There is a club and it meets ten times a year in H and other lots around M&T Bank Stadium.

I was thinking about something similar to this just the other day on a flight back from CA.

I will say that I do notice some MD/DC/VA/PA/DE message board posters on Beer Advocate seem to meet from time-to-time and do beer tastings at various venues.

I don't know about social networks, but I think a central location for "beer" people and places to congregate and connect and invest in the beer culture here is worthwhile.

For a decent beer city, Baltimore is fairly unconnected. When I go to San Diego or San Francisco or Santa Rosa etc. it seems everyone knows the places to go and it's about the beer where there are intense beer nuts here as well but they aren't connected and clued into the beer culture here in the same way.

I gotta get my thoughts together some more because I've been thinking about what's missing here. I'm not sure if a social network is the solution, but there's just something missing, a void needing to be filled perhaps by a great brewery that people rally around (like a Stone in San Diego) that heps bring business to everyone else in the area and encourages new beer business as far as pubs, clubs, festivals etc.

We actually do a great job of beer festivals here, and beer dinners, but we're lacking perhaps in number of highly respected places to drink as well as breweries. Having Philly and D.C. with all their connections nearby helps and hurts in various ways as well.

Interesting topic.

Rob,

In Frederick, I sponsor a quarterly event I call Biobeer. A bunch of the Biotech beer drinking crowd (last time more than 60) descend on a local microbrewery and talk about science.

I borrowed the idea from a blogger in Colorado who started the idea. We even get "sponsors" to procure the beer & food. Free beer is always good, especially served cold.

So my recommendation is to set up a gathering around a common business or social interest (we pretty much all drink beer). Perhaps the Budweiser (or Coors Light, insert least favorite beer here) Defamation League would be a way to start?

I think this blog is as close as we are going to get to a Baltimore Beer Club.

Not that there's anything wrong with that...

Fantastic idea! The Club could meet at various establishments a night or two during the week and Saturday afternoon/evening. If the club were to gain traction with a substantial member base, it might be possible to use its size and, um, propensity for churning out appreciable bar tabs as leverage for potential Club discounts. Who knows, having opportunity to sit and talk over a pint with some knowledgeable beer people would be another great advantage.
Please, if this thing begins to take form, I would be interested in being on some sort of email list to follow its progress.

You can set up beer-related get togethers informally pretty easy by using www.beeradvocate.com

As far as a formal club, that would work pretty well too. However, the knuckleheads might think you're muscling in on their turf:
http://khpc.net/

I feel we should take this a step farther. Let's get back to our American roots and start a 3rd politcal party. We could call ourselves "The Keg Party" and we will change to world for the better.

Rob, Thanks for posting the Baltimore Beer Club idea. I had a feeling it might strike a nerve among the more serious beer folks in Baltimore. I still very much sense that many have read the post and the comments but have yet to chime in. I must say bryanintimonium may be right that your blog may be the closest we every get – and I thank you for your efforts to date. But Brian (Baltimore Beer Guy) is spot on – with his comments about “Baltimore is fairly unconnected” and there seems to be something “lacking” in the Baltimore Beer scene - which is exactly why I initiated the conversation. It sounds like Beer Fan is exactly the kind of person I could be in the same bar with but never meet because we just didn’t know each other had such a passion for beer. The only problem with becoming “The Keg Party”, as I see it, is that we leave out the bottle crowd! Beer Nuts exist in this town despite the closings of various great establishments over the last few years. Maybe this “thing” could have a place in Baltimore after all…

We already have a hell of a beer club at Mahaffeys. Unless 1000 beers is too much for you to handle! The regulars are all beer dorks and you can discuss beer all day and night if you want to in there. We don't see you much down there any more, Rob! Come Back.

Leave it to Joe Gold to bring these ideas to the forefront. I agree about a disconnect between the areas beer drinkers. I also believe that there is a disconnect between the beer producers in the area. Sure we have BAM (Brewers Association of Maryland), but we in BAM do little to try and bridge the gap for the drinkers. I would like to see the group organize a program the helps flourish the beer trade of our brews to the places that support the Maryland beers. By making more of our beers available at more locations in wider geographic areas people would have a better chance of reconnecting with other beer lovers. I always had a great time at the old Tuesday beer socials at Max's.

Those Tuesday Night Beer Socials are alive and kicking at Max's Taphouse in Fells Point.

Great beer, good food and an amazing time is had every Tues night in the upstairs Mob Town Lounge.

Starts at 6. See some new faces tonight????

Um, I think the Tues. beer social at Max's was started by Joe, was it not?

Joe has always been the ringleader and head cheerleader and it's a great idea. It needs to be regional versus just Baltimore. Many beer fans simply don't want to come into Baltimore anymore, so we could have Red Brick in the north east area, Max's or Mahaffey's in town, maybe Frisco's in Columbia and Rams Head or Heroes in Annapolis. All are great beer establishments and would welcome new business. The craft beer industry is one segment that continues to grow every year and a regional club would be something to make us forget about the rotten economy.

We offer something at Victoria Gastro Pub (in Columbia)that I think might interest all of you beer lovers out there~ We have 24 different Beers on Tap & almost 100 by the bottle priding ourselves in quite an eclectic variety.

Monday is “Beer Club” Night at The Pub...
Join and Build Your Beer Resume!
Try new beers – Reach new heights. We will issue you a beer passport to track the different beers you’ve tasted. At various plateaus, from 25 beers all the way to 500 beers, you will earn prizes that increase in value.
Monday is Your Night. Every other month we host a 5 course beer & food pairing dinner- members get an additional 10% off of however many tickets they want to purchase. Each and every Monday, beginning at 5:00, we will have something special for members. One night it may be a special Belgian only available to members. The next it may be free glassware from a brewery, or a visit from a brew master. All for Members Only.
The Chance of the Year. Each year, through a random drawing, we will give away a trip for two to one lucky Beer Club Member. This year it will be a vacation to Germany that includes the tour of a local brewery.
All While Enjoying the Voyage Across the Wonderful Beer World! When you reach the final level- your name goes on a plaque on our pub wall, and you receive a private beer dinner for 4!
Membership is only $50 annually. Come join us and all your fellow Beer Lovers!

Please e-mail me with any questions. THANKS!

The biggest "holes" in decent beer in the region appear to be 1) northwest Baltimore (Park Heights/Reisterstown Road/Pikesville/Randallstown/Owings Mills) and 2) southeast/south of town (Glen Burnie/Halethorpe/Elkridge). We're actually starting to see good beer creep into places/neighborhoods where it hasn't been before, but it's possible some of us may have to be proactive in these areas.