Samuel Adams

Meet the brew crew

Just like with brewing beer, it takes the right combination of people to brew up a great team.

Creativity, curiosity and a healthy respect for brewing tradition is what bonds this team.

Each has taken vastly different roads to get here, but many of us have been traveling this winding road together for a long time.

No matter where that road takes us or what side of a debate we're, we enjoy the trip, the camaraderie and of course, the beer. We probably know too much about each other and have had many a laugh at each other's expense, but it comes with the territory.

Each of us has our favorites from beer style to food pairing to beer cultures. Some of us are a little more long winded than others in expressing ourselves, but the one thing we all agree on is we brew for the same reason you enjoy...FOR THE LOVE OF BEER.

Cheers!

Jim Koch

First Tapped: I was about six years old when I visited my first brewery with my father who was a brewmaster. In 1984 he gave me his favorite family beer recipe and I brewed a batch in my kitchen. When I decided to start brewing professionally, I named it Samuel Adams Boston Lager after my favorite patriot of the American Revolution.

Favorite Sam Style: In the past 25 years I've probably had 18,000 beers. Most of those were the original, Samuel Adams Boston Lager. It's still my favorite. I love all the beers we make and a lot of beers that other brewers make, but to me there's nothing that I look forward to as much as my next Sam Adams Boston Lager.

Pet Project: We've been collaborating with our friends at the Weihenstephan, which is the oldest brewery in the world and the world's most prestigious brewing university. Their technical knowledge is unparalleled. A couple of years ago they approached us with the idea that their historic and technical know how would "pair nicely" with our passion for innovation. The fruits of this joint labor will appear before the end of 2010.

Favorite Food Pairing: Some people choose a wine or beer to match their entree. I do it the other way around. When I'm in a restaurant, I look at the menu and think, "Now what would go best with my cold Sam Adams?" Very often that leads me to hot foods - like Thai or South American cuisines. Beer is a perfect complement to spicy meals; it helps put out the fire.

Wort(s) and all: I love climbing mountains. Over the Christmas holidays in 1992 I went to the southern Andes to climb Mount Aconcagua. My fellow climbers thought I was nuts when I showed them that I had two bottles of Sam Adams in my sleeping bag hoping my body heat would keep them from freezing. Aconcagua is the second highest mountain in the world, outside of the Himalayas, which are not climbable in December. So, when I reached the summit and opened a Sam Adams, I raised a toast to our accomplishment, I also smiled knowing that at that moment in time a bottle of my Sam Adams Beer was the highest thing on the planet.

Favorite Beer Destination: One of the great things about being a brewer is that wherever you travel you always have something to do. Critical research. While I've loved traveling to the world's great beer capitals nothing beats my annual trip to Bavaria for hops selection. Over the years our brewers and I have forged a strong, almost familial relationship with the hops farmers and dealers, and we all look forward to our delicious and boisterous reunion dinners together. My father used to say, "Good beer makes its own friends," and every year when we are all toasting to another great year, I think about how true those words are.

Ale Tales: I feel like I have the greatest job in the world, and I've been incredibly fortunate to have 25 years of non-stop wonderful memories. It's hard to pick one, but the one instant that stands above all others would have to be the moment in Denver on June 3rd 1985 at about 10:00 p.m. when six week old Samuel Adams Boston Lager was voted "Best Beer in America" at the Great American Beer Festival. Time stood still for me. I knew that I had to go up to collect my award, but my father had come to Denver with me to help, and I wanted to connect with him. I looked to my right, and he was just standing there, looking down, shaking his head in disbelief and smiling.

David Grinnell

First Tapped: I was sitting on a park bench in upper Manhattan in August 1988 reading the Village Voice when to my everlasting astonishment I saw my name in a personal ad: "D. Grinnell, I need a brewer, call Andy" Jim was working with a brewer I knew on the design of the Boston Brewery, and it was time to staff up. They thought I might still be living in New York, and he ran the Voice ad on a lark. A week later, I was in an interview with Jim Koch in the Cheers bar at Logan airport. The rest is history.

Favorite Sam Style: Boston Lager. This beer is most of what we do as a beer company, and it gets most of my focus. I truthfully feel lucky to have the job that puts in me in front of this great beer on a daily basis. It is the center of gravity for all BBC brewers, and an unending reward to seat the details of meeting the needs of this recipe as the seasons change and as new crop hops and barley come in.

Pet Project: Right now, we are working with Brauerei Weinenstephan in Freising, Germany. Weihenstephan is the world's oldest brewery, and together we are developing a completely unique and beautiful new beer. It has been extremely rewarding to bring together a 1,000 year old brewing tradition with our own 25 year craft brewing success story and design a beer the suits this great partnership. The other thing I tend to obsess about is the development of the Hallertau Mittelfreuh crop every year, and working closely with the growers in pursuit of the ideal picking dates for highest aroma quality.

Favorite Food Pairing: Boston Lager and Boston Lager.

Wort(s) and all: Limited imagination about beer and food pairing

Favorite Beer Destination: Easy, anyone of our three breweries. I probably have a soft spot for Friday afternoons at our Boston Brewery because I've spent so much time there over the last 20 years and it never gets old to grab a beer and wander out to the beer garden to review the week with my colleagues. I also have very fond memories of tramping around Europe with Jim and visiting some of the true world classic breweries in Munich, Pilsen, Ĉeské Budêjovice. I remember sharing a toast with Jim deep in the cellars of the Budvar Brewery and both of us feeling such a strong connection to the history and dedication that goes into making fine traditional beers.

Ale Tales: I always remember some of the early trips with Jim, particularly to Germany, in search of all the Hallertau Mittelfreuh we needed to fuel the growth of Boston Lager. We dropped in on many farmers, literally went door-to-door, and sat at many kitchen tables with Hallertau growers and their families, eating lot's of home made sausages and smoked ham. We did this for about a week solid one year when Jim finally blurted out that he was a vegetarian and was there any way to have a salad! That night he and I wandered through the Viktualienmarkt in the old center of Munich looking for a vegetable-friendly restaurant... and we found one. Rough translation "House of Potatoes", with a total of 100 modes of preparation. It was like Christmas morning for Jim, he was even willing to eat around the bacon bits. Never forget it.

David Sipes

First Tapped: I joined Sam Adams in 1999 after running brew pub and microbrewery in Northern California. The 90's were a great time to be in the craft brewing industry... passion, creativity, innovation, authenticity... the same dynamics we see today. After a decade in CA craft industry, I came to Sam Adams to be a part of what has continued to be the driving force of craft brewing, the Boston Beer Company... still motivated by passion, creativity, innovation and authenticity that started the industry.

Favorite Sam Style: Asking a brewer his favorite beer is like asking which child is his favorite. Nevertheless, everyone has one. For me, it is largely experiential. I love to sail, be on the water. Nothing says summer like Sam Adams Summer Ale. Under sail, or on the mooring, Summer Ale is the perfect beer for a breezy summer afternoon. My favorite beer however has to be Sam Adams Noble Pils. I have always appreciated the artistry in a proper pilsner. I think we captured it in Noble Pils, pure expression of Noble Hop character supported by the subtle complexity of the Bohemian Floor Malt.

Pet Project: I am constantly looking for new sources of ingredients and suppliers who are as passionate about the work they do, as we are about beer. This enthusiasm goes all the way to the farm. I've been working closely with our hop growers to determine the ideal harvest timing for best expression of hop aroma and flavor in all our hops. I've also been spending time with our malt suppliers in US and Canada to develop unique specialty malts for collaborative our project with Weihenstephan. It's always satisfying to challenge the status quo.

Favorite Food Pairing: No doubt, there is little that works as well as Octoberfest with simple, authentic German sausage, or maybe a roasted duck, or Gans and all the trimmings prepared by Frau Stanglmair as a light Bavarian lunch.

Wort(s) and all: I guess I'm a bit of a mimic. I get a lot of grief from some of my colleagues for picking up local accents when traveling on ingredients selection trips. When we were in Scotland a couple years back I unknowingly picked up a slight, but very bad, Scottish accent. Same thing when in Prague last year... Jennifer laughed at my newly adopted broken English. Hey, when in Rome, right?!

Favorite Beer Destination: Like a favorite beer, a favorite beer destination is largely experiential. A 3 day, nine brewery, Belgian itinerary provides a certain appreciation for the beers, and the beer culture, that embraces the varied styles of Belgium. Denmark, though dominated by a few majors, has a vibrant and passionate craft brewing culture reminiscent of the U.S. 20 years ago. But my favorite beer destination is any of the many local beer gardens and harvest festivals in the Hallertau with our suppliers, growers and friends, and a fresh Bier and a toast to a good crop. One such harvest festival led to my biggest birthday party when someone informed the Oompah band of the day. The band leader asked me to stand, in a tent with about 3,000 of my closest Bavarian friends, they rocked a brass and accordion version of Happy Birthday, all auf Deutsch.

Ale Tales: I'll never forget visiting the heather honey farm in Perthshire, Scotland, a few clicks south of Balmoral as the crow flies, but several hours on the rural roads of Northern Scotland. Did you know there's more than 40,000 bees in each of those boxes?! I was in my beekeeper suit and when our host opened one of the hives, the bees began to swarm. Ignoring his simple warning, "Run"!!!, all stood watching and amazed. There must have been 100 bees on the mask of my suit. I swear one of them was looking me straight in the eye through the mask, trying to find a way in... first the hole in the mesh face mask, then a concerted effort of all his bee buddies to "fly" the zipper open and gain ingress. My Thatcher era bee suit offered little comfort but proved worthy protection when I turned to find several colleagues had fallen victim to the swarm (all fortunately OK). It took a few hours for my heart rate to return to normal that afternoon.

Rob Cannon

First Tapped: They gave me a six pack of beer to take home and I've been back everyday since...

Favorite Sam Style: If I had one beer to take with me on a desert island, I'd take Boston Lager.

Luckily I don't so my other favorite is Irish Red.

Pet Project: Irish Red was my pet project, to see it win the Beer Lover's Choice and make it to market was no "luck of the Irish".

Favorite Food Pairing: Boston Lager and a nice smoked beef brisket.

Wort(s) and all: The rest of the brewers aren't always fans of my choice in music. Maybe it's just my signing they don't like, but I think I sound great...

Favorite Beer Destination: I love Ireland. I'm a big fan of Irish history, especially when it's recounted over a pint!

Ale Tales: Dean snores so loud you can hear him through the walls.

Dean Gianocostas

First Tapped: My first "Samuel Adams" was in the fall of 1985 at a waterfront café' in Charlestown. I remember reading the neckhanger on the bottle,"Voted America's Best Beer". 4 months Later I was working for the Boston Beer Co.

Favorite Sam Style: Boston Lager, It's the beer that goes pretty much with everything or nothing at all. Any time any place

Pet Project: Recently we have been working on a project with the Weihenstephan Brewery in Germany to make a real champagne style beer. Some of the trial results are amazing. Stay tuned for an Autumn release

Favorite Food Pairing: That's an ongoing journey, but for an appetizer our Double Bock or New World Tripel with a strong blue cheese or Old Amsterdam. SamAdams and any Asian spicy dish or BBQ.

Wort(s) and all: Exploring New England on my Harley or just staying put at home with my family slow cooking on the smoker in the backyard.

Favorite Beer Destination: Its got to be Antwerp Belgium, My first trip was in 1989. you can go to any café and find some extraordinary wood aged brews and the list is endless.

Ale Tales: The best brew trip was a visit to Burton on Trent in England. It was like stepping back in time with their historic breweries, and it doesn't get any better when your throwing back pints in a real English pub.

Jennifer Glanville

First Tapped: 2001 - had been laid off in January, skied 50+ days and then got the job at the Boston Brewery - it was a great year.

Favorite Sam Style: The one and only... Samuel Adams Boston Lager

Pet Project: Trying to get my Finnish Sahti in the market!! But putting my own personal interests aside working on some new extreme beer styles as well as the Belgian Style beers we make here in Boston.

Favorite Food Pairing: My oyster stout and freshly harvested Wellfleet oysters. I also love cheese and beer pairings... cheese and beer - how can you go wrong?!

Wort(s) and all: I am always up for a challenge. I met 40,000+ of the bees (in the heather moors of Scotland) that make the heather honey for our Honey Porter... I didn't think I was scared but when they all came out and were all over me- I was frozen. But it is still one of the coolest experiences. Now when I see several bees - I think - that's all you got. Then the day ended with a long, fast ride through the Scottish countryside with the bee keeper in his 1960 MG convertible at 80+ miles an hour. EPIC!

Favorite Beer Destination: Couple places I love drinking beer: 1. After skiing - anywhere. 2. The Alps on the top of a mountain after a hike. 3. Southern Germany - Munich and Hallertau region, drinking Boston Lager in the hop field with Hop farmers or at local bier garten. 4. I also love Salzburg - the old beer hall there and 5. Prague drinking anywhere! Lastly - 6. Friday afternoon (okay any afternoon) having a Sammy in our Boston Brewery Beer Garden.

Bert Boyce

First Tapped: November 2007, from sunny Southern California right into my first Boston winter.

Favorite Sam Style: What time is it, and what season? Where am I? What am I eating? Such a difficult question... Noble Pils is my beer-of-the-month, but I always come home to Boston Lager.

Pet Project: The Barrel Room Collection, Beer Lover's Choices (including Noble Pils), the Longshots, and our as-yet-named collaboration with Weihenstephan are some of the recents...

Favorite Food Pairing: I'm a big fan of Lager with spicy Mexican food, Coastal Wheat with Thai, and Stony Brook Red with French food. Current home cooking project is French, and it goes splendidly with just about every braise and sauté imaginable!

Wort(s) and all: I fell asleep during my interview. Twice. I've got mad dancing skills, a suitcase ready to go, and a mostly clean driving record. No time for television and no patience for slow talkers, but I still manage to be 5 minutes late to everything. Like this bio...

Favorite Beer Destination: I'll go with most recent, since there are so many good ones: February 2010, Quebec City. Dark, unsigned, upstairs beer bar that shall remain unnamed. Bartender didn't speak English, but a couple patrons did and were more than happy to walk us through the landscape of their excellent, local beers. Two hours later, we missed dinner but had a great night anyway...

Ale Tales: David Sipes wears clicky heeled shoes, even when tromping through muddy hop gardens. You can ask anyone about that...

Grant E. Wood

First Tapped: December 1995. I came from brewing beer in San Antonio for Lone Star Brewing Company.

Favorite Sam Style: Black Lager. I consider that beer my third child. "It's really smooth".

Pet Project: Lately, I've been working on all the beers! Looking for ways to keep them tasting fresh.

Favorite Food Pairing: I talk a lot about Black Lager, but I think it may be the best beer with barbeque. Ribs or slow smoked beef brisket. As a native Texan, that's about as good as it gets.

Wort(s) and all: Though my travel schedule now makes it difficult, I did improvisational comedy and community theater in the past. I still love getting up in front of people and telling them all about Sam Adams and the beers we make.

Favorite Beer Destination: Wow, it's difficult to pick! There are so many great places to have a beer. My favorite would probably have to be Brussels, Belgium. So many beers, so little time.

Ale Tales: Though my time with Sam Adams has taken me to a bunch of great destinations, one of the highlights of my travels was the first "Grill and Groove" event in The Turks and Caicos islands. 9 radio stations, broadcasting live from the beaches of the Caribbean. We were introducing White Ale to the country. It was a great event and very special.

Andrew Lamont

First Tapped: January 2008 a few months after I arrived in Boston after working in Cincinnati brewery for two years.

Favorite Sam Style: It is a tie between Boston Lager and Nobel Pils. Both are very delicious beers.

Pet Project: Recently I've been working on the new Beer Lovers Choice beers and the collaboration beer between Sam Adams and Weihenstephan.

Favorite Food Pairing: Even though there are many, many great food and beer pairings out there, I believe it comes down to simplicity for me. Nothing can beat a pizza with a Boston Lager.

Favorite Beer Destination: This is a hard question to answer as I have been to many great places and had a beer or two. One of the best places has to be Coober Pedy in Australia. It is basically a city that was built underground for opal mining. There were a few underground pubs and it was really neat having a beer in a pub that was carved out of a rock.

Ale Tales: One of the trips we took to Belgium to learn about Belgian brewing was one crazy adventure. It was a four day trip and we visited nine breweries! There was very little sleep as we drove all over the country, but we learned a lot. It was an intense trip.