Brew debut: The Northern California Homebrewers Festival

I’ve posted about many a beer drinking festival here before, but I believe this is the first time I’m posting about a beer brewing festival.  Of course, every festival is a beer brewing festival for professional brewers, in attendance to share and promote their beers, but I’m talking about festivals you and me, the enthusiasts.  A few weekends from now, September  19^th & 20^th, I’ll be at the Northern California Homebrewers Festival.

The festival seems to be a little more structured than most I’ve been to in the past in that they have an actual speaker.  And by actual speaker, I mean someone other than the Stumptown Brewery guys who got up on stage at the end of their Beers and BBQ Revival and encouraged women to strip for the title of Miss Stumptown and men to get their girlfriends to strip, as if this earned them the Mr. Stumptown title.  A bit sexist, no?  If there’s going to be stripping, let’s at least have a little equal opportunity and get some naked guys up there.  But, preferably, I like my festivals a little heavier on the brews and a little lighter on the boobs, that’s all.   This year’s speaker at NCHF is ‘The head brewer of Stone’.  I’m not sure whether this refers to their founder, brewmaster, or lead brewer, but at least it pinpoints a particular brewery.  Last year’s was Vinnie Cilurzo from Russian River Brewing Company, discussing sour beer and wood aging.

Another fun feature of NCHF, aside from keeping the on-stage focus on racking to secondary and off ‘racks’, is their homebrew competition.  Clubs can enter a keg in one either or both of two styles picked to go with this year’s theme of ‘The British Isles’: Irish Red Ale and Scotch Wee Heavy.  I can’t wait to try all those Wee Heavys, and luckily it will be my duty to do so as a festival attendee since all festival participants can contribute a vote for their favorite.

And last, but actually first chronologically and probably first in terms of festival events I’m eagerly anticipating, is Homebrew Chef Sean Paxton’s dinner on Friday night.  This is a man after my own heart who interprets “course” liberally, actually referring to a collection of several items with each course designation such that his “six course” dinner is probably more accurately a “fifteen course” dinner paired with ten different beers, many of them homebrews.  This year’s menu isn’t up yet, but last year’s is probably a good guide for what to expect.  Phew, I feel strangely full just reading all of those courses, and yet very, very hungry.

And, I almost forgot, but this festival will mark my debut as a ‘competitive’ homebrewer.  Now, I mean competitive in a strictly narrow sense of ‘having entered competitions’ since it will probably be a long while before I’m competitive in the broader sense of ‘being in the running for winning competitions’, though you never know!  I’m not entering the NCHF competition itself, since that is only open to clubs, and all of my attempts to join a SF homebrew club have been stymied thus far, but Gail and I will be entering our secret brew in the California Homebrew Competition (held at Stern Grove) and the Queen of Beer Competition, which both have entry drop-off points at NCHF.

Now all I have to do is practice setting up that giganto-tent, which has luckily recovered since being traumatized at Boonville.  Cheers!