Cedar Rapids Brewing Society

Hi everyone.

I'm planning to attend the meeting tomorrow at Bricks and figured I'd introduce myself here first.

I just moved to Cedar Rapids a few months back to take a brewing job at Millstream after leaving Chicago where I worked at Goose Island.

I haven't had a chance yet to set up a home brewing outfit at my new house--and the wife is insisting that I keep my mess out of our new kitchen. Hopefully joining your ranks will give me the kick in the pants I need to get going on that basement brewery I've got sketched out in my mind.

I look forward to meeting you all. Is there anything I should bring along?

Best
-Chris

Great, glad to have you. We're always happy to have someone from "the other side" You're welcome to bring anything you want, as long as it's not in a commercial bottle. We need to respect the owners that let us have meetings under their roofs. But seriously, come on out, I would love to chat it up with you.

Awesome! We look forward to meeting you and having you join our merry band of beermakers!

Welcome! I too live on the SE side of Cedar Rapids. I built a house in 2005 that included a basement brewery. You will have to check it out sometime. It has been very functional for me. My system runs with a gas burner under the boil kettle and electricity powering the HLT. I believe I am hosting a chili cook off for the club in March which will be a good time to check it out. Let me know if you want to see it sooner than that and maybe something can be arranged. I have come up with some really simple solutions that have made my brewing nearly drip free. Minimizing moisture on the floor is nice if you are constantly in and out of the brewery and the room next door is all carpet.

Welcome!

I also am on the SE side, and have a basement brewery almost 100% operational. It's an all electric, and working on several projects with a side-by-side fermentor fridge and a chest freezer project.

Wait a minute, so now there are two brewers named "Chris" at Millstream?!? (in a Monte Python Flying Circus voice) That's going to cause some confusion, isn't it?

While I am not on the SE side (NE side rules!, just kidding) I am actually in the process of building a new all electric system as I am very lazy and want to brew comfortably in my man cave.

I would not mind exchanging some ideas with you (especially as someone who has worked in a professional brewing environment), and maybe get some ideas of where I am going right and wrong.

Welcome - you are in luck - I can actually attend as well

Two meeting in one year is a record and we are only two meetings in!

Yep, two Chris here at Millstream now. All day long I hear, "Chris... no, other Chris." I started wearing stocking caps over the winter, so they've tried imposing the name Waldo on me, but I'm hoping that doesn't stick.

I'd love to check out or share ideas about basement brewing set ups. I'm planning for an electric HLT and the rest natural gas fired. The cozy little corner/nook I've settled on even has piping close by for water and natural gas, so I should have to do too much plumbing to make this work.

See y'all tonight.

basement brewing is awsome, makes it nice to brew in the winte.

hey, it's bear. just a reminder to who ever to get my members access available. that'd be awesome, thanx!