Schedule

Speakers
Steve Parkes | Drop In Brewing & American Brewers Guild, Mitch Steele | New Realm Brewing Co., Paul Sayler | Zero Gravity Craft Brewery, Phil Markowski | Two Roads Brewing Company

To stay relevant in the craft alcohol industry you must continue to think outside of the box. This keynote does just that as the attendee gets to control the talking points covered by four legends of the industry: Steve Parkes, Paul Sayler, Phil Markowski, and Mitch Steele. 

Learn more about:

• Steve Parkes
• Paul Sayler
• Phil Markowski
• Mitch Steele 
• Moderator: Andrew Coplon 

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Audra Gaiziunas

Despite the hardships, Audra will emphasize the positive stories and “aha” moments discovered in the face of change, sharing success stories of breweries that not only survived, but thrived. Departing from technical jargon, excel sheets and formulas, you’ll be taken on an inspiring journey through the voices and actions of her brewery partners, offering a unique and relatable perspective through the eyes of a homebrewing financial strategist. Learn more about Audra here!

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Heather McReynolds | Hopsteiner

With the market currently oversupplied and hop suppliers actively working to cut that volume, brewers must have the tools to navigate the hop market confidently. This talk will cover the state of the industry after the crop 2024 harvest, considerations for contracting, and when it’s best to reconsider. It will also go over questions and conversations to have with potential suppliers before signing a contract and conversations to have when you’re over-contracted.

Location: Diamond I Ballroom

Speakers
Lindsey Leichthammer | Lindsey Leichthammer Studio

Teaching the basics of photo composition, color theory, product photogaphy, keeping brand aligned & easy iPhone editing to create more aesthetic photos for social media to help increase egagement, finished with a basic 101 on Facebook and Instagram best practices and Q&A. Guests will have real takeaways they can implement immediately to start taking better pictures.

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Chris Kesler | Black Flannel Brewing & Distilling Co., Phil Markowski | Two Roads Brewing Company, Craig Wilkinson | Switchback Brewing Company, Denise Jones | Fermentis

As brewers, you have much of what you need to get started in distilling. You have a strong knowledge of fermentation, arguably the key step to successful, high quality distillation. You have storage tanks, a steam supply, a good water source and floor drains, to name a few. What you lack is a still, and the basic knowledge of how distilling works – both surmountable with a little reading and a little practice. In this Q&A session we take away some of the mystery of distilling. If you can brew, you are most of the way there!

Location: Diamond II Ballroom

Speakers
Jack Hendler | Jack's Abby Craft Lagers, Joe Connolly | Jack's Abby Craft Lagers

Overview of various lagering methods and processes.

Location: Diamond I Ballroom

Speakers
Julie Rhodes | Not Your Hobby Marketing Solutions

In the rapidly evolving landscape of craft brewing, understanding the power of data has become a vital tool for success. As the craft beer landscape matures, business owners and operators are discovering the benefits of being a data-driven organization. But being data-driven doesn’t mean you know how to apply those figures to your sales and marketing plans. Access to charts, graphs, tables, and trends is excellent, but do you know what story they tell for your business or how to leverage them? This session will delve into the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of data utilization, shedding light on how data-driven decisions can transform your sales and marketing strategies. We’ll reveal how to read between the grid lines to uncover insights that can take your business to new heights. We will discuss the types of sales and marketing KPIs essential for your brewery, where to find them, and how to capitalize on not-so-obvious opportunities. By the end of this presentation, you’ll appreciate the importance of data and grasp how to integrate it into your sales and marketing strategies. Join me to unlock the secrets hidden within the grid lines and tap into the untapped potential of data-driven success for your craft brewery sales and marketing tactics.

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Pat Haller | Efficiency Vermont, Luke Truman | New England Environmental Finance Center & BetterBev, Dan Sartwell | Black Flannel Brewing & Distilling Co.

Although process improvements and capital investments often go hand-in-hand, they rarely fall into place linearly and within a perfect timeline, leading to situations where rebates may go uncollected. This seminar will cover some of the rebates offered by Efficiency Vermont that could meaningfully impact your cost of doing business, how to access these rebates, and how to avoid missing them. It will also cover technical assistance and recognition offered through BetterBev, and a brewer’s perspective on all of it.

Location: Diamond II Ballroom

Speakers
Jacob Hoover | White Labs

The current climate of the industry requires breweries to keep a watchful eye over their expenditures. Yeast cost is typically not well-quantified so here we oultine ways to quantify yeast cost and increase value through simple practices.

Presentation covers:

• The Importance of the Yeast Lab Propagation on
• Quality in Your Brewery
• How to Strategize Fresh Cultures for Success
• Best Practices for Harvesting, Storage, & Repitching
• Quantifying Yeast Cost
• Yeast Handling Methods to Get the Most Value

Location: Diamond I Ballroom

Speakers
Andrew Coplon | Craft Beer Professionals & Secret Hopper, Ehren Hill | Blackback Pub, Jesse Cronin | Lucy & Howe Brewing Company, Michael Czok | Bent Hill Brewery, Kary Shumway | Craft Brewery Finance

Want to increase tabs by 30 percent? Of course, you do. Small actions can go a long way in making your taproom experience more memorable and profitable. From the importance of your menu to the necessity of a sincere “thank you,” we will discuss the data and value behind simple taproom actions that can make a big difference. You will learn how to form meaningful connections, exceed guest expectations, and turn first-time guests into brand advocates. After this session, you will walk away with actionable and authentic strategies to build deeper relationships and increase taproom revenue.

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Jason Barker | Holland & Knight LLP

This presentation will summarize the history and background for state franchise laws. It will then discuss Vermont law and discuss best forms of agreements and termination remedies.

Location: Diamond II Ballroom

Speakers
Mitch Steele | New Realm Brewing Co.

India Pale Ale has become once again one of the most popular beer styles in the world. This discussion covers the evolution of the IPA style from its start in the 1700s, its original peak in the mid 1800s, the subsequent decline in the 1900s, all the way through the rebirth of the style in craft beer. Brewing techniques,  ingredients, and marketing approaches will be covered in detail from each period. Myths will be busted, origins explained, and current trends and the future of the style will be reviewed

Location: Diamond I Ballroom

Speakers
Rob Day | Better Crafted Business

Learn how to create an inspirational and actionable plan for crafting more meaningful partnerships to impact your business.

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Mike Teed | Black Pond Brews, Susan Loynd | The Richards Group, Terry Thompson | Prohibition Pig

This panel will explore burnout from various angles, including its origins, manifestations, impacts, and strategies for prevention and recovery, with a special focus on the brewing industry.

Location: Diamond II Ballroom

Speakers
Allison Lange | Omega Yeast

Working on improving your yeast re-pitching program, but running up against issues with dry hop timing or hop creep? We can help! We’ll cover effective strategies for re-pitching yeast. Not only is yeast re-pitching a challenge in dry-hopped beers, but so is hop creep. We will share two simple quality control assays to measure hop diastase activity and help predict the impact of hop creep on the final finishing gravity. We’ll also cover strategies to avoid extended tank time and potential quality issues with hop creep, including our new ALDC-expressing yeast strains. Brewers will leave this seminar with tips to maximize their yeast re-pitching program and reduce hang ups and off flavors in the cellar when making dry hopped beers.

Location: Diamond I Ballroom

Speakers
Mike Smith | Gallagher Flynn & Company

The presentation will show participants how powerful the coaching leadership style is for brewing better leaders and building strong teams. The interactive presentation will delve into the following:

• Discuss the coaching style of leadership and how it is ideal for building effective leaders.
• Discover how the four types of coaching can be applied to bring out the best in others.
• Learn how to provide empowering and insightful feedback that develops future leaders.
• Discover how the coaching style of leadership can strengthen employee engagement, reduce turnover, and improve performance at all levels.
  

Location: Emerald Ballroom

Speakers
Jack Van Paepeghem | von Trapp Brewing

I will present on the best practices for cleaning, balancing, and troubleshooting draft systems and how to properly present and pour draft beer.

Location: Diamond II Ballroom