By James Atkinson
Next month's Beer & Brewer Conference will provide valuable guidance for publicans who are interested in broadening their beer offering, along with relevant sessions for bottleshops, wholesalers and brewers.
Run by Beer & Brewer magazine, the event is a one-day conference and trade show to be held on Thursday May 17 from 9 to 4pm in Fed Square, Melbourne.
The timing of the conference coincides with the Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA), the second biggest in the world. A strong contingent from the brewing and hospitality industries is expected to attend the presentation dinner, which also runs on May 17 from 7pm at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre.
Confirmed speakers at the Beer & Brewer Conference include Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group national merchandise manager, Ian Kingham, Contract Brewing’s Brian Watson, ATO Client Relationship Manager Indirect Tax (Excise) Caraline Hill and ECU brewing science lecturer Hugh Dunn.
The event comes as some of the country's leading brewers have called for publicans to rethink their beer buying strategy.
Event organiser David Lipman told TheShout the conference will provide valuable information at a time when the beer category is rapidly being redefined in Australia.
"Craft beer and cider are experiencing year on year growth contrary to commercial beer thanks to a more educated consumer palate," he said.
Beer tasting masterclass at 2010 Beer & Brewer Expo, BMW Edge, Melbourne
"The Beer & Brewer Conference hopes to encourage hospitality and retail operators to learn about the benefits of selling craft beer and cider, how to choose the right brands for their venue and how to train staff on challenging customers to give craft beer and cider a go, leading to increased profits and increased bistro sales as craft beer is a great match with food."
The conference includes sessions on:
– Building a beer list and staff training for venues;
– Beer styles and taste training by the IBD and ECU;
– The importance of distribution, marketing and retailing.
– Cider – the why and how;
– Kegs and draught beer dispense;
– Excise Administration with the ATO department;
– Packaging trends/developments;
– Hops – varieties by beer style, purchasing and recipe development;
– Malt – varieties by beer style, purchasing and recipe development;
– Yeast & Fermentation – strains by beer style, purchasing and recipe development; and
– Starting a microbrewery and the business of brewing.
Click here to book your place at the conference. For further information contact David Lipman at Beer & Brewer Magazine on (02) 8586 6172, david@beerandbrewer.com.