Here is my take on NHC 2014.
First, I am from the Grand Rapids area and went to school there (GVSU) so I loved being back. Arrived on Wed. and got a chance to hit the old stomping grounds of Founders. Went to Perrin, GRBC, Hopcat and Brewery Vivant. Vivant...wow! Awesome brewery and fantastic beers. Grand Rapids has certainly come up in regards to craft beer and it was great to see GR doing awesome things.
The conference was great. The expo was really fun and got to see a lot of cool stuff. The sessions were hit or miss. I was actually expecting a little more out of the sessions, but about half of them I went to were either very introductory or just the presenter going through the motions not really covering much. I actually left two early because of the lack of info and polish. Some of the better ones I attended were very informative and dug deep into the topic. Overall....really good info to be had and glad they are posted online.
Club night was awesome! I had some amazing beers and focused on sours that evening. Really blown away.
Didn't go to the banquet even though a buddy and me had a co-brew in the finals. really just because I didn't want to pay for the banquet and not be able to eat anything (I'm vegan).
Overall, really great time meeting people, learning lots and being back home.
Oh and the forum meet up was awesome! Great meeting Denny, Drew, Ron, Amanda and others.
Two thumbs up for GR and I am looking forward to San Diego. Cheers!