The fifth annual Ohio Craft Brewers Conference presented by The Cincinnati Insurance Companies will take place Jan. 9-10, 2019, at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Columbus. The two-day conference will feature presentations and panel discussions on a broad range of brewing industry topics. The conference trade show will be held in the adjoining Hyatt Regency ballroom on Wednesday, Jan. 9, and feature 100 Ohio Craft Brewers Association (OCBA) allied member businesses.
2019 will mark the first time that Columbus has hosted the Ohio Craft Brewers Conference. Previous host cities include Cleveland, Cincinnati, Dayton and Wooster. The Ohio Hop Growers Guild annual conference will be held concurrently at the Hyatt Regency, bringing local brewers and hop growers together for the betterment of both industries.
Conference registration is available for $300 per person (discounts are available to OCBA brewery and allied members). Registration includes lunch on both days of the conference, a flash drive featuring all conference presentations, admission to the trade show and evening events at OCBA member breweries in and around Columbus. Registration available online right here.
Keynotes
Dr. Tom Shellhammer, Nor’Wester Professor of Fermentation Science at Oregon State University, will deliver the first of the conference’s two keynote addresses, titled “Rethinking the Contributions of Hops to Beer Flavor” on Wednesday, Jan. 9. The following day, Dr. J. Nikol Jackson Beckham, diversity ambassador for the Brewers Association, will deliver the second keynote, “Fans, Hands, and Brands: Strategies and Tactics for Being Inclusive and Building Diversity in Craft Beer.”
“A big part of our mission is to empower independent breweries by giving them the training and tools to sustain their craft,” said OCBA Executive Director Mary MacDonald. “In the fifth year of this conference, we’ve been able to add an additional educational seminar track, grow the size of the trade show and attract renowned brewing industry experts to cover critical topics. Brewers and industry professionals have embraced our conference as a place to collaborate, learn from each other and continue moving Ohio craft beer in a positive direction.”
The Ohio Craft Brewers Conference presented by The Cincinnati Insurance Companies is supported by the Country Malt Group, Frantz Ward Attorneys at Law, Proforma Graphic Services, BDI, Grandstand Glassware and Apparel, Hunter Consulting Co., Mosaic Employee Benefits, Ohio Beverage Insurance, Origin Malts, Schaefer Container Systems, Sprinkman Brewing Systems, System Plast, Trench Drain Systems and TriPack
Conference Schedule
Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019 – Day 1
7:30 – 9 a.m. Breakfast and registration/badge pickup in Regency Ballroom Foyer
8 – 11 a.m. Breakfast Beverage Bar
9 – 10 a.m. Main room
- Welcome address with Mary MacDonald, OCBA Executive Director and Collin Castore, Seventh Son Brewing, OCBA Board President
- Keynote Speaker: Dr. Tom Shellhammer, Professor of Fermentation Science, Oregon State University: Rethinking the Contributions of Hops to Beer Flavor
10 – 10:45 a.m.
- Partnering with a Wholesaler or Self-Distribution; What’s Right for Your Brewery? with Dennis Kramer-Wine, Rhinegeist, Brady Duncan, MadTree Brewing Company and Bobby Slattery, Fifty West Brewing Company
- Brand Building in Real Time: Sharing Your Story and Building a Brand Across Different Media Platforms with Devon Kelly and Marissa DeSantis, Great Lakes Brewing Company
- TTB Confidential: Tips and Insights from an Agency Insider with James Niekamp, Graydon Head & Ritchey LLP
11 – 11:45 a.m.
- Creating a Learning Culture Around Beer with Mike Williams and Mike Buckley, Great Lakes Brewing Company
- Alternative Ways to Raise Start-Up Capital – Crowdfunding and Founders Clubs with Ali and Jon Hovan, HiHO Brewing Co.
- Managing Your Barrels: Sourcing Growth on a Budget and Building it into an Award-Winning Program with Chris Davison, Wolf’s Ridge Brewing Company, Jason Brewer and Jared Lewinski, Listermann Brewing Company
12 – 2 p.m.: Trade show and lunch time
2 – 2:45 p.m.
- Demystifying Sensory of Raw Materials with Rebecca Jennings, assisted by Sara Hagerty and Whitney Thompson, Origin Malts
- CIP (Clean in Place): How to Verify and Document Clean with Larry Reuter, Ecolab
- What to Know When You Want to Make More than Beer with Adam Armstrong and Kevin Connell, Ohio Beer Counsel
3 – 3:45 p.m.
- Data & Dashboards Deconstructed: Initiate an Actionable, Sustainable Strategy with Jack McCraine, Firm Director of Baker Tilly and Mike Gramins, Craft Brewery Sales Director of Boelter Beverage
- The Path to Success… Non-Brewing Water Use with Rudy Othmer and Gary Macmann, Enerco Corporation and Doug Beedy, Elevator Brewing Company
- Centrifuge Applications for Breweries with Joakim Gustafsson, Alfa Laval Brewery Technology, John Haggerty, Warped Wing Brewing Company and Mark Hunger, Great Lakes Brewing Company
4 – 6:30 p.m. Trade Show Time and Happy Hour in Regency Ballroom/Exhibit Hall
Thursday, January 10, 2019 – Day 2
8:30 – 10 a.m.: Registration/badge pickup – County Foyer
10 – 10:45 a.m.
- Keynote Speaker: Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham, Diversity Ambassador, Brewers Association: Fans, Hands, and Brands: Strategies and Tactics for Being Inclusive and Building Diversity in Craft Beer
11 – 11:45 a.m.
- How to Create, Organize and Run Unique and Large Scale Beer Events with Bobby Slattery and Max Fram, Fifty West Brewing Company
- Understanding Malt Analysis with Andrew Martahus, Haus Malts and Rebecca Jennings, Origin Malts
- FSMA- How Does it Effect a Brewery? with Tatiana Lorca, PhD, Ecolab
- Diastaticus: Detection and Characterization with Nate Gibbon, Omega Yeast
12 – 12:45 p.m.
- Making Clean Barrel Aged Beers with Brad Clark, Director of Brewing Operations, Jackie O’s Brewery
- Human Resources 101 with Betty Bollas, Fibonacci Brewing Company
- Pouring Profit: Maximizing Draught System Knowledge to Maximize Sales with Adam Pratt, MadTree Brewing and Matthew Bee, Micro-Matic
- Managing Employee Safety in Craft Brewery Operations with Keith Bullock, OSHA On-Site Consultation Program, Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
12:45 – 2 p.m. Lunch
2 – 2:45 p.m.
- The Flavor Leadership Criteria for Beer and How to Measure it with Dr. Roy Desrochers, Tufts University (note: 2 hour presentation)
- Panel: Things I Wish I Knew Before I Opened a Brewery with Jimmy Stockwell, Little Fish Brewing, Collin Castore, Seventh Son Brewing and John Haggerty Warped Wing Brewing Company
- All Trails Lead to Beer! Capturing Trail Town Tourism with Chris Hutson, Yellow Springs Brewery and Andrea Irland, National Park Service Rivers, Trails & Conservation Assistance Program
- What’s Trending in Hops Nationally and in Ohio? with Derek Thompson, OSHY Hops, Mike McCoy, Bolivar Brothers Farm & Hopyard and Roy Johnson, John I. Haas, Inc.
3 – 3:45 p.m.
- Malt Wizarding 101 Panel with Sara Hagerty, Origin Malts
- Sustainability Panel with Kevin Ely, Wooly Pig Farm Brewery, Austin Hietpas, MadTree Brewing, Jamie Sipps, HiHO Brewing Co., Vincent Valentino, Land-Grant Brewing, and Sean White, Little Fish Brewing
- Dry-Hop Creep: Understanding the Enzyme Potential of Hops and How it Can Impact Beer Quality with Victor Pool, Columbus Brewing Company
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