This document serves to write the unwritten rules of swaps as a benefit to new brewers or those running swaps for the first time.
Nothing more exciting in the beer brewing world than a beer swap. Brewers get together, bring some of their beer and take some other beer home.
Swapping beers allows brewers to taste other styles of beer they would not normally brew and can give them valuable feedback.
The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT", "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119.
A swap involves a group of brewers each brewing a batch of beer, bringing their bottled batch to a venue and leaving the venue with one of every beer.
Generally a brewer will put a hand up as host to kick off the swap process.
The numbered swap list will be an official list of committed swappers. Each brewer adds their name to the list prior to swap day.
The list SHOULD be considered final 2 weeks before swap day in order for brewers to finalise the number of bottles required.
Brewers SHOULD remove their name from the list as soon as they can if they can no longer swap.
A maximum list size SHOULD be pre-determined. 24 is a good maximum for brewers who brew 20-23L batches. This allows 24 bottles plus some quality control and also limits the bottle handling to 576 bottles.
A backup list MAY be kept as brewers can pull out through work or other commitments. The highest number on the backup list would then fill the main list vacancy.
The beer you swap SHOULD be a beer of your highest brewing standard. That is to say you should be confident the beer is of your highest standard.
The brewer SHOULD bottle the beer with enough time before the swap to quality check. If bottle conditioning the beer SHOULD be ready on swap day.
Beers MUST be bottled in ~750ML PET bottles (NO GLASS). This is a safety measure and under no circumstance will glass be accepted.
Bottles MUST be numbered on the cap with the brewer's respective list number as described in the list section.
Bottles MAY be labelled in any way the brewer deems appropriate. This gives both another creative outlet plus allows drinkers to see what is in the bottle without consulting the list.
This section is entirely optional and only one recommended method.
Swap day MAY have an associated party for brewers to chat, share brewing experiences and of course a few brews. If this is the case it is RECOMMENDED that the swap time be set as close to the party start time as practicable to avoid mistakes.
Have a flat floor area set aside large enough to fit the number of swap bottles in a square (eg, if 24 swappers are in the list you need a square big enough for 24 bottles in both directions).
Brewers SHOULD leave their batch close to this area or position their bottles according to the guide below.
Once all swappers have placed their swap contribution near the swap area the swap can begin. This is best performed by one or two people to avoid rushing and making mistakes or knocking over bottles. These people MAY be referred to as the "swap marshalls".
The swap marshalls take all bottles from one swapper and start the first line of bottles. They SHOULD keep the line as straight as possible as the more perfect the grid the easier to spot missing bottles.
Using the first line as a guide continue on the next swapper's bottles. Do this until a complete grid of swap bottles has been made.
The marshalls MAY spend some time OPTIONALLY hassling swappers for failing to correctly number the bottles or provide enough bottles.
Numbered lids allow the marshalls to quickly check the list if any swappers are yet to show.
Once all bottles have been arranged the marshalls will grab brewers' boxes one-by-one taking one complete line of bottles. This will result in the brewer getting one of each beer including their own.
Brewers receiving one of their own beers back is critical to the ease of the process.
Brewers MAY use send photos and give feedback about the swap beers. Part of the process is designed to allow feedback but also give new brewers a chance to compare feedback to their own perceptions.