Denver | As the American craft beer landscape continues to evolve and change, so too must the festivals and events associated with it. Nowhere is this more evident than at the latest iteration of the Great American Beer Festival (GABF), the largest public tasting event in America. Organised by the Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade association for small and independent American craft brewers, the 42nd GABF took place in Denver, Colorado, from 10–12 October 2024, and drew approximately 40,000 people who eagerly descended on the state capital to sample the 2500 beverages from 600+ breweries, cideries, distillers and other beverage producers.

Mexico | With a new attendance record, the 14th Ibero-American VLB Symposium VLB took place from 2 to 4 September 2024 at the Marquis Reforma Hotel in Mexico City, Mexico. 230 participants from 22 nations participated in the most renowned brewing technology forum in Latin America.

World Brewing Congress in Minneapolis

Successful return | After moving online in 2020 due to COVID 19 restrictions, nearly 800 brewing industry professionals gathered in Minneapolis 17–20 August 2024 for the World Brewing Congress. The congress, a joint meeting of the ASBC and MBAA which takes place every four years, drew participants from 22 countries and included over 100 scientific posters and a program packed with technical sessions and panel discussions on various innovation and sustainability topics.

Bangkok | More than 280 brewing experts from Southeast Asia, Europe and America attended the 8th Brewing Conference Bangkok, which took place from 9 to 11 June 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand. The Bangkok Brewing Conference is a joint project of the Thailand Beer Industry Guild (TBIG) and the VLB Berlin. First held in this constellation in 2009, the event has developed into the industry meeting place for the brewing industry in Southeast Asia.

High stakes games of chance at the CBC 2024

Grain, gambling and growth | The Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America took place April 21–24, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A bright and noisy spot in the dun-colored Mojave Desert, the municipality embodies all the stereotypes of the United States as a nation of extremes and thus provided an exhilarating backdrop to the conference and trade show for brewers from the US and around the world. The venue also hosted the World Beer Cup where brewers of every stripe competed for coveted medals in an array of categories.

Lille | From May 26 to 30, 2024, over 700 delegates made their way to Lille in the north of France to discuss the latest developments not only in the European brewing industry but primarily in brewing science worldwide at the 39^th EBC Congress and Brewers Forum 2024. We will report separately on the latter in the next issue. In this article, we will take a look at the talks given at the EBC (European Brewery Convention) Congress that in around 50 presentations and just under 80 posters focused on the key issues of raw materials, sustainability and climate change, new products and the optimization of technology and sensory science.

Italy | The Beer Craft Bozen 2024 took place in Bolzano, Italy, from 24–25 May. This beer festival has now become firmly established and the venue, Maretsch Castle, offers an extraordinary backdrop for the 48 exhibitors from South Tyrol, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Poland and even Finland, and the 4850 visitors from 17 different countries.

Lille | The 39th EBC Congress which took place in Lille, France, 26–30 May 2024, provided the perfect stage for the 10th presentation of the Ludwig Narziß Award for Brewing Science. The winning entry for the most practically relevant BrewingScience publication of 2023, which was selected by an international jury of experts and the editorial board of the scientific magazine BrewingScience, once again focused on hops, specifically on the effects of hop diseases on hops and beer quality.

Berlin | The VLB Symposium on Acidic Fermented Non-Alcoholic Beverages (SAFB) only takes place every two years. This year, it was time for the 4^th edition, from 7–8 May 2024, at the VLB in Berlin. Organiser Dr Martin Senz was once again able to put together a varied programme, with talks on kombucha, kefir and other “funky” drinks.

Seoul | The 6th Korea International Beer Expo (Kibex 2024) was held from 11–13 April 2024 at COEX Hall C in Samseong-dong, Seoul. Kibex is the only specialized beer industry exhibition in Korea where businesses across the entire value chain – from brewing materials and equipment to breweries, importers, wholesalers, franchises, services, education, and media companies – come together.