Small and independent brewers were the toast of the town in Washington, D.C., on July 16, when 85 brewery representatives, guild leaders, and supplier partners came to the city to advocate for small and independent breweries at the Brewers Association’s (BA) annual Hill Climb.

Participants covered a wide array of interests impacting our industry and many of our supply chain partners. Topics of the day included the industry’s support for the U.S.P.S. Shipping Equity Act, the Credit Card Competition Act, tariff concerns, as well as appropriations requests for the Alcohol Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and hops and barley research.

The day before, attendees heard a state of the industry update from the BA’s president and CEO Bart Watson; the Beer Institute’s chief economist Andrew Heritage; and the National Beer and Beverage Distributor’s analytics and chief economist Lester Jones. They were also provided with an in depth federal, state, and regulatory update from BA vice president of government affairs Marc Sorini.

At the 186 meetings, members of Congress and their staff learned firsthand about the issues impacting breweries in their state and congressional districts, and connected with industry leaders. Later that evening, senators, representatives, and their staff shared beers from across the U.S. with Hill Climb attendees at a private reception on Capitol Hill.

Events like the BA Hill Climb are fantastic opportunities for guilds and brewery owners to build and maintain relationships with their elected officials. As American manufacturing businesses, breweries have a broad impact on issues ranging from production to hospitality. The Hill Climb gives a voice to all small and independent breweries.

Stay tuned for an exciting new update to the 2026 Hill Climb.