Boulder nonprofit going solo to reinvigorate homebrewing as a hobby
At its height in 2019, the American Homebrewers Association boasted 46,000 members. Today, membership has dropped by half to 23,000 people.
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Homebrewers and commercial beer producers have long had a symbiotic relationship. After all, many professional brewers begin as hobbyists before breaking into the industry.
But as the craft beer market evolves, those two groups have distinctly different needs. To address them, the industry’s most prominent trade group is preparing to undergo a transformation.
In January, the American Homebrewers Association announced that it would part ways with its parent organization, the Brewers Association, after more than four decades, and will become an independent nonprofit by the end of 2025.
Founded in 1978, as homebrewing was poised to become federally legalized, the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) aims to bring together and empower hobbyist beermakers through online forums, recipe sharing and more. Its establishment preceded the Brewers Association (BA), which represents the interests of professional brewers. Both Boulder-based groups have coexisted under one umbrella since the early 1980s, and both were co-founded by brewing pioneer and author Charlie Papazian.
Executive director Julia Herz said splitting the two associations is the first step in reinvigorating the AHA. At its height in 2019, the organization boasted 46,000 members who comprised its homebrewing community. Today, membership has dropped by half to 23,000 people.
Since Herz became the AHA’s leader in 2021, discussions about separating from the BA have been percolating, she said. As the organization outlined its strategic planning last year, the benefits became evident.
For example, under one umbrella the BA and AHA share one pool of resources but maintain very different goals for its members. Independently, the AHA will be able to fundraise and put money toward advocating for homebrewers and cultivating community, she explained.
“Benefits will allow the American Homebrewers Association to iterate and innovate in new, different ways that it just simply can’t under the current structure. It will allow us to be a little more irreverent. It will bring even more engagement and empowerment to the members,” Hertz said.
The AHA now has its own board of directors who will help shape the future of the organization. While Herz isn’t sure exactly what the next chapter will look like, she hopes current AHA members will help inform the vision and priorities.
Generally, she wants to better support the thousand-plus homebrew clubs across the U.S. The more people who homebrew, the more business goes to the retail shops that supply ingredients and equipment, she added.
One topic top of mind for Herz is lobbying to change regulations on the national level. Shipping home-brewed beer to competitions, for one, remains difficult because each carrier has different restrictions and licensing requirements. The United States Postal Service prohibits the shipment of alcoholic beverages, except for cooking wine.
“Even though homebrewing is legal in all 50 states, it doesn’t mean that those rights and privileges are a slam dunk and equal in all those states,” Herz said.
Herz hopes the new future of the AHA includes events where homebrewers can share their love of beer. The organization put its popular Homebrew Con on hiatus in 2024 and 2025 because it couldn’t find a cost-effective way to produce the event. Hertz hopes it will return in 2026. (The entry window for AHA’s National Homebrew Competition, however, is now open, she added.)
As for the Great American Beer Festival, which has also evolved in recent years, Herz anticipates the AHA will be involved in some way or another.
“The American Homebrewers Association did help found and start the Great American Beer Festival, and I’m excited in some form to absolutely always have an ongoing connection between the AHA and GABF,” she said.
