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Brew Berlin Growing Fast

Brew Berlin, the beer segment of the Bar Convent Berlin bar and beverages industry convention, is coming of age and growing at a blinding pace.  This year’s BCB attendees can look forward to an entire area dedicated to BrewBerlin with more than 20 exhibitors and a wide range of talks and tasting sessions.

Established in 2013 with the participation of top experts like James Watt from Scotland’s BrewDog, Denmark’s brewing multi-talent Mikkel Borg Bjergsø and a small number of more well-known beer exhibitors, Bar Convent Berlin’s beer segment has grown into one of the BCB’s major features in record time.

Industry professionals and media partners who have accompanied MIXOLOGY since the beginning will now find an entire area at the BCB dedicated solely to the world of beer. And the beers on offer will range from more familiar choices to hops-heavy versions and experimental varieties.

German craft beer luminaries including Berliner Berg, Braukunstkeller, KuehnKunzRosen, Brlo, Crew Republic, Von Freude, Sander and the newcomers from Hopfmeister will all be presenting their wares. And they will be joined this year for the first time by international brands such as Italy’s Elav Brewery, the South African-German company And Union, Portugal’s Maldita and a well-represented Danish contingent with Hornbeer, Skovlyst and Indslevbryggeri.

Number of exhibitors doubled

BCB reports that the number of beer exhibitors for the 2015 fair is more than double what it was in the previous year. Along with the aforementioned start-ups and microbreweries, the presence of Beck’s and Pilsner Urquell will mark the first time that global giants AB Inbev and SABMiller are represented at Bar Convent. Germany’s medium-sized breweries will also be on hand in force with BraufactuM, Lemke, Hofmark, Schneider-Weisse and Ratsherrn.

Beer fans will find their mouths watering at the huge selection on display from Berlin-based beer distributor Bierlinie and the wide range of brews once again available at the Brew Berlin “Beer Bar”. The Beer Bar will be supervised by the capable hands of expert Erin Bafigo, known to MIXOLOGY readers as the former manager of the celebrated Berlin beer watering holes Hopfenreich and the IPA Bar.

Beer cocktails from Portland

Brew Berlin has also grown up in terms of talks and tasting sessions. At the new Beer Stage the US-based Brewers Association’s European ambassador Sylvia Kopp will give attendees an insight into American craft beer. The beer cocktail demonstration by bartender and author (“Cocktails on Tap”) Jacob Grier from Portland, Oregon is certain to be another highlight. In addition, a wide variety of discussion rounds are set to deal with hot topics in the beer industry, including the role of beer in the gastronomy sector, the difficult distribution situation faced by craft beer and the challenge of export requests for breweries of various sizes.

Readers should also note that MIXOLOGY author Peter Eichhorn will host a Taste Forum on the Boilermaker, the classic two-fisted spirits and beer combination. And anyone wanting to delve even deeper into the many-facetted world of beer should be sure to catch the tasting session hosted by Berlin-based Irishman and beer expert Rory Lawton. Rory will present the best rated beers from the MIXOLOGY TASTE FORUM and explain how they are produced.

One look at the range of products and services that will be on display at Brew Berlin makes it patently clear that Central Europe is no longer bringing up the rear when it comes to beer diversity. Where beer in the gastronomy sector was once a niche topic and even a subject of controversy, it has now moved to the center of the discussion. This is just one more indication that we have plenty to look forward to from this year’s Brew Berlin and the effects it will have on the bar scene in the future.

Find out all you want to know about the BCB events program at the Brew Berlin Blog or on the Bar Convent Berlin homepage.

 

Translated by J. J. Collier

Credits

Foto: The Photo was taken at BCB 2014

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