TOPIC:

"Bazza":12xfjwjz wrote: To me, joining CAMRA is akin to joining the National Trust, i.e. you only really benefit from it if you live in mainland UK.

Unless you're a fan of the delightful Wetherspoon's....

-Barry

P.s. I've been a National Trust member since 2009 and have already seen all I'm going to see of Florencecourt, Mount Stewart, etc. I'm saving Patterson's Spade Mill in my bottom drawer for a special occasion.[/quote:12xfjwjz]

Well, I don't know. You can't use the Wetherspoons vouchers outside the UK, to be sure, but (a) would you really want to? and (b) you get 12 issues of What's Brewing and four issues of Beer, as well as slight discounts on the RRP of Camra publications like the Good Beer Guide. But the real reason I'm a member is because I support Camra's aims and would like to see them succeed. I'm a huge fan of real ale (which doesn't make me anti 'craft beer' although Brewdog beers really aren't to my taste), and I like their 'pub is the hub' campaign. I personally would like to see Séan lead Beoir in a more campaigning direction too.

"UpsidedownA":3kjea5qg wrote: Well, I don't know. You can't use the Wetherspoons vouchers outside the UK, to be sure, but (a) would you really want to?[/quote:3kjea5qg]
Don't knock it till you've tried! We had 3 pints for of cask ale for £4 in TOTAL in Lisburn and I didn't see anyone complain. So the vouchers do come in useful (I'm in the UK five or 6 times a year)

"UpsidedownA":3kjea5qg wrote: and (b) you get [b:3kjea5qg]12 issues of What's Brewing[/b:3kjea5qg] and [b:3kjea5qg]four issues of Beer[/b:3kjea5qg], as well as slight discounts on the RRP of Camra publications like the Good Beer Guide. But the real reason I'm a member is because I support Camra's aims and would like to see them succeed. I'm a huge fan of real ale (which doesn't make me anti 'craft beer' although Brewdog beers really aren't to my taste), and I like their 'pub is the hub' campaign.[/quote:3kjea5qg]
I agree with all this, and I feel that I get more than I paid for with my £23. Don't mean to be derisory towards Beoir, but to me Camra makes Beoir look very poor value indeed.

"Tube":3um5xd2c wrote: I agree with all this, and I feel that I get more than I paid for with my £23. Don't mean to be derisory towards Beoir, but to me Camra makes Beoir look very poor value indeed.[/quote:3um5xd2c]

I have to agree with this point. I know from other threads that the general consensus from the more vocal majority seems to be that people are happy to have no tangible benefits, but I don't think we are going to grow the membership without some perks of one type or another. I would say that the majority of Beoir members are homebrewers, and I don't think you are going to get many non brewers joining just for the warm fuzzy feeling. At the moment we are a beer consumer organistion mostly manned by brewers, so will always be a niche organisation that non brewing drinkers will not get involved with.

&amp;quot;Irish Party Ale&amp;quot;:31eqaz1m wrote: Now, kids, no fighting in front of the guests. <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->[/quote:31eqaz1m]

Just making a point, and wouldn't see it as fighting, but I would like to see this debated a bit more, and to get the general consensus of members and non members alike. If people are happy as it is then, for Beoir to always be a tiny % of the beer drinking populace, then so be it. Until we increase membership we will never really be a proper consumer organisation though.