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Great Divide Brewing Company

Winter 2010 Meeting
February 3, 2010
Great Divide Brewing Company
Denver, Colorado

Slideshow

This is a call for reservations for the February 3rd MBAA District Rocky Mountain meeting. When you reply, please indicate whether or not you plan to take advantage of the shuttle bus. IMPORTANT: If reserving a seat on the bus, please be reasonably certain that you will be attending the event. This will help keep costs down and accommodate all members wishing to ride. Also note the change of start time to 5 PM - up from 5:30. I am a little late getting this notice out, so please respond today! As always, please bring samples of your favorite brews to share. See you at the meeting!

Author/Presenter:
Brian Dunn, El Presidente
Great Divide Brewing Company
2201 Arapahoe Street
Denver, Colorado 80205

Title:
Great Divide Brewing Co.

Abstract:
Great Divide Brewing opened in May 1994 with a 17 barrel brewhouse, two 17 barrel open fermenters, two conditioning tanks, one bright beer tank, a small DE filter and a hand bottler. Brian Dunn will give some background on the startup of the brewery and will talk about the growth and evolution of the brewery in the 15 years since opening. Brian will lead a tour of the brewery and guests will see first hand the challenges of running a production brewery in an old building located in an urban neighborhood, including a packaging line located on two floors.

C.V. - Brief:
Brian holds a M.A. in Environmental Policy and Management from the University of Denver and a B.S. in Agriculture from Colorado State University. Previously, Brian worked for an agricultural development company operating overseas projects. His work included extended stays in Africa and Europe. Brian wrote business plans, secured financing, and operated projects ranging in scope from $20 to $40 million. In addition, Brian ran a European sales and marketing office for one of the company’s South American export projects. In early 1993, Brian founded Great Divide Brewing Company. He wrote the business plan, raised money, rezoned the property, designed the brewing facility and installed the equipment. Brian brewed the first beer in May 1994 and at the time, was the brewery’s sole employee. He brewed, filtered and packaged beer for the first few years, but his job has gradually changed and now spends most of his time on the business operations of the brewery.

Minutes from the Meeting

The winter meeting for District Rocky Mountain, hosted by The Great Divide Brewing Company, was held at The Lobby American Grille Restaurant on February 3 in downtown Denver. As usual for the Rocky Mountain District, we had a diverse, engaged and energetic group at the gathering. The turn-out was larger than anticipated with an enthusiastic crowd of over 106 attendees! It was a boisterous mélange of professional and associate members and their guests. The evening began with a lively beer tasting and social networking hour at 5:00 pm.

Our technical speaker for the night was none other than ‘El Presidente’ of The Great Divide Brewing Company - Brian Dunn. Brian treated us to a brief history of the brewery, sharing with us some of the challenges, growing pains and evolution experienced during the 15 years since its inception. Brian holds a M.A. in Environmental Policy and Management from the University of Denver and a B.S. in Agriculture from Colorado State University. He has had a unique background working for an agricultural development company which operated overseas projects in both Africa and Europe. He wrote business plans, secured financing, and operated projects ranging in scope from $20 to $40 million. He also ran a European sales and marketing office for one of the company’s South American export projects. Undoubtedly this was all invaluable experience in tackling the challenge of starting a new business. In early 1993, Brian founded Great Divide Brewing Company. He wrote the business plan, raised money, re-zoned the property, designed the brewing facility and installed the equipment. The first beer was brewed and the doors opened in May 1994 with a 17 barrel brewhouse, two 17 barrel open fermenters, two conditioning tanks, one bright beer tank, a small DE filter and a hand bottler. At the time, he was the brewery’s sole employee. He brewed, filtered and packaged beer for the first few years. Brian now spends most of his time on the business operations of the brewery.

Following the presentation, Brian led a tour of the brewery (very conveniently located across the street from The Lobby Restaurant). Guests were able to see first-hand the challenges of running a production brewery in an old building located in an urban neighborhood, including a packaging line located on two floors. After Brian’s presentation, he was awarded a memento of our gratitude for his time and efforts: A stainless steel mug etched with the MBAA logo along with his name and the date engraved – a striking complement to any brewer’s stein collection. Hint: Host a meeting of MBAA-RMD and or give a talk, get an awesome MBAA-RMD stainless steel commemorative mug!

Following the tours, attendees settled down with some savory food and tasty beers for the business portion of the evening. Vice President Gary Dick, New Belgium Brewing Co, opened the business session by welcoming the attendees and again thanking The Great Divide and The Lobby Restaurant for their hospitality. Membership Chair Dana Johnson, Birko Corporation, reported that current membership is approaching 200! More new members on the way, we gave away 9 free meals at this meeting alone. (Reminder: The E-Board is giving away two free meals to each new attendee who decides to join MBAA-RMD). If you haven’t renewed or joined, and you do so starting in 2010, a payment of a mere $233.00 will entitle you to membership in the MBAA for 3 full years! Dana again encouraged all new attendees to become MBAA members. Secretary Jon Kemp, AB/InBev, thanked Michelle Peterson, Miller/Coors, and Linsey Cornish, CSU student, for helping to recruit new members. Publicity Chair and Treasurer, Jim Canary, AB/InBev (ret), gave a succinct update on the financial status of MBAA-RMD. He stated that our total reserves were approximately $13,000.00. Next up was Finn Knudsen, EBCI, who awarded Ali Hamm scholarship money for her attendance at the 2009 MBAA Brewing and Malting Science course held in Madison, WI November 1-12th. (As a Masters candidate in Horticulture at Colorado State University, Ali was instrumental in studying the feasibility of cultivating hops in the state of Colorado). She entered a written application for scholarship funds to assist with paying for the MBAA course. The maximum dollar amount for a scholarship ($300.00) was approved. Congratulations Ali! Bulletin: We want more members to apply for scholarships! That is one of the reasons we raise money! Go learn about brewing and packaging beer, and get PAID to do it! But you have to ‘apply for the scholarship’!

Running a bit late we flew through the much anticipated door prize session. We had a mountain of prizes at that! There were the usual mugs, key chains and t-shirts but also some more unusual gifts. Just another of the many reasons to join the club and come to the meetings!. Thanks to all the companies who donated door prizes, including The Lobby Restaurant for a generous offering of four $25.00 restaurant gift certificates and to Micromotion, which donated a compact tool kit!

Final note of business: The next function sponsored by District Rocky Mountain is the Spring Meeting to be held April 22 at the AB / InBev Brewery in Fort Collins. Stay tuned to the district website for information on more upcoming events, such as the Annual Technical Day to be held June 25 in Fort Collins at the Aztlan Northside Community Center! The rest of the calendar for 2010 can also be found on the website.

James (Jim) Canary
Publicity Chairman & Treasurer
Master Brewers Association of the Americas, District Rocky Mountain
February 10, 2010