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More Than Beer: A Tribute To Kurt Smelser

More Than Beer: A Tribute To Kurt Smelser

Posted On: July 07, 2021

When local homebrewer Kurt Smelser passed away on April 15th, 2021 (his 62nd birthday), he left behind more than just a legacy of great brewing experience. He had left an unclaimed prize of brewing his own recipe at a local brewery. Five local brewers stepped up to make sure Kurt’s recipe was brewed to his specifications and tapped for all to enjoy. His recipe is included in this blog for you to brew in his memory.

When I first had the idea to write a blog post about Kurt and this beer, I tried several ways to write it without making it too personal.  But, in the end, this is just my story, like so many others out there with stories, about Kurt Smelser and beer.

I first met Kurt Smelser in 2019 at a MUGZ Homebrew Club meeting. He had a presence about him of confidence and wisdom when it came to brewing knowledge. His personality was also so warm and inviting, never proud, always humble when it came to receiving feedback on his more-than-often big, boozy beers. Five days before he passed away, we were together at Twin Span Brewing. We were in the back surrounded by huge stainless steel tanks with a group made up of employees of several local breweries all interested in Cicerone (beer sommelier) training from Certified Cicerone Adam Ross. Kurt made a joke about how he was the only person there who didn’t work in a brewery. I replied with some smart remark about how he should get paid for how much time he spent in them. We cracked several more jokes and shared several beers. Afterwards we talked to Rachel Leiby, the current Head Brewer of Geneseo Brewing, about how Kurt still needed to cash in his prize. 

In September of 2019 as the Head Brewer of Geneseo Brewing, I organized a homebrew competition in conjunction with the annual BBQ competition. Homebrewers lined the street between BBQ grills and smokers to pour their best beer for the attendees. As part of the competition, they were all asked to submit a beer to be blindly judged by two professional brewers with the winning homebrewer receiving the opportunity to brew their recipe on the professional equipment at Geneseo Brewing and tapped there as well. 

Mike Boyer (Head Brewer of Bent River Brewing) and Adam Ross (Head Brewer of Twin Span Brewing and Certified Cicerone) judged beer after beer blindly, but in the end it was Kurt’s beer that both judges picked as the best executed beer of the competition. Kurt and I communicated for months working to scale up his recipe from 5 gallons to the commercial scale of 5 barrels. We tried to pencil in a date when a fermenter would be open and we would both have availability to brew it together, but unfortunately with the Covid-19 Pandemic shutting down businesses and my departure from the brewery, the plans were put on a hiatus. 

The local brewing community was rocked by the news of Kurt’s passing. Though he may not have been a professional brewer, he was so deeply connected in the QC brewing community. Most of your favorite local breweries have brewers that called Kurt a friend and were inspired by him and his creations at some point over the years. The Cedar Rapids/ Waterloo and Oklahoma City brewing communities were affected too, as Kurt had spent several years in those areas as well. 

I spoke with Rachel Leiby the day Kurt passed and we started getting the plans together to brew Kurt’s recipe for him at Geneseo Brewing. We invited the brewing community to help as well. We got together on a Sunday a few months later and were joined by Scot Schaar (Head Brewer of Crawford Brew Works), Karen Schaar (Powder Keggers Homebrew Club & Pink Boots Society Member), and Eric Goodyear (local homebrewer). We mashed in and told stories throughout the day of our favorite memories of Kurt. I didn’t know Kurt as well as many other people did, but I am glad I was able to know him as well as I did and to help out with this tribute to him.

Kurt’s recipe we brewed is a Rye IPA with brown sugar he called “Cane EnAbled”. I am sharing his recipe here because Kurt was an open book when it came to sharing what he had learned in brewing. Here is the recipe on a 5 gallon scale and how to brew it according to the messages Kurt sent me in 2019 for any brewer who would like to brew it:

Cane EnAbled

OG: 1.084, FG: 1.015, ABV: 9%

Fermentables:

  • 28.6% Maris Otter
  • 28.6% German Pilsner
  • 11.4% Rye Malt
  • 5.7% Flaked Rye
  • 11.4% Vienna Malt
  • 4.3% Belgian Cara 45
  • 2.9% CaraRye Malt
  • 1.4% English Medium Crystal
  • 5.7% Light Brown Sugar

Hops: (Target 70 IBUs)

  • 1oz Columbus 60min
  • 1oz Warrior 45min
  • 1oz Columbus 30min
  • 1oz Warrior 15min
  • 2oz Centennial 5min

Water Profile: Ca:HCO3 1:1.75 SO4:Cl 2.9:1

Yeast: Nottingham Dry Yeast. US-05 or a neutral kveik yeast would work fine.

“This could also be dry hopped with more Centennial. For an easy water profile use 4 gallons filtered tap and 1 gallon distilled. I add a little more Calcium Chloride and more Gypsum to hoppy beers. I ferment with Nottingham on the cooler side to keep down the esters.”

“Kurt Jesse Smelser passed away on April 15, 2021, his 62nd birthday. Kurt will be remembered for his kind heart, wry jokes, jovial laughter, & award-winning talent for homebrewing beer.” - Kurt’s Obituary


About the Author:

Charlie Cole is a professional brewer and multimedia beer promoter. He is a graduate of St. Louis University in Brewing Science and Operations & University of Vermont in Business of Craft Beer. He has been a previous brewer at three different Quad Cities breweries and co-hosts the What’s Tappening weekly local beer segment on 97X FM.