It’s time for CBC 2017. We at VicinityBrew Software are gearing up for the 2017 Craft Brewer’s Conference in Washington, D.C. on April 10-13th. This will be our 5th time exhibiting at this excellent annual brewing industry event, and we are excited to connect with all the breweries there! In addition to our excitement towards reconnecting with breweries during CBC 2017, we are also exceptionally excited about attending the sessions at this event, especially these ten sessions.
TTB Boot Camp
- Where: 202 AB
- When: Monday, April 10th from 12:00 – 4:00 PM
- Who: TTB Authority
- What: The Brewers Association is partnering with the U.S. Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) to present a series of talks aimed at how brewers can most effectively interact with the TTB. The TTB is based a few blocks away in D.C., giving us a great chance to tap their staff resources. Topics include labeling, formulas, brewer’s notices, and federal basic permits, excise tax reporting, and bond requirements.
Poor or inconsistent record keeping is the root cause of most common TTB errors.
101 Ways to Blow up a Bottle/Can, and How to Avoid It
- Where: 202 AB
- When: Tuesday, April 11th from 1:20 – 2:20 PM
- Who: Allagash – Zach Bodah, Quality Manager and Jason Perkins, Brewmaster
- What: The brewmaster and quality manager at of our valued clients, Allagash Brewing, outlines the risks of package over-pressurization and the quality measures that can be put in place to help brewers mitigate this risk.
After wrapping up a recent quality project with Allagash Brewing Company we can hardly wait to hear more!
COGS: More Exciting than Sailing, It’s Cost of Goods Sold
- Where: 151 AB
- When: Tuesday, April 11th from 1:20 – 2:20 PM
- Who: EKS&H LLLP- Mike Madden, Senior Manager of Audit Service Area, Lyle Bauman, Manager of Consulting Service Area
- What: Keep the finance gears of your brewery turning in step with the rest of the craft brewing industry. In this seminar, you’ll be the first to learn about the newly released Cost of Goods Sold Manual for Craft Brewers, a guide to best practices for accurately reporting your brewery’s numbers. You’ll sail away from this seminar knowing how to tune up your brewery’s COGS.
Helping breweries track and report production to deliver a true cost of goods sold is a passion of Vicinitybrew.
Production Management from 5k-15k BBLs: A Fact-Based Approach
- Where: Ballroom A
- When: Wednesday, April 12th from 2:40 – 3:40 PM
- Who: Fort Point Beer Company – Mike Schnebeck, Head Brewer
- What: Grow and scale your production capabilities from 5,000 to 15,000 bbls through equipment, inventory, and personnel management. Utilize new technologies, key performance indicators, and data metrics to achieve scalable production growth and expand people, product, and plant for the future. Learn to synthesize production, sales, and logistics information to drive aggressive growth while maintaining quality standards.
What challenges did your brewery experience between 5k-15k barrels of production? Identifying some of the most common growing pains – and their solutions, for small craft breweries.
It’s a Brave New World for Craft
- Where: 146 ABC
- When: Thursday, April 13th from 12:30 – 1:30 PM
- Who: Beer Marketer’s Insights – Benj Steinman, President
- What: The craft landscape has shifted dramatically: growth slowed, there are tons of tiny new entrants, and the largest players in the total beer business made numerous craft acquisitions. Between industry giants and thousands of hyperlocal entities, established craft brewers face a far more crowded and competitive marketplace. WhosWho’s winning and what are some potential ways forward? Beer Marketers INSIGHTS editor Benj Steinman will discuss the evolution of craft.
Savings in Craft Brewery Operations: Simple Approaches to make Craft Beer Production Sustainable and Economical
- Where: Ballroom A
- When: Wednesday, April 12th from 1:20 – 2:20 PM
- Who: VLB Berlin – Deniz Bilge, Senior Consultant
- What: Consulting experience in craft breweries has shown that extract losses, energy expenditure, and water consumption can all be drastically reduced with simple approaches that do not involve extensive capital expenditures, and that pay off in the short-term. The main resource for optimization is taking the time to gather consumption data and develop a proper understanding of the process. Benchmarks and case studies will be discussed in order to motivate and educate the craft brewer to reduce consumption and work economically.
Budgeting and Managing Brew House Raw Materials
- Where: Ballroom A
- When: Thursday, April 13th from 1:55 – 2:55 PM
- Who: Heater Allen Brewing – Rick Allen, Owner
- What: Outside of salaries, brewhouse materials are the most expensive cost associated with making beer. Recognizing the cost drivers in the brewhouse is important to having a complete understanding of your brewery’s profitability. This presentation will provide in-depth insight into budgeting and material management in a smaller brewery.
MegaBrew: The Merger, Its Aftermath and What it Means for Small Brewers
- Where: 151 AB
- When: Thursday, April 13th from 3:20 – 4:20 PM
- Who: McDermott Will & Emery LLP – Jon Dubrow, Partner, Marc Sorini, Partner, Brewers Association – Bob Pease, President & CEO, National Beer Wholesalers Association – Paul Pisano, Sr. VP Industry Affairs and General Counsel
- What: This panel discussion will provide a 360-degree view of the ABInBev-SAB merger from the small brewer and distributor participation in the Department of Justice review process to a discussion of the specific elements composing the final consent order and finally to impacts of the merger in the marketplace. Learn about the strengths and weaknesses of the final order from the perspective of our industry, the role of the Monitoring Trustee and the challenges of enforcing the elements of the order, and what individual small brewers and distributors can do moving forward.
Starting with Quality: Not Just Another Lab Talk
- Where: 152 AB
- When: Tuesday, April 11th from 2:40 – 3:40 PM
- Who: New Belgium Brewing Company – Rob Christiansen, QA Specialist, Call to Arms Brewing Company – Jon Cross, Proprietor & Head Brewer, Strangeways Brewing – Mike Hiller, Head Brewer
- What: In the ever-growing craft brewing world, quality is on everyone’s mind. This seminar will focus on the basics of a lab and quality program for start-up breweries. Learn how to start the journey to quality beer with the right tools and attitude.
Brew Talks by Brewbound
- Where: Penn Social DC @ 801 E St. NW Washington, DC
- When: Tuesday, April 11th from 4:00 – 7:00 PM
- Who: Brew Talks hosts and Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
- What: This year’s CBC Brew Talk will consist of craft beer business discussions and industry networking. Brew Talks events provide a platform to engage with like-minded beer industry professionals and find new ways to grow your business.
And there you have it, the top ten sessions VicinityBrew is looking forward to attending and gaining knowledge from during CBC 2017. We hope to see you and your craft brewery at the Craft Brewers Conference next month. Look for VicinityBrew Software at CBC 2017in Booth 1250 on the BrewExpo America floor, or click here to schedule time to talk beer with us during the event!
CONTACT OUR TEAM IF YOU ARE READY TO GET STARTED OR HAVE ANY QUESTIONS
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