If you want it done right, you have to brew it yourself!

According to the Institute for Brewing Studies website, Alltech and Siebel finally seem to have come to a resolution in their disagreement. You may recall that there was a big debate a while back as to who was really in charge of Siebel now, Alltech or Lallemand. Here's a snip:

Sources from both sides report that the Siebel-Alltech conflict is settled and that a public announcement will be made soon. Several court hearing dates were scheduled during the summer and apparently at one of them the judge told the parties to try to work out an agreement privately. While no one will discuss the settlement on the record for fear of losing their job, it is clear that there will be no change from the current status quo.

It's a very Good Thing that this dispute is resolved and Siebel can go back to training brewers. Thanks gak for the heads-up.

Our Help gak! page is now actually on eganbrewing.com. It will look the same and all the links will still work. But this way gak can make the changes to the page as necessary. Please note that the ad at the top of the page is put there by whoever hosts eganbrewing.com. We receive nothing from it (in case anyone wonders if I'm secretly pocketing ad revenue) :)

Guess what kids? I actually brewed yesterday! I whipped up a batch of my famous bitter and used only my own home-grown hops. The smell from the fresh hops is utterly intoxicating. I can't wait to get that bad-boy on tap!

I've updated our Help gak! chart. He only needs two more volunteers. <sally struthers> If only you would volunteer a few hours out of your month, you can keep a poor young man from going thirsty this fall. So please, sign up, won't you? </sally struthers>

I would like to apologize to everyone in the world for having to resort to a Sally Struthers imitation.

In happier news, I picked between 28 and 32 ounces of hops (dried) from my two mounds this fall. Both mounds are Goldings. To quote George, "I like hops."

Homebrew Market and the Society of Oshkosh Brewers are sponsoring a Milwaukee Brewery Tour on Saturday, October 21. Click the link for more information or call Homebrew Market at 1-800-261-BEER.

I posted gak's latest Egan Brewing News. Check it out!

Speaking of gak, there is an all-new Help gak! chart posted. He still needs four more volunteers. Even if you already signed up, please double-check that page.

gak sent an updated list of volunteers during his recovery from surgery. One person had to back out from the Humane Society beer fest, so another volunteer is needed. Check our Help gak! page for further information.

I forgot about it last month, but on August 27, this website celebrated its third anniversary! I'd like to thank all our loyal readers (both of you) for making this website what it is today. Whatever that is.

Egan brewmaster Richard "gak" Stueven sent a reminder about the stuff that is still available at the brewery:

There are still 9 of the Mexican Sankey kegs here . . . if you need 'em, buy 'em.

Last call for the Free Stuff:

Briess Flaked Wheat
Briess Caramel 10L
Weyermann Smoked Malt
Weyermann Chocolate Rye
Munton & Fison Chocolate
Munton & Fison Roasted Barley
Siebel Convertase
5 Star Irish Moss
Calcium Carbonate
Britesboro Stabilizer

If it's still here at the end of the month, it gets thrown out.

Egan brewmaster Richard "gak" Stueven showed up at the club brew last night with news that he will be undergoing surgery that will make him incapable of bending or lifting for a while. In the meantime, he is asking for help at the brewery. Volunteers will receive $7/hour, a free meal, and a couple beers. If you are interesting in helping out, check out our Help gak! page for all the details.

Hey kids, I'm back! Didja miss me? I got some good news today. The father-son team of Dan and Jeff Rogers have graciously consented to be our brewers for our club brew a week from today (Tuesday, September 5, for the calendarically challenged). In other news, my hops are growing like mad. Barring an extremely early frost, it should be a bountiful harvest. Mmmmmm, hoppy beer . . .

Well kids, I'm going on vacation tomorrow. Try not to mess the place up too much. Hopefully I will have some tales of microbrews sampled when I return.

I posted the brand-spankin' new Egan brewing news. Find out what's on tap!

We need a brewer for the September club brew. Interested? Email me ASAP!

Richard at Egan's sent email announcing the availability of some free goodies:

I've got a pile of stuff here that I have no use for, so if you come pick it up, you can have it for free . . .

• Briess Flaked Wheat
• Briess Caramel 10L
• Weyermann Chocolate Rye
• Weyermann Smoked Malt
• Munton & Fison Chocolate
• Munton & Fison Roasted Barley
• Calcium Carbonate
• Anhydrous Calcium Sulfate
• Brites Boro Stabilizer

Here are the rules:

• All of the stuff is on a skid next to the clean kegs in the back room. Anything that's on the skid is fair game. Anything that's not on the skid is OFF LIMITS.
• Bring your own containers. Most of the stuff is in large bags and plastic buckets; if you want smaller quantities, you'll have to weigh it out yourself. (And I'm keeping the plastic buckets.)
• I'd prefer that you make your pickup during times that I'm at the brewery. If you can't make it during my usual hours (Mon-Sat 9-3) then give me a call (920-339-2702) to arrange a pickup time.

I double-checked the newsletter. The picnic this Saturday at the N.E.W. Zoo will actually start at 1:00 P.M. instead of noon as I previously had on the top of this page. Sorry for the confusion.

A little birdie told me that the Best-of-Show-winning A.P.A. went on tap at Egan's/Gallagher's yesterday. Get some. Yummy. I've got some pictures that gak sent along of the brewing of said beer. I just need to get around to converting them and making a page for them.

I HTMLized our summer newsletter and the latest Egan Brewing News for your perusal and edification.

A couple of announcements:

• Tickets to the Oshkosh Jaycees' Brews N' Blues festival are available at Gallagher's of DePere for $15. The event will be held at Riverside Park in Oshkosh from 1-7 P.M. on a date that was not listed on the press release for some reason. Maybe it's a secret. Maybe they hate me. If anyone knows the date, please email me.
• Chuck Goluecke is looking for help doing a brewing demonstration at the Belgian Farm on Heritage Hill from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. on Saturday, August 19. If you are interested, please email Chuck ASAP.
• Remember, we still have plenty of corny kegs available for $12/each and used Sanke 1/2 barrels for $25/each. Email Mike Conard if you are interested.

In my personal brewing news, I'm going to keg my oatmeal/espresso stout today. Yesterday I picked about 10 pounds of sour cherries from Bill Reis' tree (with his invitation and encouragement) to transform my lambic into a kriek. Mmmmm. Kriek.

Happy Independence Day everyone! I hope you all escape the day with all your digits intact! 'Twas a busy brewing day in my household. I brewed up a batch of my oatmeal/espresso stout, I racked my barleywine into its final container (yet another corny), and I sampled my pLambic. The stout brewing went flawlessly (something about that recipe--both times I brewed it the brewing process has been near perfection). The barleywine is a little hot, but by this winter . . . mmmmm. The pLambic smells wonderful and has a nice sourness, but it will take a bit for all the flavors to meld. As if that weren't enough, I even posted the new Egan Brewing News. Prosit!