January 2026 Lehigh Valley Homebrewers Newsletter
- Steve Anthony
- Jan 23
- 4 min read
Updated: Jan 25
Greetings Brewers,
Happy New Year! A reminder that our meeting will be on Tuesday, January 27th, at the Wishful Thinking Brewing in Bethlehem, PA. They and their kitchen will be open to the public at 5PM, so feel free to show up early for something to eat. Our meeting, as usual will start at 7:30PM. Due to the weekend snowstorm, parking may be tricky, so we encourage you to carpool if possible, use rideshare options, or be prepared to park and walk to the brewery.
We have some exciting news to share as we head into 2026. As you may or may not be aware, the club has been working to re-establish our tax status with the IRS. After the yeoman efforts of John Litak, we have been granted status as a 501(c)(3) non-profit! This will help the club continue to grow, offer expanded education services, and accept tax-deductible donations from sponsors in support of that mission. Thanks to John, the other members of the board of directors, and the officers past and present for making this possible.
Dues! January's been a busy month and the officers and board of directors still need to have our annual meeting. Expect information on dues in the February newsletter after we have time to get together.
It's time to start thinking about Malt Madness XX and CRAFTED! Malt Madness is on the BJCP calendar for April 25, 2026 so add that to your calendars. Registration will open February 1st, so start brewing and get ready to submit your entries for the 20th iteration of this competition! As usual we will need volunteers, so if you're available to help with the planning or execution see Dan Miller early, before he comes looking for you.
Thanks to everyone who registered for and came out for the Pocono Winter Beerfest. If you missed that opportunity to serve your beer, the Fegley's Craft Beer Festival is February 7th, so sign up ASAP on the events page. The Arts Quest Spring Beer Fest at Steel Stacks is March 28th (registration) so make sure you start brewing for that as well, both these events are always a fun time!
Finally, the usual reminder that we've been looking for an alternative with a low barrier to entry for notifying those interested in news, festival opportunities, or event reminders, etc. outside of the monthly newsletter cycle. To this end, we've created the "LVHB News" Google Group. If you're interested, you should be able to search for lvhb-news@googlegroups.com in the Google Groups search and request to join.
See you Tuesday,
Steve Anthony
LVHB Club President
Future Meetings:
Meetings are open to anyone (21 and older) who home brews (beer, wine, cider, mead) or is interested in learning about home brewing. Our club has over 30 certified judges and several members who have "gone pro" by opening their own brewery, meadery, or distillery! - So bring your latest craft creation and get some constructive feedback and/or accolades!
UPCOMING CLUB EVENTS
OUR BREWERS (are awesome!)
Congrats to Joe Eberhardt, whose rye beer took third on it's table at the Stoney Creek Homebrew Competition.
CLUB COMPETITIONS
Nothing upcoming, but suggestions are welcome!
UPCOMING BJCP COMPETITIONS
Full list is available here.
Recommended Local Homebrew Competitions:
Competition | Date | Registrations Due |
3/7/2026 | 2/28/2026 | |
3/7/2026 | 2/28/2026 | |
3/14/2026 | 2/14/2026 | |
3/22/2026 | 2/27/2026 |
OTHER CLUB INFO
The details for most of our happenings (news, events, etc.) will either be included in the monthly newsletter or will be found on the LVHB Website Club Info page. More random thoughts, photos, and links will be shared via the club Facebook page. Find photos of our brewing activities on Instagram! @lehighvalleyhomebrewers
Are you an AHA member? It's a good time to consider adding or renewing an AHA Membership for yourself or your brewing buddy. Use our link (click the image below) and the club gets credit for your membership!
Member Benefits
Keystone Homebrew Supply offers 10% off online and in-store purchases for LVHB members as well as a points based loyalty reward program. They offer weekly local delivery on Saturday at Bonn Place in Bethlehem (just place your order by Thursday). Keystone offers full sacks of grain as well as a large selection of brewing and wine making equipment. Also, for most local competitions they provide a drop off point so you don't have to mail in your entries! https://www.keystonehomebrew.com/ Hop and Grain offers members 20% off purchases on their online store, free shipping and flexible local pick-up options. You'll find them very accommodating, even if you require a special order. https://hopandgrain.us/
Brew Hardware offers members a 5% discount as well! https://www.brewhardware.com/Default.asp
GrogTags offers members 15% off with the code on the member page - get creative with your labels and prepare for the 2025 label competition!
There's no excuse not to brew because you can't get ingredients or equipment! Thank you to the local shops that support our club!
See all the benefits of membership as well as how to join here.
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