Serving Your HomeBrew Community: It's Worth It

Serving one's own beer to others is always worth it, but that's not what this post is about. Rather, this post is about serving the homebrew community by active involvement in the local homebrew club. Here's what's amazing: I started my first batch of beer in July 2013. I joined a local homebrew club (Central Arkansas Fermenters) in February 2014. I was nominated and elected Secretary of the Central Arkansas Fermenters in January 2015. And just three days ago, I helped orchestrate the election for the 2016 board of directors.

I was an honor to be nominated for a position after only having been a member of the club for exactly one year, and only after 17 months since I brewed my first batch. I was a little nervous, but I was up for the challenge. I simply wanted to give back to my fellow members and the craft beer community. Though it is a lot of work, it was easily one of the most fulfilling years of my life and I hope to be able to serve again in some capacity (I had to take a hiatus for year 2016 because a nomination for a national board position in my profession... but I digress).

What I liked most about being Secretary was being able to put a name to a face for nearly every member of the club, and getting to know my fellow officers, past officers, and especially some of the early founding members. What I benefited most from being an officer was getting firsthand experience on the ins-and-outs of organizing a beer festival, learning more about applicable laws pertaining to homebrewing, and gaining a better appreciation for the industry side of beer.

Here's 5 things I've learned, not just as Secretary, but also as a board member about the homebrewers and the homebrewing community:

1. Magnetism. Craft beer lovers, especially homebrewers, almost instantantly gravitate towards each other. This is what makes a local homebrew club so appealing. There's a culture, and where there's a culture, there's network. Where there's a network, there's a community. It's lively, dynamic, and enriching.

2. Spirit of DIY. People who love craft beer either want to try their hand at brewing, or have at least tried in the past. You know... be a do-it-yourselfer (DIY). Those who want to try their hand at brewing have somehow gotten bit by the homebrewing bug, but they haven't either because they don't have the resources or really aren't sure where to start. The cool thing about a local homebrew club is that there are plenty of opportunities to go and brew with someone and see it in action. Often times, the homebrewers will ask you to help so that you're making actual contributions as well.

3. Diverse. Homebrewers come from all walks of life. Of course, this shouldn't surprise. Beer, as with all forms of alcohol, is a social lubricant. And many would argue that great human achievements have come under the influence. The diversity to which I speak is that the homebrewing hobby does not appear to discriminate, that is, there are homebrewers with a variety of demographic variables.

4. No-One-Size-Fits-All. Just as there are homebrewers from all walks of life, there are just as many different ways to brew beer. It just simply doesnt matter if you brew in your kitchen with extract with a minimum of equipment, or with a $3,000 three-vessel system. I've even learned that you can give multiple people the same recipe and you can get slightly different flavor profiles and stats.

5. There is Love. No matter how you look it... although homebrewers (and commercial brewers) can be pretty vocal about their methods and beer, and maybe even be critical of others (for better or worse), there is no denying the utterly deep love for the craft, and for each other. It is amazing how much homebrewers want to share with other homebrewers and how supportive commericial craft brewers can be supportive of each other. When there is that much love, it's hard not to be evangelistic about it. Of course there are a few bad apples out there, but the majority remains "in love" with all that is craft beer and its community of people.

All that having been said, it was truly an honor to serve as the 2015 Central Arkansas Fermenters Secretary, and I look forward to staying involved in the years to come. For those of you who have not yet served, I strongly encourage you to. It really was worth it. And while I'd love to personally thank certain folks for their contribution to my homebrew journey, there simply are too many names to mention, but you know who you are.

Thank you, and it's been a pleasure serving you.

Happy Fermenting,

Sam