Degree to help brewing professionally

[Totes.McGoats]

Like every other Homebrewer, I have dreams of opening a brewery. I have extensive business experience and find myself wondering if an additional bachelors degree in Microbiology or Biochemistry would be helpful. Any suggestions? I have looked into fermentation science degrees however no schools near me offer a degree plan.

[OddballBrewer]

I own a small brewery in NH and while I would love to go back and re-take micro (I also work as a respiratory therapist so I have had it before). I don't have the time to devote to it now. I feel any bit of education is important no matter how tangential it is to brewing. That being said, there is no reason why you can't educate yourself. We have found that many of the books from the brewing elements series to be insightful and helpful to our brewing practice. We still pull out "Designing Great Beers" every so often when we need a little guidance. Brewing Classic Styles makes an appearance sometimes as well. The forum here, as well as some of the others are helpful as well. Lately I have been on Milk The Funk a lot as we want to begin doing some sour/funky beers. There are also a slew of online courses that can help and are generally free of charge. There are lots of options out there, and it's not about being the smartest.

Good luck, there are lots of ups and downs. However, I can honestly say it was one of the best decisions I have made and I think that my business partner would say the same.

Bill Walden
Oddball Brewing Co.
Suncook, NH

[Brewshki]

It seems like an entire degree may be a bit overkill for a small brewery. It would also take a significant amount of time and resources. Any thoughts on hiring someone with experience in that arena instead?

[Totes.McGoats]

Yes hiring someone is a great Idea, I have also just looked into investing in a current brewery and learning as an assistant brewer