March Minutes

Baltibrew General Meeting

March 15, 2018 @ Nepenthe

• Guild Minutes - Nate

  • Guild minutes were sent out to the Baltibrew listserve.

  • The BJCP class was cancelled due to lack of interest.

  • A number of events are coming up, including the CRABs Light Rail crawl on April 8th and the VIctory Brewing Taste at Goddard Space Flight Center on March 16th (Zymurnauts).

  • MALT was happy to see so many Baltibrewers sign up for their bus trip!

  • Brubakes was plugged, there seemed to be some interest.

• Discussion on upcoming Baltibrew Events

  • May 5th - 2018 Big Brew
    Nepenthe is not sure if they will be hosting a Big Brew event this year, as they have not worked out their lease in the near term.  Several options were proposed, including attending the brew at Maryland Homebrew or joining Brewtherville’s Big Brew. Members will reach out to the other organizations and we will pick the discussion up next month.

  • July 27th - Baseball Os vs Rays Group Outing
    The club decided to move this outing to July 28th as Saturdays are generally easier for most of the members.  We will be looking to get a block of 30 tickets in the outfield bleachers, likely cost will be $17 dollars a seat. Options for a pre-game beer include the new Suspended Brewing in Pigtown.

  • August TBD - Balitbrew Bus Brewery Trip
    Jacob and Greg are getting quotes for the bus trip.  There are a few possible destinations in play, including DC, Columbia, and Eastern Shore breweries.  More information to follow. We will likely open up registration to guild members.

• Bylaw Revisions

  • Update to Quorum Rules - The eboard suggests changing the quorum rules as follows:

    • Individuals shall be considered members of Baltibrew upon payment of dues.  One is considered a member in good standing if current dues are paid in full.  One is considered an active member if they have participated in at least 50% of votes from the previous calendar year.  New members will be considered active upon the meeting following their initial payment of dues.

    • A quorum shall be considered the participation of a minimum of 50% of active members in good standing for a vote.

    • Changes to Baltibrew charter, bylaws, or articles will require a quorum of  ⅔ of active members in good standing.

  • The goals for this change were to:

    • Drop the quorum requirement in the short term.

    • Encourage vote participation and provides mechanisms for the quorum requirements to rise over time.

    • Not bar any good standing member from casting a vote.

    • Prevent members from stacking a vote at the next meeting with new signups.

    • Not create an unreasonable burden on the eboard to manage.

  • The rest of the draft amendments will be brought before the club for comment in future months.

  • We will vote on the changes after the club has had a chance to discuss all the draft language.

• Brübakes Competition Update, April 22nd @ De Kline Duvel

  • https://www.eventbrite.com/e/baltibrew-presents-brubakes-tickets-43690968864

  • We should assume that all the competitors for this first year will be Baltibrewer and we need six.

  • Please get the word out!  Jon and Nate will get the word out to other clubs via the guild and their contacts.

  • Caiti volunteered to work with Jon to get a flyer up in some local bars and breweries.

• Social/Event Updates - Jacob

  • Diamondback Brewing in Locust Point releases dry stout with cacao, Friday, March 16th

  • The Baltimore Whiskey Company’s first Epoch Straight Rye Whiskey Release, March 17th (https://www.facebook.com/events/2066954510256560/)

  • Mashout!!!  August 16-19, 2018 (www.campmashout.com)

  • Nepenthe’s Apples to Apples @ Blue Pit on April 15th (https://www.nepenthehomebrew.com/products/apples-to-apples-2018-ticket)

• Other New Business/Member Announcements

  • Iron Brewer - Tea @ the April meeting!

• Ed Topic - Kris

  • Meet the Ed Czar!

  • 2018 Ed Topics

    • March

      • Topic - Get to know your Ed Czar

      • Activity - Baltibrewer Survey

    • April

      • Topic - Baltibrewer Survey Results

      • Activity - Passing out wild yeast collection jars

      • Activity - Send in Water Survey Samples

    • May

      • Topic - Water Survey Results

    • June

      • Topic - Discussion - Fault and Flavors/Post -Mortem of Jon’s Tasting Panels

    • July

      • Activity - Sour Hour

    • August

      • Activity - Baltibrew Neighborhood Yeast Tasting

    • September

      • Topic - Brief History of Commercial Brewing in MD

      • Activity - Historical Beer from Baltimore

    • October

      • Topic - TBD

    • November

      • Topic - Apples and Honey - How Beer and Cider are different

    • December - Holiday Party - No Ed Topic

  • Baltibrewer Survey - Watch for an email with a link to the survey.

• Homebrew Swap!