More Blogging From Boulder

Friday, November 05, 2010

Day 2 of the 2010 Beer Bloggers Conference in Bouder, CO didn't disappoint!

Morning sessions included technology sessions for the blogging crew (topics included building community on your blog and search engine functionality.

In the afternoon, things got hopping... but luckily we fueled up first with lunch at the nearby Mountain Sun Brewpub. They had a bunch of great beers on tap and we sampled most! I also had a great sandwich and really enjoyed getting to chat with the other bloggers at our table (many of whom randomly had an Ohio connection).

MTSun

Some of our samplers at Mountain Sun Brewpub

The Conference sessions after lunch started with a talk from three women in the craft beer industry on how to tailor you blogs to women readers (Julia from the Brewers Association, Tamare, a blogger and Sebbie from Rogue Brewery). They were immediately taken to task for perpetuating sterotypes. The conversation was lively (but respectful) - a great way to keep us all on the edge of our seats after a beer-fueled lunch in a warm conference room!

Next up, Greg Koch from Stone Brewery talked to the crowd about Why Beer Bloggers are Important to Craft Brewers and the Craft Beer Movement. As usual, Greg was a great speaker and, of course, even provided some Stone beer for the crew to sample.

By far the most interactive part of the afternoon was the Live Beer Blogging session - wow, that was crazy!

Here's how it worked - there were 12 table of bloggers (laptops, smartphones, etc.. at the ready) and 12 brewery reps. Each rep had 5 minutes per table to pour and talk about a beer while the bloggers posted and tweeted away. When the cowbell rang, the brewers ran to the next table.

I was pouring our 2006 World Wide Stout - an 18% abv. I got to talk with everyone about the beer, it's history (we've been making it since 1999) and the brewery. Since the beer is such a natural with dark chocolate, I also brought some along for the bloggers to enjoy with their sips of stout.

The Live Blogging was exciting, fun and - exhausting! Still, we hope to do it again next year!

Dinner on Saturday was at the Boulder Beer Company - the oldest operating craft brewery in the country! They put our a great spread for us and we all enjoyed the tour.

In the brewhouse at the Boulder Beer Co.

In the brewhouse at the Boulder Beer Co.

Conference sessions continue today, but I am heading east back towards the brewery. Busy two weeks ahead as we prepare for the premiere on 11/21 of the Discovery Channel's Brew Masters tv show!

Cheers.