January's Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 24th at the Fort Street Brewery. As usual, the thirsty hardcore who want dinner will start arriving around 5PM, people will drift in for an hour or so, and we will start our meeting around 6PM.The Brewery is located at 1660 Fort St. Lincoln Park, MI 48146 SW Corner of Fort St. & Warwick - 2 blocks N of Southfield Rd. Meeting in the dining area (5:30 pm - 7:00 pm) Homebrews in the brewery area only!!!!!!!! Phone 313-389-9620 http://www.fortstreetbrewery.com/index.html

Competition Results

We have no results to report. This month's competition is an AHA Club competition, Belgian Strong Ale (Category 18).

Beer News

Message from the President

Mike Krawczak

I would like to thank everyone involved in organizing and completing the F.O.R.D questionnaire. As a group we can accomplish anything we desire and the input from the questionnaire will help us establish a course of action for the coming year. I will summarize the results of the survey at our January meeting and post detailed survey information on our web site.

I have been looking at our website and would like to make it a site where we can go to obtain pertinent information on brewing related topics. For 2006 I would like to see the following web changes occur:

• Remove dead links that currently exist (Status: Completed - Thanks to Mark Stavenga).
• Update existing links to the most appropriate information exist. (Status: Completed - Thanks to Mark Stavenga).
• Enable the Message Board so that it can be a conduit for club communication. (Status: Completed - Thanks to Howard Klix).
• Add new information (Status: Ongoing).

Our January meeting tentative schedule of events is:

• Summary of questionnaire results.
• Presentation on the AHA (Chris Frey).
• F.O.R.D. and the AHA competitions.
• Building a carbonation cap (Step 1 - The ¼" instant tube fitting/air chuck assembly)
• The Clone Wars (Episode 1)
• Brewing Groups / Volunteer Presenters

Our February meeting tentative schedule of events is:

• Water Chemistry 101 (Mike Krawczak)
• The "Wit" Experiment Tasting (One 10 gallon Wit, split into five batches with five separate yeasts)
• Building a carbonation cap (Step 2 - The carbonation cap)
• The Clone Wars (Episode 2)

Please note that our monthly competitions are being replace with the AHA sponsored competitions. Please bring your Belgian Strong Ale (Category 18) to the January meeting. For a review of Category 18 beer details please visit our link to the BJCP 2004 Guidelines under Beer Judging -> Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) -> 2004 BJCP Style Guidelines – This link will be available by January 20, 2006.

Downriver Brewer's Guild "Not Christmas Party"

Bob Zukosky

The DBG (Downrivers Brewers Guild) invite the Ford Brew Club to our "Not Christmas Party" We have some excellent cooks (chefs) as members. There will be plenty of beer as we have some master brewers ands they delight in sharing their creations.

*Date and time*
The annual DBG "Not Christmas Party" is to be held on Saturday, February 11, 2006. Official start time is 7PM, but we have the room from 6PM to allow set-up time (volunteers needed to help). Party ends at 11.30'ish which gives us 1/2 hour to clean and vacate.

*Venue*:
Fireplace Room, Trenton Activities Centre, Trenton. This is the same place as last year's "luau" event. 2700 Westfield, Trenton 48183. Turn north off West Rd onto Westfield and go to the second building on the left.

*Theme*:
Monty Python's Flying Circus. "Fancy Dress" encouraged!!

*Menu*:
Pot Luck, "Pythonesque" food encouraged. Menu still to be

organized (?) Mike and I will bring *ALBATROSS*.

*Cost*
$10 per person? (I think).

Menu - Pot Luck, everyone is expected to bring something to pass. Dan Riling 734-789-8319 graciously volunteered to keep the list of who was bringing what, and to try to suggest dishes to maintain some sort of balance. This was actually quite an item of contention. The point was raised that part of the reason for having it catered was so that we wouldn't have to cook. It was pointed out that the food that 'showed up' as appetizers last year was nearly sufficient to feed the masses, and over all far higher quality than what the caterer supplied. So, with Dan's offer to attempt to impose some sense of order out of random chaos, it was agreed that a pot-luck would work fine

Theme - Monty Python.

Beer Theme - English (Gr)ales - I seem to recall there was club beer expected, also people are invited to bring some as a 'passing dish'.

Costume theme - again, Monty Python. No one is coordinating, so there might well be 15 members of the Spanish Inquisition - NO ONE would expect THAT!

Dues

Chris Frey

You are in luck - the deal was that folks who pay their dues by next Tuesday's meeting still enjoy the "old" club dues of $15, $20 for a family. Beginning Wednesday, January 25th, dues go up $5 for each category of member. Checks can be made out to me or F.O.R.D. and sent to me at:

Chris Frey
275 South Ann Arbor Street
Saline, Mi. 48176

Dues postmarked by the 24th are eligible for the older rate.

Please fill out the form below when sending in your dues - I will provide all current members with a club "help sheet" once the date has passed. If anyone has any issues with the publication and distribution of any of your personal info (home address, home, work and/or cell number), please let this note serve as your opt-out option - just let me know what information that you have provided me that you do not want to share with other members.

2006 F.O.R.D. Member Information Sheet

Name ___________________________________________________

Home Address ___________________________________________________

City, State, Zip ___________________________________________________

Home Phone ___________________________________________________

Work Phone ___________________________________________________

Cell Phone ___________________________________________________

Home email ___________________________________________________

Work email ___________________________________________________

Brewing Level Brewing Style

_____ Beginner _____ Extracts

_____ Intermediate _____ Partial Mashs

_____ Advanced _____ All-Grain

I am a…. (For internal use only)

Ford Employee____ Ford Contract____ A-Plan Eligible____ Other_____

Specialties? (Kegging, yeast culturing, mead, lambics, hop farming, judging, pico brewing, ciders,

Next month's style is American Ale. The BJCP category is 10.

Beer Events, Meetings & Competitions Bob Barrett