Brewers with a true passion for their beer

I haven't met any of the brewers, but I would imagine that most of the good ones qualify. I live near Stone Brewing, so I would imagine that they do.

 

I haven't witnessed it firsthand, but from everything I've seen, heard, and read our local Fremont Brewing's Matt Lincecum (and probably head brewer Matt Lincoln too) appear to have their priorities straight—and a healthy respect for both brewing tradition and their customers. Basically all of their beers reflect this passion.

How important is this kind of passion to the future of the U.S. craft beer movement? It's absolutely essential. Without it, everything gets boring and mediocre.

 

He's not a brewer though, is he?

 

Shaun Hill. almost to a fault if the whole ebay thing pissed you off.

but his passion is undeniable. I would bet my life on him never putting out an "off" batch nevermind an infected beer, something uncarbonated, or something not up to his standards.

He is eccentric and a perfectionist, but that's why we love his beer so damn much.

 

not really. kinda like Jim Koch. they are more on the corporate side of things now.

 

That's who I came in here to nominate. He's harder on himself than his critics are.

 

Garret Oliver from brooklyn. He is extremely well spoken, willing to share all the knowledge he can, respects the beer, its history, and the local.history. on top of that he is a foodie and wine lover and a pioneer for beer in many ways. he has written many books as well on the subject and hosts many events. one which i regret missing was with him and the brewmaster at southern tier getting together for a very small intimate Q & A session and rare beer tasting. it would of been great speaking to either on about the craft.

 

Every brewer I have ever met was passionate about their beer, including the ones who make what is derided as "macro swill" on this site.

 

I would hope that anyone who would dedicate the time and effort into opening a brewery -to say nothing about actually learning to brew at that kind of level - would be passionate about brewing and the product they bring to market. I know that if I was at a 'fest or tasting and the Brewer was like, "Meh, take it or leave it, I really don't care," I for one would be kinda turned off from trying it.

 

If you are a brewer and do not have passion for beer then you are either A)a soon to be ex brewer B)a glutton for punishment or C)the guy who works at the brewery who does just enough to get by that everyone hates.

 

Right, so they have real passion as well.

The term's so overused that it's become nothing more than a hyperbolic way of saying Yes, I enjoy my work.

 

That said, Fritz Maytag can soul kiss for hours.

 

Jeeze -- no one else has put up Dan Carey from New Glarus? Let alone Larry Bell, though sometimes I think Larry is more passionate about the marketing than the actual brewing.

I'll also throw in Kirby Nelson of Capital in Madison -- I've seen him in action and also had the good fortune to sit down with him and talk beer. Man likes his job.

 

Sam Calagione at Dogfish Head

Once you get big and you are running the company, you stop actively brewing, but I don't think you stop being a brewer if that makes any sense. Sam's passion shows.

 

There are a ton of brewers who care absolutely none about making a dime off of their beer. They wish only to produce the best beer possible and share it with their friends.

They're called home brewers.

 

Below is something I posted previously:

“Permit me to tell a Shaun Hill story. I have never been to the brewery but I got a chance to meet Shaun Hill at Teresa’s Next Door (Wayne, PA) as part of Philly Beer Week. My wife and I had a chance to talk to Shaun for 10-15 minutes. He is a very pleasant guy and very open in communicating. I am a homebrewer so I asked a number of technical brewing questions which Shaun patiently and cordially answered. I then made an honest statement to Shaun: “I have had a large number of your beers and every one of your beers has been very, very good.” Shaun replied: “That’s because we never let a ‘bad’ batch out of our brewery.” I replied: “You never had to dump a batch, did you? He responded” “Yes, and that is tough to do when you only have $5,000.00 in the bank.” So, apparently Shaun did experience a few ‘hiccups’ during his startup but he had the integrity to not sell what he considered to be subpar beer. Yup, Shaun Hill is an excellent brewer on many levels.”

Cheers!

 

My vote is for exceptionalism, as in you are an exceptional guy:

Definition of exceptional: Being an exception; uncommon.

Cheers!