Speakers

John, M.Sc. Dipl. Brew., is the EBC Executive Officer at The Brewers of Europe in Brussels. He is responsible for the activities and day-to day management of the European Brewery Convention, best known for EBC events such as the biennial EBC congresses and symposia. He leads the two EBC working parties, the Analysis Group as well as the Brewing Science Group. John completed a Master’s degree in Marine Science at the University of Cape Town, followed by qualifying for a Dipl. Brew. (IBD) with distinction. His previous positions included being a member of the R&D team at SA Breweries in Johannesburg, ferment and maturation cellars manager, a pilot brewer and beverage water consultant. Before moving to Belgium to head up EBC, he was a project manager at CampdenBRI, a brewing laboratory and technical training facility in Nutfield / Surrey (UK). His brewing interests lie firmly within the scope of technological improvements to product quality, especially as applied to bottom-fermented beers.

Beer has been brewed for thousands of years with a step-by-step evolution in the science and technology leading to what we recognise as beer today. The European Brewery Convention (EBC) has played its part in developing methods for modern quality control procedures in brewing, malting and hop laboratories throughout the world. All technical aspects of beer brewing knowledge and scientific research in brewing science have been corner stones of the activities of the EBC.