The Art of the Pro-Am
In this detailed look at commercial and homebrewing collaborations and competitions, attendees will discover the benefits of the Pro-Am for homebrew clubs and breweries and learn strategies a club can use to create their own events. This presentation examines the Pro-Am concept and takes a detailed look at a variety…
The Difficult Art of Simplicity
Simplicity isn’t just for beginning homebrewers. No matter how long you’ve been brewing or what your experience level is, cutting out unnecessary steps in your process can save you time and increase the fun factor. Denny and Drew will talk about ways to simplify your brewing, from equipment to ingredients…
The Style Hunter
The 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines added several new styles, so it’s complete now, right? Not so fast. New styles continue to be created and evolve, while historical styles are rediscovered and gain new interest. Join Gordon Strong, principal author of the style guidelines, in an exploration of new and old…
The XXX Story of Australian Old Ale
Australian old ale is as distinctive an Australian style as Australian sparkling ale, but it’s not the same as English old ale, nor is it a porter derivative. Learn how XXX became old, discover details of Australian brewing techniques across different eras, and discuss the characteristics of this distinctive style.…
True Confessions of a Homebrew Ingredient Hoarder
Through the years, “some” homebrewers collect massive amounts of hops, bulk barley, yeast cultures, and adjuncts. Learn how to properly store, manage, and protect those ingredients from bugs, mold, mice, oxygen, fruit flies, light, and time. This seminar will discuss several types of homebrew ingredients and reveal best practices for…
Understanding National Tradition
Have you ever wondered how a Czech brewer thinks about brewing? How about a Belgian or a German? Chances are, they think about brewing very differently than Americans do. Beer styles are downstream consequences of particular ways of thinking about beer. In this seminar, we will explore the way styles…
Whirlpool Techniques
Many brewers are afraid to mess with wort after the boil, but a properly executed whirlpool lets the brewer “roll the dice” and do some exciting things. The whirlpool offers a great opportunity to fine-tune recipes and create deeper hop or dark-grain profiles. This seminar will cover whirlpool techniques for…
Wild Beer Curling: Course Correcting and Guiding Your Beer to Success
Brewing wild beers, mixed fermentations, and barrel-aged and -fermented ales can be a long, arduous process, especially as a homebrewer. Along the way, a host of environmental and human factors can impart many variations in the finished beer. This presentation addresses methods to fix some common problems and prevent others,…
Without It This Conference Would Have Never Come to Exist: The Story of German Bier
This humorous and entertaining overview of the history of German beer includes the development of beer styles (with proper pronunciation), technological advancements, German drinking traditions and culture, and the immigration of German brewing to the Pacific Northwest in the 19th century. A look at recent trends in German beer, including…
Yeast Genome Changes During Serial Repitching
We used whole genome sequencing to follow the genetic changes that occurred after 29 serial repitches of the American Ale strain WY1056 by Postdoc Brewing. Comparing samples showed two mutations that became detectable in the population after 15 repitches and elevated to high frequency by the 29th. We will present…
A Semiautobiographical Account of the Actual History and Brewing of Porters and Stouts
This seminar is for everyone interested in the history of dark beer who also wants to learn to brew pretty much every style there is, or has been, or might be.
Achieving the Flavor Profile You Want from the Microorganisms in Your Homebrew
The microorganisms that ferment beer are responsible for countless flavor compounds, and brewers armed with the right knowledge can manipulate yeasts and bacteria to achieve desired profiles. Douglas will teach homebrewers how to choose different microbes for different outcomes and how to pitch and ferment under the right conditions for…
Against the Grain: Wood Aging and Barrel Alternatives
Want to wood age your beer but don’t have the space? Interested in varieties of wood other than oak? Ditch the barrels and join Matt Del Fiacco as he discusses the use of wood aging alternatives in homebrewing and the wide variety of options available to homebrewers to produce incredible…
Becoming a Better Beer Judge
Becoming a BJCP judge is hard enough, but it’s after you become a judge that the learning really begins. Why is that, and what can we do to become a better beer judge? Entrants pay money to enter competitions, and we owe it to them to offer the…
Beer Blending Tips and Techniques
In this seminar, we take a look at the what, why, and how of beer blending. We’ll explore historic blending, standard styles, barrel-aged beers, big beers, and sours. Recipe formulation, experimentation, tips, techniques, and best practices for blending will also be discussed. Learn to use blending to create better, more…
Beer Oxidation: Chemistry, Sensory Evaluation, and Prevention
Beer oxidation is one of the most common flaws for homebrews and commercial beers alike, yet the processes are not well understood. Evaluation of oxidation is often difficult because it manifests itself in a variety of ways in the flavor beyond the well-known paper notes. In this seminar, we will…
Bitterness and the IBU: What’s It All About?
This talk covers the basics of bitterness and the truth about the International Bitterness Unit. We’ll have an in-depth overview of how raw materials contribute to bitterness in multiple ways, as well as how organic compounds contribute to the measurement known as the IBU. We will also discuss methods of…
Bochet Mead: The Art and Science of Caramelizing Honey
Bochet has a long, if misunderstood history, but it’s becoming increasingly popular. Caramelizing honey lets meadmakers turn honey into wonderful “burnt mead.” This presentation covers mead basics and history, BJCP categorization, caramelizing methods, common mistakes, recipes, and tips for making your own. Bochets will be served with a Q&A to…
Brewing and Enjoying Smoked Beer
Do you enjoy classic smoked beer styles like rauchbier, Grodziskie, and Lichtenhainer? In this seminar, we will discuss popular smoked beer styles available in our favorite beer stores, including a bit of history. We’ll also examine the various types of smoked malt available to homebrewers, and most importantly, we’ll learn…
Brewing Berliner Weisse: Moving Beyond Kettle Souring
This session is all about slowing things down. Join us as we take a deep dive into the historical brewing techniques of Berliner weisse, as they reveal some surprising facts about a style that has been mostly relegated to kettle souring. We’ll go behind the scenes and discuss traditional production…
Brewing Dreams: Stories about Going Pro
Join Samuel Adams brewer Jennifer Glanville for a spirited discussion with Tim Thomssen (winner of the 2015 Samuel Adams LongShot American Homebrew Competition and founder of Boiler Brewing Company), Beverly Armstrong (founder of Brazo Fuerte Artisanal Beer), and Chris Spinelli (co-founder of Roc Brewing Co.). We’ll trace each brewer’s path…
Brewing When You Have No Time (Getting More out of Your Limited Brewing Time)
In a busy world, it’s hard to dedicate time to a long, continuous brew day. This seminar challenges the dogma that you need six hours to brew a batch of beer. Let’s explore ways to brew more using less of your limited time. We’ll learn how to brew more quickly…
Building a Business Plan for Funding and the SBA
Starting a business is hard, especially if you do not have a BA degree. Learn how to build the content and financials that lending institutions look for into your business plan. We’ll go over the necessary documentation and recommendations for a successful meeting with the lenders and the Small Business…
Building Great Homebrew Clubs
Join representatives from three former Radegast Award–winning homebrew clubs—the Carolina Brewmasters, Maltose Falcons, and the Hogtown Brewers—for a spirited discussion on what makes great homebrew clubs. Attendees can expect to learn new, exciting ways to engage their memberships and take club events to the next level.
Compound Interest: The Essentials of Essential Oils
Why does a beer dry hopped with Centennial smell different than one dry hopped with Saaz? When you can’t get Citra, what other hops should you look for to create similar aromas? Will five parts Cascade and one part Lemondrop really pass for Amarillo? After starting with the basics, we’ll…
Czech Plz! What I Learned Brewing with the Czech Masters
Join 2013 Homebrewer of the Year Annie Johnson as she reveals the secrets of brewing authentic Czech Pilsner at home. We will learn about water chemistry, ingredients, decoction mashing, fermentation, and more, all while enjoying delicious Czech Pilsner. Annie has brewed with master brewers Vaclav Berka of the Pilsner Urquell…
Designing Beer Recipes
Recipe design and techniques have evolved rapidly the past few years. Brad shares what he’s learned by brewing and by interviewing the top homebrewers and commercial brewers from around the world. He explains different approaches used by top brewers with a focus on understanding ingredients and applying techniques to drive…
Does Base Malt Flavor Matter? The Relationship Between Base Malt Flavor Preference and Beer Flavor Preference
Does preferred base malt flavor translate to preferred beer flavor? Does base malt flavor really matter? Find out in this Homebrew Con seminar recording!
Dry Hopping Effectively
What is dry hopping? At what stage of fermentation should dry hops be added? At what temperature should you dry hop, and what are the differences in perceived hop aroma and flavor for these temperatures? Learn how to dry hop successfully and what you can do to improve aroma in…
Embrace Your Inner Nerd: Simple Steps to Setting up a Home Lab
This seminar outlines basic steps homebrewers can take to establish a small lab in their home. We will review equipment and procedures to get you up and running on cell counts, plating yeast samples, setting up a home yeast bank, and utilizing basic spreadsheets to track your experiments and brewing…
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