Members of the Woodbridge Homebrewers Ale and Lager Enthusiast Society (WHALES) gather with family members for a holiday party, and of course, some craft beers. Don’t let the WHALES’s name mislead you. Although the Woodbridge Homebrewers Ale and Lager Enthusiast Society may conjure visions of a free-wheeling, beerguzzling group of partiers for some, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Sure, they have their fun, but the WHALES have been going strong for 17 years because of a true passion for the craft of making beer, not necessarily drinking it by the growlerful.
“This is sort of a labor-of-love kind of hobby,” Bobby Mierzejwski, president of the club, said. “If you do it just for the beer, you’re going to be disappointed.”
The Piscataway resident joined the WHALES in 2007 and hasn’t looked back, becoming more involved over time and serving two years in the club’s top post.
Aside from several original members who have stayed on since the beginning, homebrewers have come and gone from the club over the years, and the current roster holds about 50 from all over Central Jersey. The WHALES meet on the third Tuesday night of each month at 8 p.m. at J.J. Bitting Brewing Co. on Main Street in Woodbridge to go over official club business, and of course, taste some beers. Some meetings are standing room only.
Although a casual dabbler can get a basic brewing setup for around $100, top-level homebrewing systems can cost as much as $6,000, Mierzejwski said.
“It’s on par with any other expensive hobby,” he said. “It can go as far as you want to take it.”
For example, one could brew a pretty tasty beer with the cheapest system and be quite pleased with it. However, if that same person tastes a beer brewed by someone with more complex equipment, clear nuances of flavor would shine through and perhaps make the simple brewer want to achieve the same thing through fermentation control. Some hardcore brewers purchase a whole refrigerator for this purpose.
“It’s like a rabbit hole you go into,” Mierzejwski said. “It does get out of hand.”
For those who consider homebrewing more than just a casual hobby, the process can be extremely involved and equally rewarding.
“It taps into management skills, and it’s also an art,” he said. “You basically have to be a good chef to be a good homebrewer.”
While the WHALES are accepting new members, not just anyone with a hankering for good beer can join.
“We discourage people from joining if they’re not actively homebrewing,” Mierzejwski said, adding that potential members are asked about their experience with the craft, as well as why they want to join the club and what they hope to get out of it. A lack of experience doesn’t necessarily preclude someone from becoming a member. Those who have yet to homebrew are given a member to mentor them on the process before they commit to membership.
“We certainly invite people to come check out our meetings,” he said, adding that potential members can attend one meeting before determining whether they would like to become members.
Membership affords a number of privileges — expert advice from others, feedback on one’s homebrewed creations, the chance to compete locally and on the national level and, of course, camaraderie with like-minded beer enthusiasts.
Many friendships have bloomed among club members, adding to its allure. Competition is another aspect of it. The American Homebrewers Association (AHA) encourages “club-only competitions,” for which members bring their own brews to be judged by other members. In such cases, the club will settle on a type of beer to bring, and members will judge them to narrow it down to one that can be entered into a larger-scale contest.
“We do that blind, so there’s no bias at all,” Mierzejwski said.
The club as a whole owns a larger brewing system that is used for team projects. This larger setup, along with the collaborative effort, yields a better end product than what one member could produce alone, Mierzejwski said. “Just somehow, the collective wisdom comes together in a way that’s amazing,” he said.
Despite its name, the club is not centered only on beer. Members also make mead, cider and wine. Similar to wine making, homebrewed beers sometimes employ barrels for aging. The barrels — usually once used for wine or bourbon —age the beer for nine to 12 months, rewarding patience with results “similar to what you’d expect with wine,” according to Mierzejwski.
“You get complexity. Certainly, the oak flavors are imparted to the beer,” he said.
Aside from the WHALES’s monthly meetings, special events throughout the year provide further buzz for the brewers. Holiday parties, a summer picnic and themed beer parties add some fun to the business of brewing.
This year, the National Homebrewers Conference will be held June 27-29 in Philadelphia, a departure from its typical setting on the West Coast. One night is dubbed “club night,” when groups from around the country set up booths to showcase their work. The conference represents the only nationallevel homebrewing competition, according to Mierzejwski.
“Our club has won Gold at the national level,” he added.
Learn to Homebrew Day and National Homebrew Day, usually the first Saturdays of November and May, respectively, are AHA-sanctioned events that clubs around the country host to provide newbies a peek into the craft.
One might wonder about the difference between brewing as a hobby and as a career. Although many homebrewers entertain thoughts of turning their passion into a livelihood, the prospect is usually not an easy one, Mierzejwski said.
“The laws vary a little from state to state, but none of them allow for the sale of homemade alcohol products without going through a very formal permitting procedure,” he said, adding that turning brewing into a commercial venture would strip away the freedom — and therefore much of the enjoyment — from it.
And what about that enjoyment? It would seem that at least a good portion of the allure of homebrewing would be the pleasure of imbibing the finished product. While that may be true, Mierzejwski is quick to point out that homebrewers are no drunks.
“I would say that members probably drink a little less than most craft-beer enthusiasts,” he said. “I don’t think anyone in the club could be considered even anything close to an alcoholic.”
For more information, visit www.whalesbrewclub.com.