I haven’t brewed a batch of beer in a long time – which goes to say that I’m not exactly a homebrewer anymore. I find my time is much better spent drinking and supporting the fantastic beers that are all around us here in Cincinnati. That doesn’t mean, though that I don’t support and respect the Homebrewing community immensely. The community for decades has pushed our breweries into trends, innovation and creativity as well as providing so many people who have gone on to create some of all our favorite breweries.

This weekend is the hombrewing community’s big event – called Big Brew by the American Homebrewer’s Association – and I thought it definitely deserved a shout out.

What’s The Event All About?

Partnering with over 300 breweries, homebrew shops and homebrew clubs across the world – May 4th marks the 22nd annual celebration of this event. The ‘Big Brew’ is held annually on the first Saturday of May ever year, and has easily become the largest annual gathering of homebrewers with an anticipated attendance of over 5,000 people.

The event itself is unique to every venue that is participating. You’ll find brewing demonstrations, and some really great opportunities to learn more about what might be the greatest hobby in the world – homebrewing!

Local Events

There aren’t a ton of local places with official Big Brew events around here. But there are a couple that I wanted to make sure to point out.

Brink has a group of homebrewers that will be on the patio brewing up a few batches of beer during the day. Municipal Brew Works is hosting the Butler County Brewing Society in a SMaSH exBeeriment to taste different hop varieties in identical beers. Bittered wort is being donated by Cargill and Municipal Brew Works. Each brewer is bringing their own 3ozs of a chosen hop, and their yeast and finished beers will eventually be tasted at an upcoming club meeting.

I can’t encourage enough that you make your way out to either place to see what this is all about!

Getting Together

While nothing is set in stone, the AHA encourages homebrewers to get together and make a beer – and this year’s official recipes are the TransAtlantic Blonde Ale from Simple Homebrewing (the upcoming Brewers Publications title) and Battlecow Galacticose New England IPA from Providence Brewing Company.

In addition, while local bars and breweries might be hosting events all day at exactly 1pm eastern time – everyone is encouraged to participate in a big, celebratory, simultaneous toast to homebrewing.