1,200 Homebrewers Celebrate the Hobby of Homebrewing

July 07, 2009 - Boulder, CO - Over 1,200 homebrewers from across the nation attended the 31st annual American Homebrewers Association (AHA) National Homebrewers Conference in Oakland, CA from June 18-20, 2009. "I am thrilled by the record-setting attendance at this year's National Homebrewers Conference," said Gary Glass, Director of the American Homebrewers Association. "Despite the recent economic woes, the hobby is stronger than ever." There are an estimated 750,000 homebrewers in the U.S., and those who attended the conference were offered 27 educational seminars on beer and brewing presented by professional brewers and other highly experienced homebrewers. Highlights from the conference include keynote speaker Ken Grossman, co-founder and president of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and other presentations from industry favorites including Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head Brewing Company, Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River Brewing Company, Matt Brynildson of Firestone Walker Brewing Company and Dr. Michael Lewis of U.C. Davis. The American Homebrewers Association is a division of the Brewers Association. In 1979, 200 people attended the first AHA National Homebrewers Conference in Boulder, CO. Today, the conference is recognized as the world's largest-attended conference devoted to homebrewers and homebrewing.

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