Welcome to the NCHF

September 15-16, 2023

Attention Homebrew Clubs! Come share some of the best homebrew anywhere. From California and beyond!

Once a year at the time of the Autumnal Equinox, homebrewers from all over Northern California make the trek to the little town of Dobbins and call Lake Francis their home for two days. Here they proudly fly the colors of their homebrew clubs and eagerly share well-crafted homebrew, rivaling some of the best known craft breweries.

If you haven’t attended NCHF before, this is a homebrew club-only event. If your club is interested in participating and hasn’t before, send us an email. Generally your club must be recognized by the American Homebrewers Association as a legitimate, registered club.

The NCHF features live music, a raffle with fantastic prizes, nationally known speakers, a club-only homebrew competition, a premier Brewers Dinner and much more! Great homebrew, gourmet food, camping under the stars with good friends; a fantastic weekend for any avid homebrewer.

The theme for 2023 is Feelin’ Groovy! Check out the Club-only Competition page for ideas about beer styles! The festival is always the third weekend of September. The dates for NCHF 24 are

Tickets on sale Sunday July 16 at 10AM, and Saturday, July 22 at 10AM

Go to https://nchfinfo.org/store/ to purchase your tickets!

NCHO Summer Camp Sponsorship

Lake Francis is run, owned, and operated by a the non-profit foster family agency, Environmental Alternatives. The Northern California Homebrew Organization (NCHO), the parent organization which puts on the Northern California Homebrewers Festival, is proud to support Lake Francis in their continued support of foster children.

Last year the NCHO provided funding to allow 4 children the opportunity to go to summer camp at Lake Francis, as well as contributed towards the construction of a climbing wall. Your attendance helps us help the kids!

Keynote Talk

Beerside Chat with American Homebrewers Association Executive Director Julia Herz

Come welcome our keynote speaker Julia Herz, Executive Director of the American Homebrewers Association, for an engaging and not to miss talk on homebrewing today and its future. Herz will pour some of her homebrew and serve up insights on being a successful brewer (hint: it involves being tied to the community around you and using tried and tested recipes). This talk will include a moderated Q&A by David Brattstrom, Northern California Homebrewers Festival Board Member.

Make A Donation to NCHF

The success of the Northern California Homebrewers Festival depends on generous donations from large and small beer related businesses and individuals. The donations accepted are raffled off the day of the festival and the revenues generated help to keep the cost of admission reasonable and to offset the costs of running the fest. This includes renting the Lake Francis resort, security, insurance, and all other costs related to a successful festival. Raffle proceeds also allow the NCHO to donate to Environmental Alternatives, which is an organization that supports foster children through various activities and is a partner with the Lake Francis Resort.

The NCHO has been partnering with Lake Francis and Environmental Solutions for over 17 years and is proud to provide support for foster children. In 2019 the NCHO donated approximately $3,000 to Environmental Solutions to help send foster kids to camp. 

Read more: Make a donation to NCHF

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