[oginme]

I went with not a  member, don't want to be, which isn't exactly accurate.  It depends on the day whether I would like to join a club or not.  I'm generally a loner with no need to "belong" to groups and such.  But some day I might choose to join one. 

Raising 4 kids and working for a company that considers 60 hours/week to be part time I've never had the spare time to spend in a club.  Like I say, someday.

Paul

Pretty much the same here.  There are times when I'd like to participate in a club meeting and get to know other brewers in the area, but I work 50 hrs a week plus 10 hrs of commute time, have a farm which sucks up another 20 to 30 hrs a week, sit on the BOD for a not for profit org, and family commitments...  Yeah, sleep is very over rated.

[Robert]

I think this forum provides what I seek most in a homebrew community -- exchange of information, and a little camaraderie -- without what I'm not interested in: competitions (I will always be a far harsher judge of my own work than anyone else;) projects diverting my brewing efforts to styles or subjects that don't really interest me; or, worst and what seems a regular theme in this thread, devolution into a drinking club. So, not a member, don't want to be.

[klickitat jim]

+1

[chumley]

I have been brewing for 28 years, and have seen two clubs start up and fade away in my town in that time period.

In that time, I have observed that there are two basic types of club members, who don't get along well together.

Member Type A likes a structured meeting following Robert's Rules of Order, a clear agenda, technical presentations and discussions.  These are usually older types.

Member Type B just wants to get together and drink each other's beer.

[TANSTAAFB]

Bookcliff Hombrew Club, Grand Junction CO!!!
So happy to finally live close enough to a club to participate!

Couple things...the survey doesn't show up on Tapatalk and when I went to the linked form it won't recognize Yes as an answer for the are you in the states question.

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[chezteth]

I enjoy being part of a club. I enjoy the camaraderie and the exchange of ideas. We have a few events we participate in each year. Our club is slowly growing. It consistently has around a dozen people attending a club meeting. We currently have a beer style(s) of the month to discuss and taste. Members will bring their beers looking for feedback. It is definitely something I look forward to attending each month.

[ynotbrusum]

I enjoy being in the club and view it as an opportunity to give back to the newer brewers.  I also get great input from others who are longer in the tooth than me or those who have experienced something I haven’t seen or heard about before.  A club with Robert or Jim would be lucky to have them as a resource.  Lastly in importance to me is the social outlet, but it is an important component for many club members.

[yugamrap]

I've been a club member www.beersnobs.org for about 10 years and have been an officer and President and help with club events like competitions and outings.  In the time I've been a member, we've grown from about 70 members to over 200, and we typically have 75-90 members at our monthly meetings.

With each set of officers/president, the club evolves a bit - but there are some things we've always done and some more recent things that seem to work for us.  One of the best changes I think we made was to keep the structured meeting with event updates and presentations, but to make the 2nd half of the meeting "social time."  That really helps limit extraneous discussion during presentations, and gives everyone a chance to shoot the breeze and drink with their buddies within the club.

Our club is also fortunate to have a number of local pros - some founding members of the club - who regularly participate in club meetings, give presentations, and open their businesses to us for collaborations, competitions and other events.

Some meetings I learn a lot - others are more social for me.  I just think it's key to be open to change and to get new members involved early.  Over the years I've been in it, the club has evolved to have a wider range of members in age, gender and interests.  Aa an example, a group of our women members recently did Pink Boot Society collaboration brews at three local craft breweries and those beers will be on tap for upcoming club nights out at those same breweries. 

[dmtaylor]

There are some clubs that are more social, some more business-like..... my preference is a balance of the two, or even leaning a bit more towards the social side (thank you very much).  I know for me personally, I don't learn as much from technical presentations anymore, and learn a great deal more just by talking to people on a less formal, more social basis.  So for those going to meetings to learn something, recognize that there are different ways to learn.  One looks more like a classroom with Powerpoints, and the other looks to an outsider more like "being too social", but for me, that's where I learn a lot.  And to those more interested in business or politics...... personally, I don't give much of a rat about all that.  Go run for office or start up a brewery, whatever suits your fancy.  I just want to brew and enjoy each other's homebrews, thanks.

Just being honest and open.  We can all get whatever we want out of a club.  I like a little bit of everything, but not a lot of any one thing.  All good things in moderation.

[ynotbrusum]

There are some clubs that are more social, some more business-like..... my preference is a balance of the two, or even leaning a bit more towards the social side (thank you very much).  I know for me personally, I don't learn as much from technical presentations anymore, and learn a great deal more just by talking to people on a less formal, more social basis.  So for those going to meetings to learn something, recognize that there are different ways to learn.  One looks more like a classroom with Powerpoints, and the other looks to an outsider more like "being too social", but for me, that's where I learn a lot.  And to those more interested in business or politics...... personally, I don't give much of a rat about all that.  Go run for office or start up a brewery, whatever suits your fancy.  I just want to brew and enjoy each other's homebrews, thanks.

Just being honest and open.  We can all get whatever we want out of a club.  I like a little bit of everything, but not a lot of any one thing.  All good things in moderation.

We actually hold a monthly tech session for those wanting to dive a bit deeper, so out regular meeting is announcements/business items, then the second half is tastings and social, less technical discussions.  Balance applies to everything brewing, doesn’t it?

[SiameseMoose]

Where's the option for, "I belong to MORE than one club?" 

Greater Cincinnati has multiple (>20) clubs, though realistically three of any size. I belong to the two biggest, both of which are over 20 years old. The two have different vibes, but there are great people in each, and there are a fair number of dual members. The third bigger club is much more of a neighborhood group, though they're well supported by their local brewery.

[dmtaylor]

Balance applies to everything brewing, doesn’t it?

Depends on who you ask! 

For instance, my own personal definition of "balanced" includes way more malt and way less hops than the average joe.

[tommymorris]

I am not in a club. There are a few options locally.

One option meets regularly, but, I didn’t really like the format. Everyone sat in a circle. You are supposed bring beer and pour for everyone. Each person in the circle comments on your beer. That didn’t leave much time for chat and discussion. There also didn’t seem to be much else going on with the club.

Option two evolved into Facebook only. When they tried to resume having meetings after a long hiatus the group revolted.

Option three was a spin-off of option two. They met once. No meetings in months. I am planning to offer to host soon, but, trying to build some inventory first.

I was in a homebrew club in Starkville, MS for years. I loved that club. We had meetings to work on events together (annual competition, community event, and Christmas party, and some brew days). 

We would talk business for 20-30 minutes and then shift to drinking. We held meetings in the private room of a craft beer store. If we didn’t have homebrew we would just buy beer in the store. That was fun because we could try new beers with friends.

The annual competition and annual community events were very fun.

Unfortunately, Alabama law makes competitions very formal. Competitions in Mississippi were usually run by clubs and there were lots of them. In Alabama, competitions are few and far between and only seem to be run by distributors and breweries. Working at competitions with a group of friends is more fun than competing in them without being involved.

[BrewBama]

I am not in a club. There are a few options locally.

One option meets regularly, but, I didn’t really like the format. Everyone sat in a circle. You are supposed bring beer and pour for everyone. Each person in the circle comments on your beer. That didn’t leave much time for chat and discussion. There also didn’t seem to be much else going on with the club.

Option two evolved into Facebook only. When they tried to resume having meetings after a long hiatus the group revolted.

Option three was a spin-off of option two. They met once. No meetings in months. I am planning to offer to host soon, but, trying to build some inventory first.

I was in a homebrew club in Starkville, MS for years. I loved that club. We had meetings to work on events together (annual competition, community event, and Christmas party, and some brew days). 

We would talk business for 20-30 minutes and then shift to drinking. We held meetings in the private room of a craft beer store. If we didn’t have homebrew we would just buy beer in the store. That was fun because we could try new beers with friends.

The annual competition and annual community events were very fun.

Unfortunately, Alabama law makes competitions very formal. Competitions in Mississippi were usually run by clubs and there were lots of them. In Alabama, competitions are few and far between and only seem to be run by distributors and breweries. Working at competitions with a group of friends is more fun than competing in them without being involved.

If you could start a club with the guys I met at WYWB, I’d (try to) come. Naturally, with a handicapped spouse it can be interesting at times but she likes the pizza from the wood fired oven next door. If you could get Keith to host at Yellowhammer we could buy/drink his beer as well. I would like some feedback on my beers without paying for them to be judged but not sure I can bring them in and drink at the brewery.


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[JFZYLSTRA]

I am active in our club Oak Park Home Brewers ..we are in Oak Park IL. I am the current President. We have a great group of people in our club. Ours is more of social club we gather once a month discusses local beer and home brewing   topics and  somebody usually presents a show and tell home-brew tool or trick. We have about a hour of sharing and discussing our brews. Every 3 months we have a competition between club members. We occasionally have brew days and outings. It's a pretty laid back group made up mostly of Dad's which is a pretty standard demographic for our suburb (we are the first suburb west of Chicago)but we have been trying to reach out to more younger guys and gals. But our club is young... if i am not mistaken it is only 5 years old.. this May will be my third year in club.
Some of the Founders of the club went on to open a Brewery and they have hosted us the last couple of years which has been awesome..

The best part of being in a club is the feedback and the knowledge that is shared we have number of members in our ranks who are world class brewers that give honest criticism but in turn will impart the knowledge that they have to help you get to where you want to be. This has to be  the number one reason to join a club(imho). You can get great feedback from entering competions but what is often missing is the one on one dialouge with the Judge explaining what is wrong and how to fix it. If there is a local club or two near you by all means join it!