Export Development Program Showcases American Craft Beer in Australia

Written By Steve Parr , Director of International Relations

Director of International Relations

Steve is the international relations director at the Brewers Association. In his role, Steve manages the Export Development Program (EDP) which educates international trade and media about the quality and diversity of products offered by American craft brewers and helps member breweries grow their business in international markets. Prior to his role as EDP manager, Steve spent six and a half years as the assistant director of the American Homebrewers Association helping small & independent brewers and homebrew retailers expand their reach among homebrewers. He lives in Boulder, Colo., where he is a homebrewer, Certified BJCP beer judge, and Advanced Cicerone®.

August 27, 2018

For over ten years, the Brewers Association (BA) has assisted American craft breweries in participating in the Australia International Beer Awards (AIBA). The awards have proven an effective tool in promoting U.S. craft beer in Australia and beyond. In order to support the BA’s presence at the competition, Adam Dulye, the BA’s Executive Chef, traveled to Melbourne in May to represent the BA at Melbourne Good Beer Week, a nine-day festival that hosts the AIBA judging process. This marked the first time in five years that a BA representative has attended the event in person.

The BA’s participation in Melbourne Good Beer Week included hosting two dinners—one being a BA-specific dinner which focused on American craft beer and the other being the official AIBA awards ceremony dinner. Adam worked to create a beer and food pairing component to each meal, with the aim of promoting the BA as the voice of craft beer in a global sense. Further to this point, Adam hosted a seminar during the week that illustrated the work done by the BA, and the quality of U.S. craft beer. Outside of the show, the BA met with a number of in-market importers and distributors, and made several site visits to on- and off-premise points of sale for craft beer.

As in years past, the American craft breweries who took part in AIBA performed very strongly in the competition. BA Export Development Program (EDP) members won 143 awards (22 golds, 48 silvers, and 73 bronzes) and claimed seven best-in-class trophies at AIBA. The winners are listed below: