Homebrewer Wins Opportunity to Brew at Anheuser-Busch

Deep down, many homebrewers dream of brewing in the big leagues. It’s human nature – like how strumming a guitar conjures up visions of rock stardom or shooting hoops in the driveway turns into an imaginary game-winning shot. On Friday, September 25, Dr. Jeff Michalski, a radiation oncologist in St. Louis, got to step out of the medical field and into his dream for a day, earning the opportunity to make his award-winning homebrew in Anheuser-Busch’s Research Pilot Brewery (RPB) with a little help from A-B’s brewmasters.

“I was so excited to come here today,” said Michalski of his visit to the RPB. “I woke up at 4:00 a.m.! It’s like Christmas.” However, this trip wasn’t a holiday gift; he earned it. Michalski has been homebrewing for nearly 25 years and takes his hobby seriously, joining both the Garage Brewers Society and the St. Louis Brewers Guild. All that experience served him well when he entered the annual BrewFest homebrew competition at Ballpark Village in St. Louis in August. His brew, an Extra Special Bitter (ESB) featuring East Kent Goldings and Willamette hops, took first place. His prize: a trip with some of his homebrewer buddies to A-B’s top-secret RPB where he had the opportunity to brew his beer with members of the Anheuser-Busch brewing team.

The RPB is a small pilot brewery that allows A-B brewers to experiment with a vast array of ingredients and new brewing techniques, along the way creating eccentric beers as well as brews that have become national staples. Brewer Rob Naylor currently heads up the RPB and spent the morning with Michalski, walking him through the development process for turning his basement homebrew into a full-on 15-barrel professional-sized production. “The PRB provides us with the creative license to experiment with new ingredients and try new recipes like Jeff’s recipe,” said Naylor. “While at the same time, we’re always ensuring the core Anheuser-Busch philosophy of quality and consistency remains fundamental to any beer we brew. I’m excited Jeff and his friends got an opportunity to see that firsthand with this collaborative brew day.”

The final awesome step: tasting Michalski’s beer, which he calls “The Graduate.” That happens in a few weeks when the brew will be served up at Ballpark Village for Michalski, his friends and, of course, the RPB team who will be there to offer a “cheers” and enjoy this cool collaboration.

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