewer’s Association National Homebrew Competition this year. Which of your favorite beers take the longest to mature? What styles do you currently have conditioning? What beers can you have ready in one month’s time? These are all good questions to ask, but the most important thing you can do now is GET STARTED! Online registration for the AHA National Homebrew Competition begins Tuesday February 26th. All entries are due between March 18th and March 27th. First Round Competitions begin March 29th and come to a close on April 21st. If you haven’t submitted a homebrew to a competition in the past, this is an excellent way to improve your brewing skills! A BJCP certified judge will rate your brew according to style on appearance, aroma, flavor, mouthfeel, and overall impression. This is a valuable tool that I’ve found can break a brewer’s ego, while at the same time help guide brewers toward honing their craft. I’ll post more information as it is available, but you can always stay up to date on this competition at the AHA website.

Online Registration 1 p.m. MST, Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Entries Due March 18-March 27, 2013
First Round Competitions March 29-April 21, 2013

BIMP Participating at Winterfest 2013!

Winterfest 2013 Tickets You heard right folks, Beer Is My Passion will be participating at this year’s Brewers of Indiana Guild Winterfest at the Indiana State Fair on January 26th! What will we be doing you ask? Pouring delicious homebrew of course 🙂 We will be sharing the stage with 8 other Indiana Homebrew Clubs, each of which will be serving their mightiest homebrewed libations. I’ll be sure to update you all with a schedule of when our brews will be served. Hope to see you there!

Daredevil Brewing Co. Opening Soon!

Daredevil Brewing Co. will be opening very soon according to their blog/website. This new  central Indiana based brewery will be offering a Belgian Golden Ale and a West Coast Style IPA for their launch in January of 2013. The brewery was created by two award winning craft brewers, Bill Ballinger and Michael Pearson, and a talented craft beer enthusiast, Shane Pearson. Bill Ballinger and Michael Pearson are both homebrewers who have won several awards at the Indiana Brewer’s Cup for their work, including the Brewer of the Year award. They are also founding members of the MECA homebrew club. If you are interested in tasting some of their new brews, I’ve just confirmed that they will be at Winterfest this year. Looking forward to their grand opening!