Schedule
Wednesday, september 3
Pre-conference activity, 10:45 AM - 6:00 Pm
flathead valley hops farm tour
Join us for a two hour pre-conference tour of Flathead Valley Hops farm in Kalispell! Flathead Valley Hops is Montana's hop farm, and thanks to its unique location, Montana's cooler growing climate, and rich, ferticle soils, is perfectly suited to grow delicate, traditional German-Style hops like Saaz and hallertauer Mittlefrüh. Transit will be with a luxury bus, and lunch will be provided.
Tour schedule:
10:45 AM: Attendees arrive at Holiday Inn (200 S Pattee St., Missoula)
11:00 AM: Tour bus leaves promptly
1:30 PM: Arrive at Flathead Valley Hops
1:30 - 3:30 PM: Farm tour
3:30 PM: Leave Flathead Valley Hops
6:00 PM: Return to Missoula
This field trip is brought to you by Headwaters RC&D through a "Growing Montana Hops Industry" grant powered by the Montana Department of Agriculture and the USDA.
registration and tradeshow set up, 6:00 - 8:00 PM
holiday inn downtown
200 S. Pattee St.
happy hour reception & welcome, 6:00 - 8:00 PM
the dram shop
229 E. Front St.
thursday, september 4
breakfast, 9:00 - 10:00 aM
atrium
registration, 9:00 - 10:30 aM
atrium
plenary session, 10:00 am - 12:00 PM
garden city ballroom
Welcome Address
Ethan Kohoutek - Board President, Montana Brewers Association
State of Montana Beer
Matt Leow - Executive Director, Montana Brewers Association
2026 Peaks to Prairie Collaboration Beer Announcement
Chris Averill - Chair, Montana 250th Commission
2026 Montana Beer Awards Announcement
Loy Maierhauser - Competition Chair, Montana Beer Awards
Keynote: Why You Should Be Using Montana Grown Hops - Period
Max Shafer - Brewmaster, Pure Madness Brewery Group
lunch, 12:00 - 1:00 PM
atrium
Tradeshow, 12:00 - 2:00 PM
atrium
breakout sessions, 2:00 - 3:00 PM
PARLOR B
I Have My Feedback, Now What?
Doug Child - Head Brewer, MAP Brewing Co.; Bob Hall - Board Member, Ronan Cooperative Brewery & Loy Maierhauser - COO, MAP Brewing Co.
PARLOR C
Communities, Water Conservation, and Your Value-Added Resource: Beer!
Amy Seaman - Executive Director, Montana Watershed Coordination Council
PARLOR D
Compliance & Trends in Alcohol Regulation
Lisa Clayborn - Outreach & Education Specialist, Department of Revenue Alcoholic Beverage Control Division & Dacia English - Outreach & Education Coordinator, Department of Revenue Alcoholic Beverage Control Division
breakout sessions, 3:00 - 4:00 PM
PARLOR a
Brewers Roundtable
Mark Bergstrom - Sales Manager, Bozeman Brewing Co. & Loy Maierhauser - COO, MAP Brewing Co.
PARLOR C
Winning in Distribution
Chris Farmand - Founder & Principal, Small Batch Standard
PARLOR D
Events! Big, Small, and Everything In-Between
Sara Killeen - Owner & Editor-in-Chief, Montana Craft Beer Connection
evening social, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Big Sky Brewing co.
5417 Trumpeter Way
Friday, september 5
breakfast, 8:30 - 9:30 aM
atrium
member meeting, 9:00 - 10:30 aM
garden city ballroom
plenary session, 11:00 am - 12:00 PM
garden city ballroom
Look What You Made Me Brew
Ashleigh Carter - Head Brewer & Co-Owner, Bierstadt Lagerhaus
lunch, 12:00 - 1:00 PM
atrium
Tradeshow, 12:00 - 2:00 PM
atrium
breakout sessions, 2:00 - 3:00 PM
PARLOR B
Headache Free HR: Updates, Best Practices, and AI Integration
Brittany Waiss - HR Manager, KettleHouse Brewing Co.
PARLOR D
Make the Most of Your Distributor Partnerships
Tim Chisman - Co-Managing Partner, Blackfoot River Brewing Company; Jason Combs - Director of Beer, Cider, & N/A, George’s Distributing; Sparky Lapkas - Vice President of Beer & NA, Summit Beverage & Al Pils - Brand Engagement Manager, KettleHouse Brewing Co.
breakout sessions, 3:00 - 4:00 PM
PARLOR C
Timeless Taproom Tactics
Chris Farmand - Founder & Principal, Small Batch Standard
breakout sessions, 3:00 - 5:00 PM
PARLOR D
Hot Steep Malt Sensory Method
Cat Beard - Intern, MSU Barley, Malt & Brewing Quality Lab; Hannah Uhlmann - Lab Director, MSU Barley, Malt & Brewing Quality Lab
evening social, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
cranky sam public house
233 W. Front St.
saturday, september 6
Join us at the Fall Rendezvous brewfest, 3:00 - 8:00 pm at Caras Park in Downtown Missoula!