Tell anyone in the Northwest that you are from Olympia and they usually connect it to the Olympia Brewery and historic brewhouse.  And even though they no longer operate, they have set Thurston County apart as a center for brewing and distilling.

Phenomenal growth in the craft beer, cider, and spirits industries has led to a lot of local buzz. Washington State, a national and global leader in these areas, provides an ideal location to further grow these industries. And just like any industry boom, education is needed to support the new workforce and funnel new jobs into the local economy.

That’s why SPSCC is excited to bring a new program with three areas of focus to our South Sound community: Craft Brewing and Distilling.

What has SPSCC been doing?

Preparing to launch a world-class educational program in Fall 2017

SPSCC has worked with the community and a board of industry advisors to build a program outline for Craft Brewing and Distilling (which also includes cider-making). The program outline was endorsed of the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges in Nov. 2016 and our team is now continuing the collaboration to develop curriculum for the new program, which should wrap up in Spring 2017. Cider Making and Brewing studies are set to launch in Fall 2017 with Distilling to follow one year later in Fall 2018.

Developing state-of-the-art craft beverage facilities

Every new program needs the space to learn and complete labs in. SPSCC, in collaboration with the City of Tumwater, is seeking a public/private partnership to develop the facilities needed for education, business incubators, and industry support. This space is forecasted to created 662 jobs locally with ripple effects across agriculture, supply chain and business sectors.

Offering non-credit classes to the community

In addition to program-building, the college has been building relationships with local craft beverage makers and gauging community interest by offering non-credit classes in brewing and distilling classes for more than a year.  Upcoming classes include:

• Brewing Science for the Home Brewer- Dark Beer
• Whiskey Appreciation Certificate

Learn more about our progress

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