The Michael A. Leven School of Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality offers a class on the classic American beverage — beer. Additionally, the class holds panels where various brew masters from different breweries come and talk about all facets of the business and taste samples with students.

From March 20-22, students taking CHS 4640, Beer Culture, held a panel discussion in which a variety of local craft breweries were invited to talk about the business, answer questions and, of course, drink beer.

Craft breweries in attendance included Arches Brewing, Burnt Hickory Brewery, Dry County Brewing Company, Pontoon Brewing, Reformation Brewery, Terrapin Brew Labs, Lagunitas Brewing Company, Treehorn Cider, Second Self Beer Company, and Service Brewing Co.

The dynamic of the class, from the students to the brewers to the instructor, Jonathan Brown, is very laid back, and the brewers’ joking interactions make for a lighthearted atmosphere.

Each session of the three-day panel featured five local craft brewers. Brown said he led the brewers in and gave the students “unprecedented access to pick their brains.”

Every brewer introduced themselves and their product, including its history and evolution, for about 10 to 15 minutes, and students drove “the rest of the way in the discussion,” Brown said.

“They get out of it what they put in,” Brown said. “It is obvious these students do their homework too.”

While some brewers answered questions, students and other brewers were able to participate in beer samples. The questions, sometimes coming from other brewers, ranged from thoughts about partnerships to relocation, expansions, obstacles and the processes of producing beer.

Although a class on drinking beer can be very exciting, Brown wants everyone to know that there’s more to the class than just drinking beer.

“Students develop knowledge of the evolution of brewing and brewers’ culture and practices, an understanding of various beer and ale styles, the effects of local culture and society, and the relationship of various technologies on the brewing process,” according to the CHS course description.

The class generally walks through styles of beer, marketing, operations and anything else to do with beer. The tasting “illustrates the sensory properties (flavor, color, foam, and haze), microbiological processes and chemical components that determine beer quality,”the description continues.

“It’s not just how to drink beer, but very much the cultural and business side of it,” Brown said.

CHS 4640 is an upper-level elective available to all students of legal drinking age.