San Diego’s Quality Ale & Fermentation Fraternity (QUAFF) is a local homebrew club consisting of approximately 180 men and women dedicated to the enjoyment and promotion of homebrewing and beer evaluation in the greater San Diego area. We share knowledge, methods, new brewpub and microbrewery discoveries, and good homebrew at monthly meetings and special events. QUAFF was formed in 1989, and is growing stronger and more vital each day thanks to our dedicated club members and to our new members.

New Member Welcome

QUAFF has a number of exceptional brewers, each unique in his/her own homebrew style, techniques and personality. To attest to this fact, QUAFF earned the title of “California Homebrew Club of the Year” for three consecutive years (2000, 2001 & 2002) from Anchor Brewing, San Francisco, CA. QUAFF has also earned the honor and distinction as the “National Homebrew Club of the Year” for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 & 2006 by the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) at the second round finals of the National Homebrew Competition held each June.

We take great pride in these accomplishments! But we take even greater pride in fostering camaraderie and relationships that are very important and enduring. We feel that this isn’t just a homebrew club; it’s a family. We recognize each member has their own likes and dislikes as far as beer styles, processes and techniques, but together, the blending of this cumulative talent makes the QUAFF homebrew club a diverse and multi-faceted club. We have members from all professions and trades, who all have a passion for making and enjoying beer, striving to improve each batch, and having an enjoyable time sharing and discussing the latest offerings from their favorite hobby.

We also host and sponsor many events throughout the calendar year, such as the following:

• Sponsor of the annual America’s Finest City Homebrew Competition in Feb/March

• Sponsor of the 1st round regional of the AHA National Homebrew Competition in April

• Annual San Diego Padres game and tailgate party in the summer

• Annual Oktoberfest Picnic with other SD homebrew clubs featuring great barbeque and live music

• Annual camp-out and potluck dinner at one of the Anza-Borrego campgrounds each November

• Annual Holiday Party, pot luck dinner and Holiday beer sampling each December

• Sponsor of beer judge study groups and exams for the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP)

• Occasional pub crawls, brewery tours and other special events

         Quaff Dessert Campout

QUAFF welcomes all guests at any of our Monthly meetings, held the 4th Tuesday of each month (except December) at Callahan’s Pub and Brewery in Mira Mesa on Mira Mesa Blvd. The meetings start at 7:00 p.m. and run until approximately 9:30 p.m. (Most people arrive around 6:00PM.) You can meet the members, find out about recent pub crawls or adventures and homebrew competitions. You will also get to enjoy the monthly presentation, an informative talk about a brewing process, technique or style of beer. Last, but certainly not least, you’ll also get to share and enjoy some of the members’ recent brews.  To find out more about QUAFF, please check out our web site, www.quaff.org, where you can learn about past as well as upcoming club events.  The website features a photo gallery, archived speaker’s presentations, a recipe database and calculator, brewpub and brewery database, a calendar of events and archived newsletters.

Quaff is guided through a busy calendar by the “Quaff Board”, a group of approximately 20 individuals that devote their energy and enthusiasm organizing the many events held throughout the year.

 Quaff Members enjoy the AHA conference     

Quaffer Ken Schmidt celebrates his winning recipe.
He teamed with Stone Brewing in the 2009 GABF Pro-Am Competition at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver.