The May meeting of the North Urban Brewing Society (NUBS) opened with welcomes from the chair and a brief invitation for any new or relatively new faces to introduce themselves. With both familiar regulars and a few newcomers in attendance, the club moved quickly into a full agenda focused on recent events, upcoming competitions, and educational opportunities.
Scratch Brewery Club Trip Recap
The club opened with a recap of the recent trip to Scratch Brewing Company in southern Illinois. Members described Scratch as a truly unique, forager-driven brewery with deep homebrewing roots still evident in its setup and ethos. The group toured both the brewery and surrounding grounds, learning how Scratch experiments with ingredients like locally foraged plants and pawpaw fruit in different forms and at different stages of the process. A clear highlight was the breweryโs distinctive woodโfired copper boil kettle, an enormous, custom-built vessel originally inspired by an old apple butter kettle and unlike anything most attendees had seen in modern brewing.
The trip also included a visit to Side Project Brewing in St. Louis and a stop at Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, as well as a memorable hike at Little Grand Canyon in Shawnee National Forest, complete with wildlife sightings and excellent weather. Another notable stop was dinner at St. Nicholas Brewing at a small general aviation airport, where members enjoyed good beer and generous hospitality on a patio right off the runway. Despite the โmurder roadโ final approach down narrow, faded and gravel back roads to Scratch itself, everyone agreed the destinationโand the time spent together as a clubโwas more than worth the effort, and there was strong interest in organizing similar trips in the future.
Wort-a-Palooza Competition & Volunteer Opportunities
Next, the club turned its attention to the upcoming Wort-a-Palooza competition organized by Club Wort.
- Entry slots for beers were capped at 250 and have already sold out; the field is now full with 250 paid entries.
- While entries are closed, the organizers still need volunteers for judging and stewarding.
- The final-round judging will be held at Church Street Brewing in Itasca, a brewery with an excellent reputation and plenty of beer available for volunteers to sample.
- A local judging session is also scheduled to be held at Perfect on Thursday, June 11 at 7:00 pm.
Members were encouraged to sign up for stewarding or judging:
- Stewarding offers a close look at how judging works and is both educational and fun.
- Newer judges can often be paired with experienced BJCP-certified judges, particularly for less demanding flights.
- Members were cautioned that high-gravity categories (e.g., barleywines) and IPAs, especially hazies, can be palate-fatiguing and sometimes problematic because of packaging and oxidation issues.
A link to the Wort-a-Palooza site has been shared on both Facebook and the club email list. Members were advised to use that link to explore available volunteer slots and sign up directly. It was noted that AHA membership is not strictly required to volunteer in judging or stewarding roles, based on membersโ prior experience.
Chaos Collaboration with CHAOS and August BrewBQ
The club then discussed the NUBS collaboration with CHAOS for their annual BrewBQ event.
- Last year, NUBS brewed a red IPA for CHAOSโs barbecue event.
- This yearโs focus style is Belgian beers; NUBS is planning a Belgian dubbel as their contribution.
- Organizers at CHAOS reached out again to confirm NUBS participation, and NUBS leadership is actively canvassing members to see who wants to be involved in brewing, transporting, and serving.
The BrewBQ is scheduled for August 22. The event is described as:
- A legitimate beer festival atmosphere, with both homebrewers and pro brewers participating.
- Outstanding food, much of it prepared โwith loveโ by club members and spouses, along with some contributions from local businesses (e.g., sausage donations from Kaiser Tiger in past years).
- Free to attend in principle, with donations encouraged and very much appreciated.
Logistics such as getting full kegs to the venue and returning empties can be a bit of a hassle, but members agreed that the quality of the event more than justifies the effort. Members interested in participating or coordinating transport were asked to reach out to the organizers.
Mundelein Craft Beer Festival โ June 6
The Mundelein Craft Beer Festival in Mundelein is coming up on June 6.
- NUBS has two serving slots (tables) reserved, with four passes total (two per table).
- At the time of the meeting, three brewers are confirmed to pour: Mohit, Aurelio, and Dan.
- Ideally, the club would like a fourth volunteer who is willing both to pour and to stay engaged at the table, not just take a free pass and disappear.
Mundeleinโs festival was described as one of the best craft beer festivals in the area, especially for the northern suburbs, with a solid reputation and good organization. Members were encouraged to attend even if they are not pouring, and those interested in filling the remaining pouring slot were asked to contact club leadership.
Beer of the Quarter โ Next Meeting
The Beer of the Quarter competition will be held at the next NUBS meeting in June.
The featured BJCP styles are:
- Category 18 โ Pale American Ale
- Blonde Ale
- American Pale Ale
- Category 19 โ Amber and Brown American Beer
- American Amber Ale
- California Common
- American Brown Ale
Brewers who have not yet started a beer were reminded that it might be too late for a California Common (given its fermentation and conditioning profile), but it is still feasible to produce a solid ale in time if brewing starts promptly. Members were encouraged to consider entering if they enjoy these classic American styles.
Beers & Bikes โ Part One (June 27)
The club confirmed plans for Beers & Bikes โ Part One, scheduled for June 27.
- The ride will follow the North Shore Bike Path.
- Planned brewery stops mirror last yearโs route, including:
- Oak Trail Taphouse
- Tighthead Brewing
- Mickey Finnโs
Details about start time, meeting location, and pacing will be communicated closer to the date, but members were encouraged to mark their calendars and ensure their bikes (and legs) are ready.
Upcoming Educational Seminar โ Off-Flavors
The next major educational seminar will focus on off-flavors in beer, following strong interest expressed in a poll on the clubโs Facebook page.
While there had been consideration of a session on boil gravity and hop utilization, the overwhelming response was in favor of an off-flavor seminar. The plan is to use the Siebel Institute off-flavor kits, which are commonly used in professional and BJCP training:
- The kit includes 6 or 12 different compounds representing common faults:
- Diacetyl
- Oxidation
- Various contamination- and packaging-related faults, among others.
- Each ampoule is added to a liter of neutral commercial beer (e.g., Miller Lite, Coors Light, Busch Light), which provides a clean canvas for the flavor/aroma fault.
- Tasting is done blind, with participants trying to identify and describe each faultโs aroma, taste, and mouthfeel.
Members who have participated in similar sessions (including as part of Siebelโs concise brewing technology course and BJCP prep) testified to how valuable it is to โlock inโ sensory memories of common off-flavors. Importantly, different people are sensitive to different compounds, so repeated exposure helps brewers recognize flaws they might otherwise miss in their own beers.
The seminar is tentatively targeted for July, though an exact date has not yet been set. Members were encouraged to watch for details and make an effort to attend given the value of this kind of training.
Elections and Club Leadership
Club elections are coming up soon:
- Nominations will open next month, handled online and anonymously. Members can nominate themselves or others.
- Dan made clear
- If nominated, he will not run. If elected, he will not serve.
Members were encouraged to start thinking about who they might nominate for the various roles to help keep the clubโs leadership vibrant and sustainable.
Skateboard Race & After-Party
The club also heard an announcement about an upcoming skateboard race on Saturday:
- Volunteers are needed as โcone headsโโstanding along the course where cones are set up, resetting cones when theyโre knocked down, and counting hits.
- The role is intentionally low-stress and can be combined with enjoying some beers while spectating.
To thank volunteers, there will be a post-race party:
- Approximately 20 gallons of beer on tap.
- A pork shoulder feast for anyone who helps with cone duty or otherwise volunteers.
- On Sunday, there will be an after-party at Andyโs house, located not far from the race site. Although the location can be slightly tricky to reach, those who have attended past gatherings there described it as well worth the effort.
Flyers with both the race and party addresses were made available, and members were invited to take one for full details.
Chaos Brew BQ โ Bigger Vision
Several members spoke up again in praise of the CHAOS Brew BQ event, calling it:
- One of the best beer events in Chicago, improving each year.
- A festival with both homebrew and pro beer, plus top-notch food.
- An event that parallels how The Great Taste of the Midwest operates: a homebrew club creating and running a major regional beer festival.
There was some aspirational talk about helping CHAOS grow the event into an even larger, must-attend fixture on the Chicago beer calendarโand the importance of supporting it now through attendance, brewing, and volunteering.
Club Shirts โ New Order
To close out the meeting, the club revisited custom NUBS shirts:
- It has been about a year since the last shirt order.
- These shirts feature:
- Custom names on the front.
- The club logo on the back.
- Members were asked for a quick show of hands to gauge interest in a new batch.
There was enough interest to proceed, including suggestions for a new color (such as a light/soft green or โdead leafโ tone). Because these shirts are printed in batches, not on-demand, there is a minimum order (around 10 shirts), and turnaround will not be immediate.
The plan is:
- Start the ordering process with the vendor.
- Collect orders through the clubโs online store or website.
- Ship the batch to one memberโs house for distribution once the minimum is met.
Members were encouraged to keep an eye on club communications for ordering details once the design and color are finalized.
Adjournment
With no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned. Members then moved on to socializing, sharing beers, and informal discussions about upcoming brews, trips, and events.
