Beer Now Conference

Beer Bloggers, Writers, Social Media Influencers, and Communicators

EBBC15 Pre-Conference Excursion Starts Today!

by

EBBC15 Pre-Conference Excursion Kicks Off, Today!
Oak, Fruit, Hops and More will deliver a full day of inspiration to bloggers & writers

Elite.BFB

It’s Thursday.  Not just any run-of-the-mill Thursday.  It’s THAT Thursday.  The Thursday that marks the start of the 2015 European Beer Bloggers & Writers Conference pre-conference excursion with the Belgian Family Brewers.

42 EBBC15 conference guests will be treated to a full day of “Innovation Meets Tradition” on this pre-conference excursion that aims to deliver education, adventure, and inspiration about the history of brewing in Belgium.  The 22 members of the Belgian  Family Brewers association represent a total of more than 3,500 years of experience and tradition in brewing.  On today’s excursion, participants will discover how the Belgian Family Brewers differentiate their innovative beers.  The theme of today’s itinerary:  Oak, Fruit, Hops, and More.

The excursion leaves at 12 noon from Hotel Marivaux and heads, first, to Diepensteyn Castle, the once run-down castle now owned by Brewery PALM.  Hops = the main subject of this stop and serves as the first inspirational item on the day’s quest to learn about specialty Belgium beers.

The second stop is at Lindemans Brewery in the heart of Pajottenland and in the hamlet of Vlezenbeek.  Guests will learn about the role that Fruit plays in the brewing process.

The third visit on the pre-conference excursion takes writers to the beautiful Dupont Brewery, where MORE beer secrets will be shared with the group.

The final stop on this full day beer tour is at the Dubuisson Brewery, the oldest brewery in Wallonia.  The discussion of Oak and wood in beer at Dubuisson aims to dazzle guests as one of the more complex elements that separates good, specialty beer from the rest…

EBBC15 pre-conference excursion guests will be returned to the Hotel Marivaux around 10 pm and in time to rest up before the 2015 conference officially kicks off on Friday.  Thanks to the Belgian Family Brewers for orchestrating this powerful, pre-conference excursion!

BBC13 Recap Part I: Pre Conference Excursion

by

What do you get when you get ~150 beer bloggers together for 3 days of tasting, content and networking at a conference? You get over 6000 tweets, loads of photos, tons of amazing beer consumed and logged into Untapped, and an all around good time.

A passion for beer and an inkling to blog about it are the only requirements to join (and perhaps a bit of stamina to get you through the action-packed schedule). We were thrilled to see the great mix of alumni and new attendees this year. Friendships were formed, blog collaborations formed, and great business and networking introductions made.

Below is a summary and a collection of tweets we enjoyed from the Pre-Conference Excursion where 50 BBC13 attendees all met up in Portland, Maine on Thursday, July 25th prior to meeting up with the rest of the conference on Friday in Boston.

Reception at Cabot Creamery 

We all met in a charming cheese and retail shop run by the good folks at Cabot Creamery. In addition to tasting through an assortment of fine Cabot cheddars and other cheeses, we got to sample Geary beer brewed locally in Portland.

Beer Pairing at Sebago Brewing

If there was a theme to be repeated throughout the entire conference, it was the pairing of exquisite craft beer with amazing foods. We were welcomed by Sebago Brewing Company’s founder, Kai Adams, who was our fun and very gracious host for the evening. Bloggers took over the bar area and enjoyed Sebago beers paired with flatbread pizza, lobster rolls, and pork wings. There were also shrimp shooters!!

A fun surprise was that one of the beers we were sampling was a beer brewed by three of our bloggers!! It was delicious!

Patriot Craft Alliance Party

After saying our goodbyes and thanks to everyone at Sebago Brewery, we headed over to The Thirsty Pig, which was the location of a party for us hosted by The Patriot Craft Alliance. Here we got a chance to taste an assortment of beers distributed by Patriot Craft Alliance and meet with their crew prior to departing for the night.

Friday Lunch with Portsmouth Brewery & Smuttynose Brewing Co.

On Friday morning we all boarded a bus, which would be our transport to Boston. On the way, we got to stop in the charming town of Portsmouth, New Hampshire and have lunch at Portsmouth Brewery! There was such a great list of Portsmouth Brewery & Smuttynose on tap. Still wondering if there was a blogger that tasted through them all??

And that was it! We then boarded the bus and headed to Boston to meet the rest of the BBC13 group and kick things off with the trade show and evening at Boston Beer Company. You can read that summary in Part II.

PS. Yes, yes I have read all 6000+ tweets from last week. Great reading!!

Beer & Cheese! Beer & Cheese! Let the March to Cabot Creamery begin!

by

Participants of our BBC13 pre-confernece excursion are in for a cheesy, wonderful start to their Beer Bloggers Conference experience; they’re headed to the Cabot Farmer’s Annex in Portland Maine for a beer and cheese pairing reception.

CabotCabot Creamery, a certified B Corp, is a cooperative of 1200 dairy farmers throughout New York and New England employing over 1000 individuals. Beer bloggers will convene at the Portland Farmer’s Annex, a cheese tasting and retail shop, where they will get to sample an assortment of Cabot cheeses paired with Geary’s beer – a local Portland craft brewer.

Cabot produces a wide variety of award winning cheddar cheeses, in addition to having a line of greek yogurt and various other dairy-based products. Just some of the cheese beer bloggers may get to try are:

  • 3 Year Old Cheddar
  • Farmhouse Reserve White Cheddar
  • Garlic & Herb Cheddar
  • Smoky Bacon Cheddar

Cabot-Bacon_Stout-138_fullA lot of focus is paid to the pairing of wine with cheese, but everyone knows that beer and cheese is better together! Beer and cheese also shares a rich history together. Ever hear of a “Ploughman’s Lunch”? The term is English, and because both beer and cheese are traditionally farmhouse made products, it refers to farmers who’s regularly imbibed on beer, cheese, and cold meats after a long hard day in their fields.

cabot-cheese-and-beer-pairings_002-099_fullWhen it comes to pairing beer with cheese, the general rule of thumb is “just try it!”, but if you like a little structure in your life, then there are a few resources for you. Cabot’s website has a dedicated page to help you pair their cheese with beer, and CraftBeer.Com also has this handy little beer and cheese pairing guide.

Cabot Creamery Cooperative is a supporter of this year’s Beer Bloggers Conference and host of the Pre-Conference excursion for approximately 50 of this year’s attendees.

BBC13 Pre-Conference Excursion: Portland, Maine!

by

Assuming we keep existing past the end of the Mayan calendar next week, we’ll be exploring Portland, Maine as our pre-conference excursion for the 2013 Beer Bloggers’ Conference!

This is a super exciting excursion that will surely sell out, so make sure you register now for the conference and for this fun activity! Cost for citizen bloggers is just $50 and $100 for other participants. Here’s the itinerary:

Thursday, July 25th

Friday, July 26th

  • Bus together to Boston via Portsmouth, NH
  • Beer Pairing lunch at Portsmouth Brewery in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

What is not included in this excursion is your transportation to Portland and your lodging. We are working to secure a room block and good rate for us at a local Portland hotel, and will let attendees know those details as we get them. To get to Portland, you can either fly in to Portland’s airport (PWM) and then depart from Boston Logan (BOS). Or – there’s Amtrak’s Downeaster service from Boston’s North Station or Concord Coachlines directly from Logan airport. Both options offer free wi-fi. The bus option is noted to be faster and less expensive than Amtrak,  though Amtrak is more scenic.

Whoo hoo! So who’s in?

 

 

Stay Connected!

Contact Us

ZephyrConferences.com
info@ZephyrConferences.com
Our Equality Plan
Climate Change Pledge