I am a Renaissance man, for me the beauty of art and search of the truth by science is all one. Beer is art and beer is science. Where science asks how to get the highest possible IBUs for your IPA, art asks what would it feel like to drink one. Alright ‘How’ and ‘What’ gets answered, but what about ‘Why’? Whatever we do there is ‘why’ behind it whether we know it or not. So when I meet people setting up a brewery I always find the most important question ‘why do they start brewing another beer’? The question is in the heart of their story, which will determinate how a person will connect to them. Why are you creating anything in the first place or why create something instead of the other? There is a will and there is a choice which is integral to your sense who you are. It reveals who you are and so it can easily cause self-doubt. Highlighting the gap between what you know you should be, and what you fear you might be. I think this emotional investment is key in deciding which direction to reach. It’s not about techniques or styles of beer you can do. As a beer drinker, I taste a lot of different kinds of beer, I rarely recall the technical stats of a beer, but I do remember the way they made me feel. Questioning why plays the most significant role in creating the feeling which will set you apart from others.

A few months back, I was having a cold one with a buddy of mine who owns a brewery with his buddies. I asked the question ‘why’ he brews a beer? He wants to brew beer, which inspires others to start a passionate brewery of their own. Great answer. For me it all comes down to self expression. There is no doubt that craft beer is an art form, a form of self expression. Craft is the vehicle for expression of your vision, it is the visible edge of art.

Well, there are stories we feel the need to share, stories of things that draw us in. It’s these stories that move us, emotionally and physically. It’s the stories you relate to which can make one start a brewery or makes you want to start working in one, and the only work really worth doing is the work that focuses on the things you truly care about. We all hold our own ‘why’, it’s the song in our soul looking for an instrument to get out. For some of us the instrument is beer.