Join Drink Indiana (the nonprofit Brewers of Indiana Guild) for the 6th annual Indiana Craft Brewers Conference March 8-10, 2020, at the Indianapolis Marriott East for continuing brewing education focused on improving brewery quality, performance and innovation; collaborative community building and a brewers trade show.
Education Tracks
Business
Regulatory
Technical Brewing
Meet Our Keynote Speakers
Bart Watson is chief economist at the Brewers Association. Prior to his position with the BA, he was a lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley, a visiting assistant professor at the University of Iowa, and an associate at The Barthwell Group, a management consulting firm. His academic research focused primarily on the political and economic effects of increasing market consolidation in distribution channels. He holds a B.A. from Stanford University and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.
State of the Indiana Craft Brewing Industry: The craft brewing industry is changing. What are the market and demographic trends shaping those shifts and how can you find growth in a more cluttered marketplace?
Neil Witte is a 22 year veteran of the craft beer business. He began his career in the Kansas City brewpub industry, moving to Boulevard Brewing Co. in 1997 as a brewer. In 2001, he took over field quality responsibilities for the brewery, acting as a quality control liaison between the brewery and its distributor and retailer network. He continued that role with the Duvel USA family of beers, including Boulevard and Brewery Ommegang, through the end of 2016. In 2017 he founded Craft Quality Solutions, which draws on his extensive field quality experience, providing field quality services to breweries, distributors and retailers. He is certified through the Beer Judge Certification Program and is currently one of 18 Master Cicerones. He is co-author of the Brewers Association Draught Quality Manual, Draught Beer Quality for Retailers and a contributing author to the MBAA Beer Steward Handbook.
Quality a Complete Picture: The talk is an examination of what quality means to today’s brewer, the brewery and the industry as a whole. Quality programs are explored through the lens of the vast array of resources available from the Brewers Association, while at the same time encouraging Brewers to expand their understanding of what constitutes a quality program.
Conference Schedule
Sunday, March 8, 2020
| 12:00 PM – 5:30 PM | Registration and Badge Pick-Up |
| 1:20 PM – 2:20 PM | Business & Regulatory: An HR Storm is Brewing: A look at what can happen when you’re running your business |
| 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM | Technical Brewing: Quality Q&A with Neil Witte, BA Quality Ambassador |
| 3:40 PM – 4:40 PM | Technical Brewing: Practical Yeast Management from the Brewer and Supplier Perspective |
| 4:50 PM – 5:50 PM | Technical Brewing: Malt Flavor Creation and Sensory Evaluation |
| 6:00 PM – 1: 00 AM | Brewers Hospitality |
Monday, March 9, 2020
| 7:30 AM – 9:00 AM | Breakfast |
| 8:30 AM – 9:50 AM | Annual Meeting |
| 9: 00 AM – 5:45 PM | Trade Show |
| 10:00 AM – 10:50 AM | Keynote: Quality a Complete Picture with Neil Witte, BA Quality Ambassador |
| 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Regulatory: Bose Legislative Update & Permitting Q&A |
| 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Business: Keep Your Brand Fresh: Learn to recognize when to evolve how far to push an evolution, and how to use recent packaging innovations to help the evolution |
| 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Technical Brewing: Compressed Air & Its Impact on Beer Quality |
| 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 12:45 PM – 1:50 PM | Keynote 2: State of the Indiana Craft Brewing Industry with Bart Watson, BA Chief Economist |
| 1:50 PM – 2:50 PM | Regulatory: ATC Roundtable |
| 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM | Business: Mental Health Awareness |
| 4:10 PM | Passport Prize Announcement |
| 4:20 PM – 5:50 PM | Technical Brewing: Sensory Analysis For Your Brewery |
| 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM | Brewery Social |
| 8:00 PM – 1:00 AM | Brewers Hospitality |
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
| 7:30 AM – 9:00 AM | Breakfast & The B.I.G. Economic Impact Study and You |
| 9:10 AM – 10:10 AM | Business & Regulatory: An HR Storm is Brewing: A look at what can happen when you’re running your business |
| 9:10 AM – 10:10 AM | Business: How to Call on a Retailer: 101 |
| 9:10 AM – 10:10 AM | Technical Brewing: Improved Functional Assays and Risk Assessment for Diastatic (STA+) Saccharomyces Cerevisiae |
| 10:20 AM – 11:20 AM | Business & Regulatory: Brewery Trademarks |
| 10:20 AM – 11:20 AM | Business: 12-Pack Grab & Go: Social Media Marketing Tips & Tricks |
| 10:20 AM – 11:20 AM | Technical Brewing: Certificate of Analysis – A Bucket Analysis Approach |
| 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM | Regulatory: OSHA Compliance in the Brewery |
| 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM | Business: Restaurant COGS |
| 11: 30 AM – 12: 30 PM | Technical Brewing: Hazy IPAS: Production Techniques |
| 12: 30 PM | Adjourn |
Learn More About INCBC Seminars and Speakers
Follow #INCBC on Social
Check out #INCBC on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and RSVP to the Official Facebook event page for updates.
Buy Tickets
Brewers of Indiana Guild Members please contact Athena@drinkin.beer for ticketing information and pricing.
Non-Member Breweries and Industry Members please contact Athena@drinkin.beer for ticketing information and pricing.
General Admission Tickets are available to the public at $199 (plus fees).
The Brewers of Indiana Guild Mission
The Indiana Craft Brewers Conference directly supports the Brewers of Indiana Guild’s mission to
- promote the highest standards of professional brewing in Indiana
- increase public awareness and appreciation for the variety and quality of Indiana craft beer
- advocate for laws that promote Guild Members’ ideals and that foster brewery profitability
- provide a forum for discussion, support, and initiatives for the common good of Indiana’s breweries and associated businesses
Presenting Sponsor
Lunch Sponsor
Notebook Sponsor
Beer Station Sponsors
Become A Sponsor
Show your support for Indiana craft beer by taking advantage of our unique sponsorship opportunities. Please email Shanna@drinkin.beer for more information.
Trade Show
Dozens of affiliated businesses share schwag and resources with brewery members at the INCBC Trade Show, and for the second year, members can win prizes by visiting vendors and getting their Trade Show Passport marked.
