Cup Runneth Over With Beer, Wine Entries

It is the stuff of male potency: 8,000-year-old legend has it that a man would drink mead--fermented honey water--for one month after a marriage ceremony to increase the chances of having male offspring.

That’s the story according to Steve White, last year’s brew master at the Ventura County Fair.

For George Warren and Leslie Karr, both engineers, winemaking is a creative outlet and a way to enjoy a drink that, they say, is nutritious and delicious.

Whatever the reason for making their homemade booze, an unprecedented number of amateur winemakers and brewers will have their products judged today in one of the hundreds of competitions at the 1996 Ventura County Fair. Three connoisseurs will “swirl and spit,” judging entries such as ale, chardonnay and sweet wines, on their clarity, aroma, bouquet and body.

Fair Agriculture Supt. Susan Kleine said she had received about 90 entries as of Monday afternoon for the beer and wine competitions, more than twice last year’s number.

Why the sudden rise in popularity?

Kleine credits the increase to microbreweries, specialty shops and clubs that have popularized winemaking and beer brewing.

“It’s become a pretty serious hobby for some of these people,” said Kleine.

The home-brewers entering their goods Monday worked as couples. In the case of White, he began brewing after being inspired by his wife, Winnie, who enjoys baking bread.

Brewing, the Whites say, takes a special touch. A good mead should taste like dry white wine. Bad mead can taste like soggy cardboard.

Winemakers also walk a fine line, said George Warren. If the yeast takes over, you have wine. If the bacteria wins, you have vinegar.

“This is our way of creating something,” said Warren, who has entered the contest for the past five years. “It takes a little bit of luck and a lot of cleanliness.”