The Montana Brewers Association will again hold its annual conference in Missoula this October and the lineup of presentations looks to be the best yet. Held at the downtown Holiday Inn Parkside, the conference takes place October 14 and 15. Registration is open to the public.
Panel presentations include sessions on the state of raw materials, energy reduction, canning and packaging and much more. You’ll not want to miss Steve Lozar and his always fascinating presentation on Montana brewing history. Governor Steve Bullock will provide the keynote address on the 14th.
You can sign up for the conference at this link: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/2015-montana-brewers-association-conference-registration-18519114169?aff=efbevent. The MBA’s fall festival, featuring 125+ all Montana beers follows on October 16.
Here is the full agenda:
2015 Montana Brewers Association Conference
Special guests: Governor Steve Bullock & Missoula Mayor John Engen
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
7:30 – 8:30 am Free Yoga: Danielle Spillman, Find Your Light Yoga
8:00 – 9:15 am Registration & Breakfast
9:15 – 9:30 am Welcome: Matt Leow, executive director of Montana Brewers Association
9:30 – 9:45 am Opening Remarks: Mayor John Engen
9:45 – 10:00 am Buy Local Campaign:
Mike Hope, President of Tavern Owners Assn.
Josh Townsley, President of Montana Brewers Association
10:00 – 11:20 am Social Media/Marketing within the Tourism Industry: Tia Troy, Glacier Country
11:20 – 11:30 am Coffee Break
11:30 am – 12:00 pm Keynote Address: Governor Steve Bullock
12:00 – 1:00 pm Lunch
1:00 – 2:00 pm Breakout Sessions
1.Water and Energy Use Reduction
Moderator: Matt Leow
Panelists:
Alistair Stewart, Montana Manufacturing Extension Center
Sam Hoffman, Red Lodge Ales
Eddie Wooldridge, KettleHouse Brewing Company
2.The US Hop Market…The Past, the Present and the Future
Tom Britz, Glacier Hops Ranch, National At-large Director for Hop Growers of America (HGOA) & Chair of the Small Growers Council of HGOA.
2:00 – 2:30 pm Trade Show
2:30 – 3:30 pm Breakout Sessions
1.Legal Considerations Associated with Buying Beer and Wine Licenses
Moderator: Matt Leow
Panelists:
John Flynn or Joel Silverman, Silverman Law Office
John Iverson, Tavern Owners Association
Brandon Cartwright, The Front Brewing Company
Max Pigman, Lewis and Clark Brewing Company
2. Quality Control
Moderator: Mark Hastings
Panelists:
Kyle Sillars, Big Sky Brewing
Todd Crowell, KettleHouse Brewing Company
Sean Tobin, Lewis & Clark Brewing Company
3:30 – 5:00 pm MBA Member Meeting
5:30 – 11:00 pm Missoula Pub Crawl and Dinner
Thursday, October 15, 2015
8:30 – 9:30 am Free Yoga: Danielle Spillman, Find Your Light Yoga
9:00 – 10:00 am Registration & Breakfast in the Atrium
10:00 – 10:30 am Welcome & Presentation: Steve Lozar, Montana Brewery Historian
10:30 – 11:30 am Workplace Safety: Matt Stinchfield, BA Safety Ambassador
11:30 am – 12:30 pmLunch & Networking Roundtables
12:30 – 1:30 pm Breakout Sessions
1.Wholesale Distribution 101
Moderator: Mark Hastings
Panelists:
Al Pils, KettleHouse Brewing Company
Jeff Grant, Draught Works
Brian Clark, Fun Beverage
Mike Markovich, Summit Beverage
2.Legal Topics to Have on Your Radar: Crowdfunding, HR, trademarks and dram shops
Attorneys from Crowley Fleck: Danielle Coffman, Jason Loble (Securities), Scott Hagel (HR), Bob Griffin (Trademarks)
1:30 – 2:00 pm Trade Show
2:00 – 3:00 pm Breakout Sessions
1. Understanding Draught Quality: Getting your best beer to the customer.
Dan Fallon, President of McDantim
2. Friends of Montana Craft Beer: What writers, bloggers and state government initiatives are doing to raise the profile of Montana’s craft beer industry
Moderator:Matt Leow
Panelists:
Ryan Newhouse, author
Alan McCormick, Growler Fills
Alex Sakarieassen, Missoula Independent
Andy Shirtliff, Governor’s Office of Economic Development
3:00 – 3:15 pm Break
3:15 – 4:15 pm Breakout Sessions
1. The State of Our Raw Ingredients: Perspectives on Montana barley from every point in the supply chain.
Moderator: Mark Hastings
Panelists:
Jamie Sherman, MSU Barley breeding Research Project
Mark Black, Malteurop
Collin Watters, MT Wheat & Barley Committee
2. Canning, Packaging and Labeling: label design, getting approved online, choosing a canning line, storage requirements, etc.
Moderator: Nolan Smith
Panelists:
Tony Reindl, Montana Canning Company
Max Pigman, Lewis & Clark Brewing Company
Todd Scott, Bozeman Brewing
Jason Goeltz, Bitter Root Brewing
4:15 – 5:15 pm Live Beer Blogging Workshop:
Taste and share your thoughts about Montana’s latest beers with writers Ryan Newhouse, Alan McCormick, Skylar Browning, Alex Sakariassen, and others.
Host: Doug “the Beerbarian” Bailey, Red Lodge Ales.
