Guild Members: An exclusive online interactive training session with Charles Faram

Tuesday 21st April 2026

7-8pm

Free for members: RSVP via marketing@beerguild.co.uk. Attendance is capped at 20 places - RSVP (including a postal address for the hop samples) by 10th April.

This exclusive training event for Guild Members will be a "toe dip" into one session of the Charles Faram Hop Academy's Hop Experience for brewers.

To make the event a sensory and interactive experience, attendees will be sent samples of hops in advance to use during the training.

The pace of development of new varieties of hops and the changing characteristics that these may offer brewers in the future. The brewing landscape is evolving rapidly, and at the heart of this transformation lies the development of new hop varieties. This training event shows a quick and interative overview of the accelerated pace at which the Charles Faram Hop Development Programme are introducing innovative hops, driven by advances in agricultural science, climate proofing, and shifting consumer tastes.

Attendees will see how modern breeding techniques are producing hops with novel flavour and aroma profiles. The session will also examine how these emerging varieties respond to environmental pressures such as climate change, disease resistance, and sustainability demands.

Beyond the science, the discussion will focus on what these changes mean for brewers. How might future hop characteristics reshape beer styles? What opportunities do they create for differentiation and creativity? And how can brewers stay ahead in a landscape where hops are evolving faster than ever?

Session led by:

Will Rogers -

Group Technical Director, Charles Faram

Born in Herefordshire to Hop Farming parents. His family stopped growing hops when he was five years old but as the old saying goes “once you have been scratched by the hop it is always in your blood!”

Will studied Computer Systems Engineering at University and embarked on a career in the field soon afterwards, working for a local Computer Services company and working his way up from technician to Engineering Manager.

After 10 years, hops came back to bite him after a discussion with Paul Corbett, in a pub, over a few pints about the hop industry and opportunities within it. Keen to get involved with the hop industry once more, Will joined Charles Faram in September 2008. In 2009 he became Sales Manager and in April 2015 became a Director of the Company.

Will changed his role to Group Technical Director to have complete focus on the breeding programme for Charles Faram, and looking for new hop varieties to expand the range of flavours available from global hop farms.

Free for members: RSVP via marketing@beerguild.co.uk. Attendance is capped at 20 places - RSVP (including a postal address for the hop samples) by 10th April.