How to start a Home Brew Club ?

[beerking]

Hey guys ,

I have no local club near me and was interested in starting one up . How do you go about this ??? Any suggestions or links offering advice would be greatly appreciated .

Cheers !

 

[tricache]

The Gold Coast had a few false starts apparently but The GoldCLUB got started last year and hasn't looked back since! It's about people near you who are like minded...it can be a bit daunting but worth it.

What area do you live in?

 

[bonj]

We started a new club in Ipswich, Qld almost 2 years ago now. It pretty much started organically through a bunch of posts on AHB querying interest. There was a fair bit of interest, so we organised a meeting and it went from there. Now, nearly 2 years in, we have a constitution, a committee and affiliation with a state body (for insurance etc). We have been very fortunate to have a great local pub manager that has been really encouraging. It would have been just as simple to organise regular meetings with no committee etc. It all depends on what kind of club you and your members want. I know another club (Corio Bay Brewers) down in Geelong that have their meetings at member's houses through some sort of roster system.

So I recommend posting on AHB to see what kind of interest there is. Maybe some flyers in your local HBS too.

 

[Florian]

http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/67184-gold-coast-home-brewers-unite/

 

[beerking]

Hey Bonj ,

Do you need to register the club with any governing body for comps etc? Or is it as simple as a bunch of blokes get together and brew. How did you come up with your constitution.

 

[Lecterfan]

It's not too hard. AHB is easy to use as a base, contact your local/closest homebrew shop, put up a flyer or something. Clubs will attract brewers who like to drink (in various quantities), and there will be a core group of people always interested to talk process, ingredients, flavours etc etc.

The single biggest thing that has improved my brewing has been getting involved in helping to put a club together. My experience was that for a start it was mostly isolated all grain brewers that were most interested in getting together. Reading about simple things like mashing etc. in books and on the net is one thing, but seeing the nuances and quirks of other brewers in real life opens up all sorts of doors and light-bulb moments etc.

Although, we have made a conscious choice to be as completely informal as possible. In fact not many of us would care if we weren't a club at all as we have formed some really good alliances and friendships...plus rather than seek 'new members' we just wait for people to contact us. Many do, and of that many some turn up and some don't. Easy!

Oh, and of course - good luck!

 

[tricache]

I agree with keeping it simple and easy! No need (in my opinion) to get carried away with governing bodies ect.

We meet once a month and have mini comps and all sorts...laid back is best I think

 

[bonj]

Hey Bonj ,

Do you need to register the club with any governing body for comps etc? Or is it as simple as a bunch of blokes get together and brew. How did you come up with your constitution.

I am not aware of any registration for comps, but I'm not involved with that side of things. We came up with our constitution by examining a few others and the examples on various government business registration websites, then drafting our own. We then sent it to members for comments and alterations, and voted on it at our next meeting. For our insurance, we became affiliated with the QAAWBG (or something... it's not a memory friendly acronym).

 

[dammag]

I'm a member of the GoldCLUB as well. Right from the first meeting (at El Presidente's unit, now we meet in a brewery) we have had a solid core of people who have been very involved in the club. As things move along we have been regularly getting new members to meetings, but I think you need that solid core of guys who regularly turn up to get it off the ground. It would be too easy for things to fizzle out otherwise.

Club meetings are great fun but also going to members houses for brew days is great fun. Seeing other guys setups, learning stuff off more experienced brewers and drinking beer!

As Adam said. We have kept things pretty simple but it works at the moment and lets us get on with enjoying beer!

I've met a great bunch of guys (including the infamous NickJD who we haven't "banned" from the club!) and look forward to every meeting. It's well worth the effort to get something together and in this internet age getting something going probably hasn't been easier.

 

[beerking]

Thanks guys appreciate the help

 

[fcmcg]

One thing that out club did do , was institiute a code of conduct.As we drink alcohol at meetings , it puts into place standards of behaviour and makes sure that everyone is on the same page.It also lets you have an "out" should you end up with a member who is a belligerent or agressive drinker.