Besides, you’re bound to go on field excursions to local breweries to see the “big boy systems” and learn about the vast hops economy in the adjacent Yakima Valley.
MSU in Denver offers a Bachelor of Science in Brewery Operations or Craft Brewing & Pub Operations.
Both beer programs are part of MSU’s Hotel, Tourism, and Events Department. They combine the art and science of brewing beer with the hospitality expertise and operational skills needed for employment after the degree.
The Brewery Operations curriculum focuses on brewery operations and the science of commercial beer production. In contrast, the Craft Brewing & Pub Operations program includes Food Fundamentals, Preparation, and Beer Pairing courses.
A minor/certificate program is also available at MSU Denver.
Boy from Colorado
The Colorado Boy Immersion Course (Ridgway, Colorado) is unlike most brewing schools. It is essentially a one-on-one mentorship program where the student (or student and partner) spends three days at the brewery doing what they would ordinarily do in their brewery.
This program is about more than just making beer. The program’s purpose is to assist students in opening their brewery efficiently and cost-effectively.
The mentors (and program grads) will assist you with designing your brewery, sourcing equipment, navigating licensing, establishing business processes, hiring personnel, and even developing the recipes you’ll use to get started.
This is a priceless resource!
According to Tom Hennessey, the program’s director, 60% of course participants have gone on to open their bar. It is an exclusive fraternity of breweries that continues to support its success.
University of California, San Diego
There are two beer schools to choose from at San Diego State. One is a semester-long program, and the other is a 9-day “Bootcamp” session for people living outside San Diego.
Craft Beer Business Program at San Diego State University
The program offers hands-on training for students interested in entering or already working in the brewing sector on the business side rather than the brewing side.
This entails developing passionately knowledgeable hospitality management and employees to provide consumers with a first-class experience.
The program also helps the Cicerone® program flourish by preparing students to pass first- and second-level certification exams. All courses were created with the help of the instructors and advisory board members, who are a who’s who of the local craft-beer sector.
The networking possibilities provided by the curriculum put graduates on a fast track to entering the sector. On-site classes are given at local breweries and SDSU.
San Diego State University’s “Craft Beer Camp” Program
Here’s your chance to learn from industry professionals in one of the world’s most beautiful cities and the United States’ Craft Beer Capital, San Diego, California. Craft Beer Education Camp, now in its second year, provides craft beer enthusiasts from across the world with the opportunity to participate in a nine-day version of SDSU’s famous Business of Craft Beer curriculum.
Last year’s initial camp gathered kids from all around the country and Mexico, Brazil, Columbia, Venezuela, and Australia.
To provide the most relevant training, all courses were crafted with input from the Professional Certificate program’s instructors and advisory board members — a who’s who of local craft-beer industry giants. So take your craft beer career to the next level with hands-on learning and tasting.
Continuing Education & Certifications
Whether you’ve completed a few courses or a full Bachelor’s degree, adding a certification to your CV is always a good idea. To get started, look over this list of certifications.
Check out the CraftBeer.com section below if you’re more interested in informal learning.
Beer Judge Training Program
“The goal of the Beer Judge Certification Program is to encourage beer literacy and appreciation of real beer, as well as to recognize beer tasting and evaluation talents,” according to their mission statement. Through an examination and monitoring process, we certify and rank beer judges.”
If the idea of judging beer competitions appeals to you, you should think about taking the BJCP test.
Read my narrative about passing the BJCP exam and becoming an active beer judge for additional information on this program. It was a fantastic decision, and it is without a doubt the best thing I’ve done to better my homebrew.
Program for Cicerones
We’ve all been at a pub and been given beer in a glass that looked like it came straight from a swamp.
Or a waiter who tries to impress us with his beer knowledge while insisting Fat Tire is Belgian.
The Cicerone Program is the hottest thing in beer education, and it was designed to teach beer-serving enterprises.
Ray Daniels, a beer industry veteran, founded the curriculum in 2007. It is divided into three levels:
- Beer Server Certification
- Cicerone Certification
- Cicerone, Master
To give you a sense of how difficult it is to become a Master Cicerone, consider that there are over 4,000 certified beer servers but only three master cicerone. In addition, only one out of seven people passed the master cicerone exam the first time it was given.
Ray Daniels should be awarded the Nobel Prize for inventing the Cicerone program. Most eateries have a shocking lack of beer expertise. It isn’t easy to take a restaurant seriously when the wine list is ten pages long, but the beer list is the size of a cocktail napkin.
Ray may be able to work on the domestic beer issue once he has trained the bartenders of America.
Americas Master Brewers Association
The Master Brewer’s Association of the Americas was founded in 1887 by three Chicago-area master brewers to improve, support, and encourage scientific research in malt beverage brewing and make that information available to the public through direct contact.
MBAA offers a variety of courses, ranging from intensive 2-day immersion courses to highly focused 2-day courses that comprise over 30 presentations from 20 different industry experts.
These immersion courses aim to broaden students’ knowledge and network by facilitating engagements and research opportunities with industry specialists.
