Category: Innovation
Exploring new and innovative technologies, ideas, and processes in the beverage industry.
Expert Topic What to do in Las Vegas for CBC
The U.S. brewing industry will soon turn its attention to Sin City, as Las Vegas hosts the annual Craft Brewers Conference, Brew Expo America, and World Beer cup. Some have questioned holding the event in the city, citing it’s overall lack of craft beer culture and destinations. However, locals are pushing back on that notion, highlighting a growth of local breweries in the last several years, bars dedicated to interesting drafts, and restaurants that have well-thought-out beer menus.
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Innovation featured expert topic supported by Chart Industries
Chart’s LN2 dosers support container pressurization and TPO reduction, and Earthly Labs’, SES’ and Howden’s carbon capture and compressor solutions enable breweries to capture CO2 emissions during fermentation process, boilers, or anaerobic digesters and reuse it onsite. ChartWater™ utilizes high recovery and low-energy water and wastewater treatment technologies, including the optimization of water reuse for sustainable, market-leading solutions.
News IMPORTANT: MJF Kicks Off Matching Grant Challenge Leading up to CBC
In this third year of ProBrewer support for The Michael James Jackson Foundation for Brewing and Distilling’s annual $100k Matching Grant Challenge drive, we checked in on the foundation and the impact it has had on the industry. We caught up by email with Garrett Oliver, MJF founder and Head Brewer for Brooklyn Brewery, and heard directly from The MJF Director of Operations, Breeze Galindo along with MJF recipients who have advanced their careers as a direct result of the many donations from people like yourself.
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Expert Topic Can’t Miss Seminars for the 2024 Craft Brewers Conference
This year, what happens in Vegas hopefully follows you home and stays with you all year long. The annual Craft Brewers Conference is of course a time to network (and commiserate) with fellow brewers, a chance to inspect the newest technology and equipment, and to make connections. It’s also a chance to attend well-researched seminars given by thoughtful, experienced presenters and hopefully bring that knowledge back to your breweries. Let’s look at five standout sessions that you should consider attending.
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Expert Topic Craft Brewers Conference Curtain Raiser: What’s New at CBC this Year?
The Brewers Association (BA) is busy prepping for the arrival of thousands of brewers, industry suppliers, and others at its annual Craft Brewers Conference (CBC). Hosted this year in Las Vegas, the conference comes at a time of considerable consternation and anxiety in a flat brewing industry. The BA planned seminars and speakers to help smaller brewers navigate these challenging times. I spoke with Ann Obenchain, the BA’s Vice President of Marketing and Communications, about what brewers can expect at this year’s conference.
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Sponsored WTF, Data?! Numbers = Profits! w/ Pulkit K. Agrawal
Almost every brewery is tracking their data – whether it’s in a spreadsheet, paper logs, or an electronic brewery management system. As breweries start scaling, there are two key areas that brewers and owners start looking at for their products — (1) making consistent quality beer and (2) improving costs over time.
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Sponsored “This is Native.” – Collaboration & the Art of Storytelling
Skydance Brewing Co opened their downtown Oklahoma City brewery and taproom in fall 2021 with a lot of local buzz as a Native-owned craft brewery, but owner Jake Keyes felt his full story was not yet being told in their brand and sought to elevate the packaging of their core beers for stronger shelf appeal as they grew distribution.
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Sponsored CBP Video: Getting More Butts in Seats & Beer in The Fridge
Description:
Marketing for Breweries has taken so many forms it’s hard to even know what to do anymore. It’s more than just a punch on a punch card, a scan of a QR code or some arbitrary point system. Loyalty is creating an experience that makes your customer tell their friends about the incredible experience they had at your brewery.
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News Growth in Low and No-Alcohol Beverages Continues to Grow – Worth $1.8B in US
Growth for low and no-alcohol beverages continues to impress, with latest figures indicating that growth for the two categories grew by 5% globally in 2023 and is expected to grow another 15% in the US through 2027. The no-alcohol market in the US is now worth over $1.8 billion.
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Expert Topic Innovation in Beer Transportation
Brewers control the quality of their beer right up to the point where it goes out the door. When a four-pack of cans, a sixer of bottles, or a growler leaves the brewery in a customer’s hands, a brewer’s job is largely done. But when beer heads out for distribution, that’s where things get complicated. Transportation, shipping, and logistics remain a challenge for most breweries, with heavy pallets loaded into heavy trucks that head to a distribution warehouse or even direct to accounts. We talked with one regional transportation company about its plans to innovate and shake up the business of transporting beer.
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Expert Topic Genetically Engineered Yeast Leads Innovation in the Category
When it comes to the raw ingredients in beer, hops get all the hype. Malt is increasingly shown the love, and water is universally respected. Yeast has its fans, and there is no underestimating its importance, but it doesn’t come up in conversation with brewers in the same way hops do.
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Expert Topic Brewers are Innovating in New Beverage Spaces
There was a period of time, and it wasn’t too long ago, when craft brewers were urging other brewers to stay in the beer lane. Focus on the beer, don’t think about flavored malt beverages, or other liquids, some industry leaders said. Be beer manufactures, stick to the mission, they urged.
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Expert Topic Innovation in Beer Packaging
Innovation in packaging has changed as the beer industry evolved. First it was simple packaging that did not leak, then it was tighter seals and ways to fill and transport. The materials became lighter and more robust. Shapes evolved, and manufacturers found ways to make everything run faster and smoother while delivering a usable customer experience.
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News Brewery Creates First Commercial Beer Using All Unmalted Barley
Cool Cousin Brewing in New York had made a beer entirely from unmalted barley, instead creating wort by adding an exogenous enzyme cocktail in the mash. The process is ostensibly to save water and carbon dioxide in the brewing process.
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Expert Topic Hop Water: The Next Wave of NA
The wedding was mid-day, held outside, the sun was blaring, and I had a long drive home ahead of me. While those staying locally enjoyed round after round of craft lager and IPA, I sipped my Victory Pils before switching over to review the thoughtful non-alcoholic options available to guests. Among the sodas and sparkling seltzers, one option caught my eye and captured my attention for the next few hours: Lagunitas’ Hoppy Refresher.
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Expert Topic On Demand Printing for Cans
Last year there was an uproar and worry when Ball Corp announced that it was increasing the minimum order on printed cans. There has also been concern that many of the vinyl stickers going on blank cans are mucking up the recycling stream. As brewers look for ways to get cans in front of customers and many are looking for eco-friendly options, a relatively new technology has emerged that provides on-demand printing on a small scale, allowing brewers to only order what they need.
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News California Bill Would Allow Spirit-based RTD’s to be Sold Alongside Beer and Wine
A bill in California supported by the Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUSS) would allow retailers with a beer and wine license to also sell spirit-based RTD’s, a move which would further blur the line that has traditionally existed between spirits and beer and wine.
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Expert Topic Adding a Pilot Brewery
When walking through a brewery, attention is often paid to the workhorse brewhouse, the large-barrel mash tun doing a yeoman’s lift and the large fermenters where the magic is happening. More and more these days there are little brew kits tucked in a corner or off to the side that are not as flashy, but are doing the heavy research and development lift, resulting in beers that could one day get a full commercial release. The pilot brewery.
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Expert Topic Security Steps to Keep Your Brewery Safe From Cyberattacks
Nearly every aspect of running a small business is online these days and the amount of bad actors trying to access information has never been higher. Brewers are well served by following basic tips to ensure their online resources are well protected.
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Expert Topic Budgeting for Brewery Software with Audra Gaiziunas
In this digital world software plays a big role in running a small business. Breweries are still creating a “handcrafted” product but increasingly relay on software and technology to run the day to day, minute-to-minute aspects of the business.
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