Gary Glass

Background

About Gary Glass

I am a brewing industry veteran, currently leading brewing operations as Head Brewer at Left Hand Brewing Company.Prior to joining the Left Hand Brewing team, I served as director of the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) for the Brewers Association for 14 years. I am well known, well connected, and well liked among both professional and amateur brewers around the world. As director of the AHA, I was the leading spokesperson for homebrewing in the world.I am a confident public speaker, having announced awards at the Great American Beer Festival to an audience of and emceed Homebrew Con with over attendees. My most challenging public speaking appearance came at age 17 as a volunteer in rural Paraguay where I presented in very shaky Spanish to a church congregation on the work we intended to do.I have been interviewed for news stories on TV and radio and in newspapers and magazines. I have appeared on the most popular brewing podcasts numerous times.I spearheaded our work to ensure fair legislative treatment of homebrewers throughout the United States. I helped draft and promote bills to legalize homebrewing in four states and bills to expand homebrewer rights in several other states. I have testified before legislative committees in multiple states.I drafted annual plans and highly accurate budgets. I published Zymurgy magazine and the HomebrewersAssociation.org website.As a manager, I created a positive working environment where my staff were eager to come to work each day, do their best, and grow within the company.I serve as a beer judge for the most respected beer competitions in the world, including the Great American Beer Festival (since 2008) and World Beer Cup (since 2008). I have judged beer competitions throughout the Western Hemisphere.Major Accomplishments• Grew AHA membership from fewer than to more than Grew annual revenue by 350%• Grew Homebrew Con attendance by more than 500%• Played a key role in legalization of homebrewing in Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Utah• Launched a custom mobile app• Oversaw the redesign of the AHA logoI earned a master’s degree in history, focused on American diplomacy. I have regularly applied my diplomacy skills to build strong relations with other associations, understand the perspective of our members and potential members, as well as to handle difficult situations. Training as a historian made me a proficient writer.As an undergrad, I studied aeronautical engineering for 2.5 years. Prior to earning a degree in history.