Homebrewers! It's that time again. The 13th Annual Bluebonnet Brew-off is rapidly approaching. Well, it is still some time off, but we all know that beer and brew-offs wait for no man or woman. Before we know it, the time will be here for us to speand a wild and wonderful weekend together. So now is the time to start planning those winning beers and to fill our carboys full.

The 13th Annaul Bluebonnet Brew-Off is hosted and organized by the Cowtown Cappers of Fort Worth, and Spence Mabry has been given the dubious honor of being the director. Don't worry, though, as he will be picking the brains of those infamous directors of the past, John Kessel, Darrell Simon, and Rob Stenson. As always, we're putting together another fantastic line up for your total enjoyment. Sign up for the whole thing (if you can) and get ready for a couple of days that you won't soon forget!!

There'll be fantastic food, prizes and great speakers. Not to mention the annual Bus # 2 Pub Crawl. You'll meet some of the other clubs in (and out) of the area and hopefully find some new friends.  And....of course, there will be plenty of beer!  So...From all of the members of this years Bluebonnet Organization Committee, WELCOME!  Your homebrew entry is safe with us and will be judged by you peers according to the American Homebrewers Association guidelines with the attention and care that you've come to expect from one of the best competitions in the state of Texas.

GOOD LUCK!

Just to show you what happens to old Bluebonnet Directors, here are some photos:
Rob and his favorite girls.
Spence wonders about his fate.

Important Dates for The Bluebonnet Homebrew Brew-Off 99

• Designs for T-shirts, Posters, Steins, and Glassware -- Sept. 11, 1998 CLOSED
• Early Entry Deadline -- Feb. 26, 1999
• Late Entry Deadline -- March 5, 1999
• First round judging -- March 13-14, 1999 at the Coors Distribution Center (see bleow).
• The Bluebonnet Homebrew Brew-Off 99 itself -- March 19-20, 1999.

Speakers

The keynote speaker is Ray Daniels, author of Designing Great Beers and 101 Ideas for Homebrew Fun and (with Jim Parker) Brown Ales.
Saturday morning, we will have Russ Bee (1998 Gold Medal - Classic Pislener) and Dean Fiker (1998 Bronze Medal - German-Style Ale). Friday night will be a guided tasting with Charlie Gottenkieny (1998 Bronze Medal - Belgian-Style Lambic).

Schedule of Events

Friday, February 26, 1999
• Early entry deadline

Friday, March 5, 1999
• Late entry deadline

Saturday - Sunday, March 13 - 14, 1999
• First Round Judging
  • This will be held at the Coors Distribution Center in north Fort Worth.
    Directions to Coors Distribution Center - 2550 McMillian Parkway
    • FROM THE SOUTH:

      From I-35, Exit at Meacham Boulevard. From the access road turn right on the first street which is McMillian Pkwy. (Don't take the truck delivery entrance by mistake) Turn right into the parking lot. The Hospitality room has a sign pointing to it. There will be a sign pointing to the Meeting room.

    • FROM THE NORTH:

      From I-35 (just south of loop 820) take the Meacham Boulevard exit. Turn left at the stoplight; go through the next stoplight. Turn right at the four way stop. Turn right at McMillian Parkway, which is one-way, separated by a wide median. Take the U-turn before you get back to the access road. Turn right after the U-turn into the parking lot. The Hospitality room has a sign pointing to it. There will be a sign pointing to the Meeting room.

    • Here is map to the site.
    • Call Spence Mabry (817-249-4789) for directions if you want to help
  Here are pictures from the first round of judging.

Friday, March 19, 1999
• 5-7 p.m. Banquet check-in/reception
• 7:00 p.m. Banquet Dinner
  The dinner is Stuffed Chicken Normandy and consists of:
  • Roasted chicken breast stuffed with apples, almonds, and raisins with a Port Wine Sauce
  • House salad and dressing
  • Rice Pilaf
  • Fresh Seasonal Vegetables
  • Cheescake with Strawberry topping
• 7:30 p.m. Ray Daniels - Keynote speaker
• 8:30 p.m. Guided tour Lambic Tasting with Charlie Gottenkieny

Saturday, March 20, 1999
• 8:00 - 8:30 a.m. participant Registration and Judging Check-in
• 8:30 a.m. Dave Bryant and John Simms from the Cooper Tank
• 8:45 a.m. Russ Bee and Dean Fiker Q & A
• 9:30 a.m. Ray Dainels Q &A
• 10: 30 a.m. 2nd Round Judging
• 3:00 p.m. PUB CRAWL!
  These are the PUB CRAWL routes
  • Route One (Blue) -- Dallas
    • The Gingerman
    • The Copper Tank
    • Hoffbrau Steak and Brewery
    • The Barley House
    • Two Rows Resturant and Brewery
  • Route Two (Green) -- Dallas
    • The Barley House
    • Old Monk
    • Two Rows Resturant and Brewery
    • Flying Saucer
    • Hoffbrau Steak and Brewery
  • Route Three (yellow) -- Addison/Dallas
    • Humperdink's
    • Rock Bottom
    • Hoffbrau Steaks and Brewery
    • The Flying Saucer
    • The Londoner
  • Route Four (Red) -- Arlington/Fort Worth
    • J. Gilligan's
    • Humperdink's
    • Pig and Whistle
    • The Flying Saucer
• 8:00 p.m. Awards Cerermony
• 11:59 p.m. Ceremony ends!

• Ale-ians Society 50
• Bay Area Society of Homebrewers 2
• Bear Brewers 1
• Bible Belt Brewers 21
• Brewed 66 Wort Hogs 15
• Central Florida Home Brewers 150
• Cowtown Cappers 90
• Crescent City Brewers 13
• Dukes of Ale 4
• Foam Rangers 58
• High Plains Draughters 33
• Ida Quaffers 4
• Kansas City Bier Meisters 1
• Knights of the Brown Bottle 41
• Kuykendahl Grand Brewers 4
• Maltose Falcons 4
• Mississippi Unquenchable Grail Zymurgists (MUGZ) 13
• NETHoppers 16
• North Texas Homebrewers Association 138
• Palm Beach Draughtsmen 5
• Red River Brewers 53
• RedStick Brewmasters (Baton Rouge) 2
• Shreveport Urban Diastatic Sparges 5
• Texas Aggie Brew Club 11
• Texas Brewers Association 4
• Yeast Texas Fermentors 8
• no club association 66

There are a total of 811 entries for this year's Bluebonnet Competition
• 01 Barley Wine 31
• 02 Belgian and French Ale 53
• 03 Belgian-style Lambic 11
• 04 Mild and Brown Ale 43
• 05 English-style Pale Ale 40
• 06 American-style Pale Ale 46
• 07 English Bitter 18
• 08 Scottish Ale 25
• 09 Porter 34
• 10 English and Scottish Strong Ale 24
• 11 Stout 65
• 12 Bock 32
• 13 German Dark Lager 18
• 14 German Light Lager 10
• 15 Classic Pilsner 34
• 16 American Lager 23
• 17 Vienna/Marzen/Oktoberfest 32
• 18 German-style Ale 40
• 19 German-style Wheat Beer 37
• 20 Smoked Beer 17
• 21 Fruit and Vegetable Beer 36
• 22 Herb and Spice Beer 25
• 23 Speciality Beer 36
• 24 California Common Beer 12
• 25 Traditional Mead and Braggot 17
• 26 Fruit and Vegetable Mead 31
• 27 Herb and Spice Mead 11
• 28 Cider 10

Homebrewer of the Year

The categories and guidelines will be the ones that the AHA will publish in the Winter Issue of Zymurgy. A text and a Microsoft Word version of the guidelines are here.

The specifics about the Bluebonnet are in a Word or a text file.
The following forms are available in a variety of formats:

Ad Prices

For more information on locations and how to reserve your ad space, contact Spence Mabry or Steve Wesstrom.

• Business Card size -- $35.00
• Quarter page -- $50.00
• Half page -- $75.00
• Whole page -- $120.00

Sponsors

The following are Proud Sponsors of the 13th Annual Bluebonnet Brew-Off. Please support them and check out their websites!

HomeBrew Supply Shops
• St. Patrick's of Austin, Texas
• The Winemaker Shop, Fort Worth, Texas
• Jack's Homebrew Supply Of Dallas, Richardson, Texas

Breweries
• Saint Arnold Brewing Company
• Pyramid Ales and Thomas Kemper Lagers
• Tennant's
• Shiner Beer Shiner, Texas
• NewCastle
• Celis Brewery

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Last modified on Saturday, 27-Mar-1999 19:19:30 PST