Beer Styles: Past, Present, and Future

Knowledge of beer styles goes hand in hand with homebrewing. Join Gordon Strong, the principal author of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) beer style guidelines and BJCP Grand Master beer judge, in this session where he shares insights behind beer styles and how they have evolved over the years, as well as where they might be headed next. This session is moderated by Julia Herz, American Homebrewers Association executive director.

Learning Objectives

• Become familiar with the BJCP beer style guidelines as a resource
• Get perspective on style guidelines approach applications, lexicon, and update process
• Gain insight into innovation in beer styles, trends, and brewing techniques

About the Speakers

Gordon Strong is an award-winning homebrewer, beer judge, and author. He is the only three-time winner of the coveted Ninkasi Award. He is president emeritus of, and the highest-ranking judge in, the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) and is the principal author of the BJCP style guidelines. Gordon is the style column editor for Brew Your Own magazine, and a frequent feature article writer. He is the author of Brewing Better Beer and Modern Homebrew Recipes and is a judge at the Great American Beer Festival, World Beer Cup, and many international commercial beer competitions.

Julia Herz is the executive director of the American Homebrewers Association. Prior to that, Herz was the Craft Beer Program director for the Brewers Association (BA) and publisher of CraftBeer.com (2007–2020). Herz is a Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) certified beer judge, an award-winning homebrewer, an Advanced Cicerone®, and a lead architect of the BA national beer holidays, Independent Craft Brewer Seal, BA diversity and inclusion efforts, and more. Herz is the co-author of Beer Pairing: The Essential Guide from the Pairing Pros (Voyageur Press 2015).