If this sounds familiar, it is the same subject we wanted to cover last year, but cancelled due to lack of response. This time, we will definitely go ahead with the meeting for all who can make it.

How does acidity affect the taste of your wine? What characteristics of a wine contribute to its ability to age well? How does a wine’s pH affect spoilage, successful Malolactic Fermentation and flavor components? Can you always estimate a wine’s pH by knowing its acidity? Should you invest in a good pH meter if you’re serious about your wine? What can the winemaker do to achieve desired wine chemistry?

Well, there’s the science and then again, there’s experience, and I’ll bet our club members have numerous opinions on this subject. The last few years have produced grapes with some interesting chemistry, so this might be a good time to hear some opinions on these critical components of your wine and future grapes you may have to deal with. Come out and share your thoughts, do a little tasting and go home knowing a little bit more about this very important aspect of wine making.

When: Friday, Feb 3, 2012 at 6:00 - 8:00PM. Open to all club members and potential members.

Where: Mazzitelli Home • 18902 NE 150^th St. • Woodinville 98072 • (425) 881-3571   http://g.co/maps/qen89

Now’s a good time to talk with others you know who may have indicated their interest in wine making, and invite them to attend. I’d also encourage any club members to bring a bottle of one of your wines that you are anxious to share, or one that you would like some other opinions on.

We’ll have some wine friendly foods to share, so please send $5 per person to help offset the costs. You can send a check to either Fred Mazzitelli (18902 NE 150^th St., Woodinville, WA 98072) or Haynes Arnett MS: 0L-67. Please respond to me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by    Jan 27, indicating how many will be with you, so we can have a good idea on how many to expect.

Thanks, and looking forward to seeing you at our first Wine Meeting of 2012!

Fred Mazzitelli (BEEWBC, V.P. Wine)

Sasquatch Ale Homebrew Competition

With the 2012 National Homebrewers Conference in Bellevue next June, the Washington Homebrewers Association is looking for a special beer that Sasquatch (the honorary conference organizer) can be proud to serve to conference goers. We're looking to Washington homebrew club members to come up with they consider to be the embodiment of a "Sasquatch Ale" capture a special, Northwest, "Sasquatchian" flavor.

But what is a "Sasquatch Ale?" Ask yourself, "What Would Sasquatch Brew?" We are looking to Washington homebrew club members to come up with they consider to be the embodiment of a "Sasquatch Ale." Is it malty? Hoppy? Dark? Light? Hairy? Mysterious? Spiced? Smoky? Mossy? Woody? Who knows? But we want you to help us discover this style by entering the "Sasquatch Ale Homebrew Competition."

The "Sasquatch Ale Homebrew Competition" is open to any Washington resident who is also in a WAHA registered club. (Not in a WAHA registered club? Join one today! You can find a local club at www.wahomebrewers.org/clubs.) Beer submitted to the competition will be evaluated by a panel of judges and fellow homebrewers to determine the beer that most accurately embodies the spirit of a "Sasquatch Ale." The winner will get to have their beer will be scaled up and brewed on a 1 barrel system. Throughout the National Homebrewers Conference, Sasquatch himself will serve the beer to conference attendees. The winner will be recognized at the conference as the originator of the "Sasquatchian Ale" style and have the honor of serving their beer to renowned members of the American Homebrewers Association!

What do you need to do to enter? First, design and brew a beer that you feel embodies a "Sasquatchian Ale." Then bottle up 3 12 oz bottles and register your entry online at www.wahomebrewers.org/sasquatch. You will enter your beer as Category 23 – Specialty beer. The registration tool will allow you to enter your recipe so make sure to enter it completely. ENTRIES WITHOUT RECIPES WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. In the "Special Ingredients" section of the entry form, please enter a 3-5 sentence description of why this beer embodies a "Sasquatchian Ale." After registering, you will print out your recipe entry form and bottle IDs to attach to your bottles with a rubber band. Please black out any bottle cap markings. For each entry you submit, please include a $5 entry fee (cash or check made out to "Larry's Brewing Supply"). Finally, either drop off or mail your entry to Larry's Brewing Supply by Wednesday, February 8th. Entries will be evaluated over the next week and we'll post the winner as soon as possible afterwards.

There are a few things to keep in mind while designing your beer. It will need to be something that can be feasibly replicated on a 1-1.5 barrel system. Please, no completely crazy ingredients or processes. It also needs to be brewable and consumable within around a 3 month timeframe.

So get brewing today and let your inner Sasquatch come out! Good luck!

Important Information:

Entry Fee: $5 per entry (3 12 oz. bottles per entry) – ENTRANTS MUST BE A MEMBER OF A WAHA REGISTERED CLUB – JOIN ONE TODAY!

Registration Website: www.wahomebrewers.org/sasquatch
Entries Window: January 20th – February 8th
Mail to/Drop Off: Larry's Brewing Supply
                           c/o Sasquatch
                           7405 S. 212th St. #103
                           Kent, WA 98032
                           (253)-872-6846