The Brew SiteBeer Bloggers Conference 2012 location: Indianapolis
Back when I posed the question, “Where should the Beer Bloggers Conference be held in 2012?“, the city of Indianapolis, Indiana didn’t even make the list of suggestions I compiled (well, okay, it did in the comments). However, that is in fact where the BBC will be held in 2012, according to the official announcement today.
We are very pleased to announce the 2012 North American Beer Bloggers Conference will be July 13-15 in Indianapolis, Indiana. To make it even better, we are arranging a pre-conference excursion in nearby Chicago. Registration is open now.
Indianapolis now has over 40 breweries in the state and this is growing quickly within another dozen or so expected to open within the next year. Sun King Brewing in Indianapolis was the recipient of eight medals at the 2011 Great American Beer Festival. Not only did Sun King lead the field in total medal count, its four Gold Medals were the most won by any single brewery.We have the support of the Brewers Guild of Indiana, which is hosting one of our conference dinners, and World Class Beer, a two-time conference sponsor that has arranged for dinner and a tour in its million-case-strong Monarch Beverage warehouse.
Surprising, but very intriguing. It will definitely be an easier destination for bloggers from the East Coast to reach, and it’s probably not terribly difficult for West Coasters, either.
What does everyone else think? Good, bad, indifferent?
Jon, I agree Indianapolis would not be the obvious choice when compiling a list of potential locations for a beer bloggers conference. What we organizers have found, however, is that more important than an appealing beer city is the reception of the local beer community. Indianapolis put together an excellent bid with support from a major local wholesaler (Monarch), the Brewers Guild of Indiana, and even the city of Indianapolis. It makes a big difference to us as organizers and we think it will make a big difference to attendees when the local community is excited about hosting beer bloggers. Just some background info for you!
Being from Indianapolis, I can say that the beer culture in this city is exploding. Even the non-“beer geek” citizen is starting to hear the rumors and mumbling about fresh local beer. It is starting to become a challenge to find a restaurant that does not have at least one tap serving local beer. Local beer in a restuarant was unheard of around here 2-3 years ago.
It also doesn’t hurt that every single brewery/brewpub in the Indianapolis area has quality, flavorful beer (barring one of the chains but even theirs is tolerable.).
As you begin studying up on the beer in Indianapolis and Indiana in general, I can humbly offer my new site, http://www.indianainebriant.com as a starting point. It has links to all Indiana brewers as well as updated news on the Indiana beer scene. A prime link for Indianapolis beer geeks can be found at http://www.hoosierbeergeek.com/
I can’t wait until this conference rolls through!