Boot Camp

Thursday, November 4, 2021 Schedule

Thursday, November 4, 2021 Boot Camp Options

9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Different Boot Camps will run Thursday, November 4, and Saturday, November 6. Attendance is limited to just 35 attendees per session. A great opportunity to get an in-depth learning experience in a small audience setting and learn from experts. You will pick one boot camp per day to attend (with the exception of our Steve Parkes’ Turning Pro & Commercial Brewery Start-Up which is one Boot Camp that begins on Thursday through Saturday).

All-Grain Brewing Essentials – with John Palmer and John Blichmann

Designed for intermediate to beginner homebrewers getting into all-grain brewing, this full-day workshop will cover all you need to know to successfully make great homebrews using all-grain brewing both with traditional and newer techniques. How To Brew author John Palmer and equipment guru John Blichmann will take you hands-on through the full all-grain process from milling, mashing, and sparging before going into the boil. You’ll get to know the equipment, techniques, and ingredients first-hand and learn all-grain brewing by doing in a small-class environment. They’ll also cover newer homebrew all-grain techniques such as Brew-in-a-Bag and No Sparge in addition to traditional mash methods and some advanced tips as well. Register.

Troubleshooting Homebrew Faults & Fixeswith Ashton Lewis

Join Brew Your Own‘s Mr. Wizard and Technical Editor Ashton Lewis as he walks you through the potential minefield of beer flaws and faults homebrewers can face. You’ll learn how to troubleshoot  – and fix! –  your own homebrew with Ashton who has helped thousands of homebrewers over the last 20+ years troubleshoot common and not-so-common beer problems as BYO’s Mr. Wizard. You’ll have a chance to experience many faults first-hand to better recognize them later. Plus as a special bonus, bring in your own troubled homebrews and Ashton will use your beer as a live example walking the class through the thought process as he figures out what might have gone wrong with your homebrew and what you can do to fix the problem moving forward. Register

Advanced Yeast Techniques with Kara White

Join Kara White of White Labs as she discusses how to master different yeast-related techniques including harvesting yeast, figuring cell counts, the dos and don’ts of repitching including steps such as yeast washing, building up a proper yeast starter, storing your yeast samples, and much more. Here’s your chance in a full-day seminar format to learn about getting the most from your yeast. Register.

Day 1 of 3 Craft Brewery Start-Up – with Steve Parkes and Audra Gaiziunas

FULL THREE-DAY (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday combined) BOOT CAMP:  By popular demand, we’re expanding our past two-day Commercial Brewery Start-Up Boot Camp to three full days (unlike our other offerings) to better cover more material in greater depth. 
Opening up a commercial brewery is a far cry from just ramping up the amount of beer you brew. Steve Parkes, who has trained hundreds of pro brewers as lead instructor and owner of the American Brewers Guild, will walk you through the steps, planning decisions, and keys you need to know if you want to open a successful commercial craft brewery. Plus for one full day you will learn brewery financials, keys to a good business plan, and other start-up money skills with craft beer numbers expert Audra Gaiziunas. Learn from their decades of expertise and a wide range of experience to help you better achieve your goals of turning pro. Over three full days, Steve and Audra will guide you in-depth through all the various elements you’ll have to know for the next big step toward starting a craft brewery. Register

Recipe Formulation Essentials  – with Brad Smith

Learn the best ways to jump into creating your own signature recipes and understand the keys to developing a specific grain bill, hop schedule, and ingredient proportions to meet your homebrewing goals. Brad Smith, owner of Beersmith software and a Brew Your Own Contributing Writer, has helped thousands of homebrewers design their own beer recipes and now you’ll learn first-hand from this recipe building expert how to use both artistic and scientific approaches to beer design to end up with the beer you had envisioned in your glass. You’ll explore ingredients, techniques, and even your own brewing system during this practical boot camp that will get you on the right path to craft your own recipes for better beers at home. Please note Brad will also be offering an advanced recipe design workshop on Saturday as well. Register

Advanced Homebrew Hopping Techniques – with Dave Green

Join Brew Your Own’s Dave Green as he explores when and how to add hops to create awesome hop-forward brews. You’ll explore the basics of hop biology (and why it matters to us!); techniques and timing of hop usage including mash hopping, boil hopping, whirl-pool/knockout hop stand additions, and dry-hopping; hop varietal choice strategies including hop pairing/blending; evaluating hops including hands-on hop rubbing and sensory training; and practical usage techniques including hop extracts, boil-hops “management” (bags, filters, free addition), and water adjustments for hoppy beers. By the end of the full day, Dave will make sure you are making informed hops decisions and getting the most out of your hops – and into your glass! Register.

Advanced All-Grain Techniqueswith Gordon Strong

Pull out the mash tun and get ready to learn advanced all-grain techniques hands-on with Brew Your Own Columnist, book author, and President of the beer Judge Certification Program, Gordon Strong. Gordon will walk you through a world beyond straight infusion mashing with keys to mastering step mashing, sour mashing, and decoction mashing. Plus you’ll learn about playing with mash thickness and other ways to control your all-grain wort production. Please note this workshop will also be offered on Saturday as well. Register

Your Boot Camp registration includes a Denver-Area Craft Breweries Reception to wrap up your day of learning at the hotel pouring samples of their beer.  (If you have a guest who you’d like to join you for the reception only, there are a limited amount of guest passes available for the receptions:) Click here to purchase a separate guest registration for a guest (s) of yours. 

*Please also note we will be requiring all attendees to be vaccinated for this event to provide a safe learning environment for everyone. You will be asked at the Boot Camp registration desk whether or not you are two weeks past your final shot.