Our good friends in the state capital put on a yearly competition celebrating all beers British. Here are the details on this year’s event. D.R.A.F.T. has made a good showing in years past. Let’s keep it up!

D.R.A.F.T. will host the first meeting of young 2015 on Friday, January 9, at 7:00 pm at Columbian Hall, 4704 Burkhardt Ave, Dayton, Ohio. Come hear new club president Mike Barnhart’s vision for DRAFT in 2015, and bring a glass and some homebrew to share.

Hello Homebrew Aficionados,

DRAFT has been invited to collect Dayton’s best homebrews for this event!  The beer will be used to create gift baskets, which will be awarded during the raffle.  This is your chance to use your homebrew to help a great cause!  Beer may be dropped off at any of three locations for this event.  You may drop donations off to Chad Klehamer at BrewTensils, to Darren Link at Fifth Street Brewpub, or to the DRAFT Holiday Party (Columbian Hall, Friday , December 12, 2014 @ 6 p.m.).  Please make sure your submissions are clearly marked with the beer’s style and your name.  To ensure that there is enough time to sort the submissions, make sure your beers are submitted by the end of business on Sunday, December 14, 2014.  Thank you for your continued support and generosity!  Cheers! Jeff Schell – DRAFT President 2014

Take a break from the stress of holiday shopping and join fellow homebrewers for the annual DRAFT Family-Friendly Holiday Party on Friday, December 12, 2014.  We will be opening the doors of the Columbian Hall (4704 Burkhardt Ave., Dayton, OH 45403) at 6 p.m. for this special event.  Members and guests are welcome to enjoy a dinner of succulent ham, provided by DRAFT.  Those in attendance are encouraged to bring a side dish and homebrew to share with fellow guests.  Results of the 2015 club officer election will be announced.  There also will be door prizes and raffles, as well as a mystery bottle exchange (if you wish to participate-not obligatory).  Cheers!

Best of Show (Sponsored by Belmont Party Supply) – John Mulligan – German Pilsner

Second Place – Ashley Whitney Rawls – Cherry Mead

Third Place – Shannon Speight – Northern English Brown

Honorable Mention – Bryan Lang – Spice, Herb, Vegetable

Best of Dayton (Sponsored by Boston’s Bistro and Pub) – Ashley Whitney-Rawls

Best of DRAFT (Sponsored by Yellow Springs Brewery) – Jim Scofield

Results for each flight are posted at www.brewfest.brewcompetition.com.  Scoresheets, plaques and medals will be sent via US Mail on Monday, September 15.  Thank you to all of our fantastic sponsors, volunteers and entrants.  You made this year’s BrewFest competition one of the best ever!  Cheers!

Good Day Brew Fans!

This is a friendly reminder that the deadline for entering DRAFT’s BrewFest is fast approaching.  If you haven’t registered your beers at www.brewfest.brewcompetition.com and shipped your entries by 7 p.m. on Wednesday, you could be shut out.  So, enter today!  Don’t hoard your Helles or bogart your Bock.  Tis the saison to enter your beers into this month’s leg of the Midwest Homebrewer of the Year circuit!

SPECIAL NOTE:  As noted on the BrewFest website, entries must be dropped off at BrewTensils, 2617 S. Smithville Rd, Dayton, OH 45420 by 7:00 p.m. on September 3, 2014.  THE ONLY EXCEPTION that will be made to this rule is for OUT OF TOWN volunteers, judges, and stewards.  This is done as a professional courtesy and is extended to them for their service to DRAFT.  Thank you for your understanding.

Jeff Schell – DRAFT President 2014

DRAFTS next membership meeting is this Friday 8/8 at 7PM.

DRAFT meets every second Friday of the month at the Columbian Hall (4704 Burkhardt Rd., Dayton, OH 45403).  Our meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. with a social hour.  At 8:00, there is usually a brief educational presentation and business meeting.  The rest of the meeting is a continuation of social time with tasting, sampling and conversation for all.  Your first two meetings are free, so I encourage you to see if our club meets your expectations (risk free).

This Thursday the 31st is Club Night out at the Dayton Beer Company at 7PM.  They’re located at 912 E. Dorothy Lane in Kettering.