Event
Feast of Ninkasi
Friday Night Dinner
“He who does not know beer, does not know what is good.”-Sumerian Proverb. Ninkasi was the leading goddess of ancient Sumeria, a culture that thrived from the
5th to the 3rd millennium BCE in what is now part of Mesopotamia. Among the Sumerians, she was considered
the mother of all creation. In the world beyond, she was in charge of brewing all
the beer for the great god En-lil and his entourage. On Earth, she was revered as
the goddess of fertility, which put her in charge of the harvest, beer and brewing.
Her emblem was an ear of barley or wheat, and in the spring she caused the grain to
grow.
The Craft Beer Forum of Oklahoma pays homage to the great Ninkasi by naming its inaugural
craft beer dinner in celebration of her. Her love of beer and attention to her craft
provided the drink of the gods to mortals and still does so to this day. We hope to
see you at The Feast of Ninkasi and we thank you for your support of our students’
hospitality education!
Pint-n-Bite Tasting
The student executive team chose a casual, creative name for this fun tasting! Please
join us to interact with a broad community of 30-35 brewers from Oklahoma and beyond.
Chefs will make tasty treats that complement the craft beers. Prepare your palette
as you will travel booth to booth sampling an array of flavors. You won’t want to
miss it!
Schedule2022 itinerary to be announced at a later date.
- Friday 7 p.m.
The Feast of Ninkasi
- Saturday 10 a.m.
Registration until 11 a.m.
- Saturday 11 a.m.Keynote address until noon.
- Saturday 12 p.m.
Lunch until 1:30 p.m.
- Saturday 2 p.m.
Seminars
Beginner
- Tasting Beer – Craft beer doesn’t have to be fussy, but a few pro tips can help enhance the tasting experience. This seminar aims to get craft beer novices ready to taste a wide variety of beers from across the U.S. at our Pint-N-Bite Tasting later in the evening.
Intermediate
- Style Focus: Craft Lager – Craft lager is no longer an oxymoron. Once anathema to the craft beer movement, lagers are now being produced by independent craft breweries across the country. This seminar will take a look at the history, method of production, and myriad styles of lager in the U.S.
- The Art of Food & Beer Pairing: Spicy Food Edition- Stand back, wine. When it comes to pairing beverages with spicy
cuisine, this is a job for beer! Whether you want tame the heat or kick it up a notch,
beer has got you covered
and this seminar will show you exactly how it’s done. (Heartburn medicine not provided.)
Advanced
- Yeast Health and Vitality – A common adage among brewers is that brewers make wort and yeast makes beer. Therefore,
it stands to reason that yeast deserves close scrutiny when making beer to ensure
that it is healthy enough to do the job right. This seminar will explore the current
research on this topic with discussion moderated by Dr. Tyrell Conway, Regents Professor
and Head of the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at
OSU.
- Saturday 4 p.m.
Seminars
Beginner
- Introduction to Hops – Hops are one of the four key ingredients that make a beer. While this isn’t new information for most people, the majority of beer drinkers out there don’t know much about hops beyond this. This seminar will cover the basic flavors and aromas that this all-too important ingredient contributes to beer. If you weren’t a hop head before this seminar, you will be after!
INTERMEDIATE
-
- We Want the Funk: An Ode to Sour Beer – We’re gonna tear the roof off the sucker and explore the world of sour beers! These intentionally tart and acidic beers are finding more and more craft beer fans everywhere. We will take a look at the major sour beer styles of the world and the production methods that make them so unique.
- The First Five Bucks Is the Hardest: The Trials and Tribulations of Opening a Brewery- Brewers get together on a dais to have a frank discussion on what it takes to open the doors of a new brewery. (Spoiler alert: it ain’t easy.) Beers from each brewery to be served, because, frankly, we’re all probably gonna need it.
ADVANCED
-
- Technical Approaches to Trendy Styles – Led by brewers at the vanguard of the craft movement, this seminar will delve into the production methodology behind the hottest styles in craft beer today with examples provided of each.
- Saturday 7 p.m.
Pint-n-Bite Tasting until 9 p.m.
