Earlier this year, the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) announced it would be splitting from the Brewers Association (BA) after more than 40 years.
The AHA had been a part of the BA since 1982, and grew to represent more than 23,000 homebrewers, making it “the nation’s largest hobbyist not-for-profit organization for homebrewers and fermented beverages,” according to the AHA website.
Now, the AHA’s transition is complete, achieving independent 501(c) status last month (July 7).
In this week’s edition of A Round With – our Q&A with industry leaders, created exclusively for Brewbound Insiders – AHA executive director Julia Herz chats through the organization’s next chapter (including the return of Homebrew Con), why homebrewing is important for the industry and what’s still exciting her in beer.
Here’s the full conversation, edited slightly for clarity:
The American Homebrewers Association officially became its own independent entity in early July. How have the first few weeks been?
Julia: Even though the AHA is 47 years young, this moment feels exhilarating. With more than 20,000 members, transitioning away from the Brewers Association, which the AHA helped found, has been a comprehensive, deliberate and celebrated time.
In 2025, we hired an association management company to handle day-to-day operations, incorporated independently in Colorado, seated a new founding board (chaired by Shawna Cormier), and formed new member-led committees.
We’re already making good on our 2025 Strategic Plan – reviving Homebrew Con for 2026, and building a structure that will sustain the hobby and our community for generations to come.
What are your goals for this new era of the AHA?
Julia: We have two primary goals in 2025:
- Serve and grow our 20,000+ member community by redefining what homebrewers give and get in return for their membership;
- Position the AHA to grow homebrewing for the long haul – ensuring it remains a vibrant, accessible hobby for all generations while expanding our fundraising capacity and tax-exempt benefits to serve the public good.
Our new vision: A homebrewer in every neighborhood and a homebrew club in every community.
Our new mission: To celebrate and promote the art, science, and joy of fermentation, championing a united and knowledgeable community of today and tomorrow’s homebrewers.
This isn’t just about hobbyists brewing at home – it’s about nurturing a community that fosters innovation, education, and a passion for beer that spills over into the commercial side too.
How is independence from the BA beneficial to the AHA?
Julia: Becoming a standalone 501(c) opens new doors for fundraising, more targeted governance, and strategic agility. We’re now empowered to freely and better support the ecosystem that needs us.
Homebrewers have long been a pillar for the craft beer industry. How can craft brewers tap into this community, and what do they have to learn from homebrewers?
Julia: Homebrewers and the AHA are the origin of craft beer.
With 1,700 estimated AHA-sanctioned homebrew clubs nationwide, many are closely tied to their local breweries, but could be even closer. These clubs host events, create community and help drive business.
Breweries should view homebrewers as powerful grassroots partners. We’re your most loyal customers, advocates and your direct line to innovation and education.
Additionally, breweries depend on spot and wholesale purchasing from the estimated 600 homebrew supply shops. Those shops are also vital, and breweries benefit when these unique shops survive and thrive.
How has the homebrewer-to-pro-brewer pipeline changed in recent years?
Julia: The pipeline has shifted. Most commercial brewers now enter brewing through jobs or formal education – not homebrewing. That’s a missed opportunity.
Think of it this way: Chefs, servers, everyone in the food and beverage ‘biz’ cooks and bakes at home. It’s where creativity sparks and skills sharpen. Beer needs that same connection, and homebrewing delivers that.
Encouraging brewery owners, production staff, front-of-house teams (and even beer media) to homebrew builds stronger, more informed and more inspired professionals. The AHA is the most authoritative one-stop shop that delivers unmatched reasons, recipes, resources and rewards to homebrew.
Also, homebrewing isn’t brewing at the brewery. Brewing on the pilot system does not count. It’s shopping at your supply store, brewing on your stove or in your garage, watching high krausen in the carboy that sits in your pantry or hallway, and sharing that beer with neighbors when they’re celebrating – or grieving. It’s personal, visceral and deeply human.
And it brings those insights, values and flavors back to the workplace. With over 190,000 people employed in beer in the U.S., we have the chance to create a more informed, passionate and innovative community – one brew day, one Zymurgy Magazine, one recipe published on HomebrewersAssociation.org at a time.
You’ve had a front-row seat to so much change in craft beer. The current era may feel uncharted to some, but what parallels do you see between today and prior rough patches?
Julia: In 2007, when I was directing the Craft Beer Program at the BA, sales were at $6.1 billion. By 2019, they hit nearly $30 billion. That focused and fueled growth wasn’t luck – it came from shared optimism, unified messaging and relentless belief in the value of who brews the beer.
Today, we face cultural headwinds. Narratives about beer being too caloric, too heavy or passé are often fueled by other categories (or even within beer) – like the cannabis lobby – which benefit from demonizing alcohol.
We need a new, unified message, and it deserves advocates, educators and investment. Sadly, education budgets are being cut just when beer needs smarter storytelling most.
If anyone can find a silver lining amidst all the doom and gloom, it’s you. What’s exciting you about beer these days?
Julia: The silver lining is that beer is an essential part of the daily human experience. Yes, “brand beer” is seeing some major headwinds. Some of that is self-inflicted. On the other hand, beer is part of the gastronomic food arts world with an endless market to supply, as people repeatedly drink and eat each day.
We beer lovers are beyond needing food for calories and drink just to quench thirst. We drink it because it is satisfying and relaxes us.
Beyond that, it should be viewed as leading, not lagging when paired with food. The factual case that “beer makes food more delicious” (I freely give that term out to use) is an opportunity waiting to be exploited. The whole ‘beer pairing’ thing never caught traction, but it still can.
This moment demands leadership and passion – and homebrewers have always supplied both. We’ve written new chapters before. Let’s do it again.
That’s why the AHA matters more than ever. We nurture and expand the roots of who brews and how it is enjoyed. If we can elevate homebrewing, we elevate beer itself. Join us.