Following several preliminary judging sessions, things got busy on Saturday in the California State Homebrew Competition. This year DOZE had the honor of being the organizers of the competition, and for the first time meads and ciders were included. On this big Day 1 of judging, 155 entries were judged with help from 35 Judges and 22 stewards/staff. Thank you again to Oakland United Beerworks for hosting the event at their warehouse in Oakland’s Jack London Square district, a hub of the city’s beer scene.

Last weekend, DOZE once again enjoyed the opportunity to share our hobby with the public at the Downtown Martinez Zombie Brew Crawl. After several years on hiatus, the event was on once again, and DOZE was invited to take part. Our booth was hosted by Del Cielo Brewing Co., on Escobar St. The sold-out event was a success and we got to have many wonderful conversations with attendees, including a number of past, current, and nascent homebrewers, and distributed dozens of club business cards.

Del Cielo Brewing Co. 🚨 REGISTRATION OPEN 🚨 *Limited ONLY to 50 entries *Drop off window 6/10 – 6/16 *Judging Date 6/18 – 6/26. Awards ceremony June 26th Registration Form https://www.delcielobrewing.com/2022-homebrew-competition/ #delcielobrewing #homebrew #2022 #competition #beer #craftbeer #yum #winner

DOZE members now have access to a Competition Tracker spreadsheet thanks to Tim Murray. Tim says that “Here I will periodically add DOZE, CA, and major national comps. You’re on your own for out of state (for a little help, the AHA competition calendar is also linked on the spreadsheet).” Check the pinned post on the “Competitions” channel on Slack for the link.

Saturday. Feb. 12th, was the perfect culmination of our DOZE 2022 BJCP Mead Classes and Exam. We had 20+ attend the class and had full count for the exam (maximum is 12) + 2 on standby. Thanks to proctors and Gordon and Ashley for helping out with the exam! Looking forward to soon having some new and awesome mead judges on West Coast!

By Matt Bolling, American Homebrewers Association Everyone starts homebrewing for the same reason: beer is awesome! What many people don’t realize at first, though, is that a whole community is devoted to the hobby we all love so much. The easiest way to experience the community-driven side of homebrewing is to check out your local homebrew club’s next meeting. If you’re like me, then you might have mixed feelings about doing this.

The Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) Beer Style Guidelines are getting an update. According to the BJCP website the 2021 revision is complete and will be published shortly. However, Gordon Strong, Chair of the BJCP Style Guidelines Committee, gives some highlights of what to expect HERE.

It’s the most wonderful time…for DOZE beer! Monday, December 13, 6:30-9:00 pm, at the Lindsay Wildlife Experience in Walnut Creek. It’s a time to don some holiday cheer, share a great meal and bring out our best holiday beers, meads, and ciders, as we celebrate another DOZE Christmas Party! Keep reading for important info!This is DOZE’s biggest fundraiser of the year–and the funnest! We will once again have a fantastic taco bar (with vegetarian options) and a homemade dessert competition–bring your tastiest treat to vie for a cash prize!

Check out Jay Brooks‘ write-up about DOZE’s two big awards earned this year and 25th anniversary, in the East Bay Times! It available online at https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2021/11/04/homebrew/, but if you want a keepsake, be sure to pick it up in this Sunday’s print edition of the newspaper.