What’s your current position at your brewery, and how did you get started in the craft brewing industry?

I’m a brewer at Broken Bow Brewery in Tuckahoe, N.Y. I started homebrewing five years ago when I moved to Brazil and there were very limited craft beer options. I founded the first homebrew club in the capital city and put on events to promote craft beer. Since then, a community has grown that has spread all over the country. I went to brewing school in Brazil to make the formal transition into the field and then moved back to New York.

What’s new at Broken Bow?

We just acquired a bunch of different types of barrels to jump-start our barrel program and we are planning quarterly specialty bottle releases in addition to our cans. Our region just got its first maltster so we are excited to use local grain in the near future.

What’s the best part of being a part of the craft brewing community?

It’s great to be able to meet people who are just as excited about something as you are and you can immediately connect on that level. There’s something to learn from everyone.

Name a favorite food and beer pairing.

I paired a Flanders red with crispy roasted crickets and it worked amazingly well! The sweet, spicy tartness of the beer combined with the salt and umami in the crickets made for a flavor explosion that confused all my senses in the best way.

What’s your biggest accomplishment unrelated to brewing?

Conquering my fear of heights by skydiving in New Zealand. (Ferris wheels still freak me out, though!)

Name a favorite beer that your brewery does not produce.

There are a lot of great beers coming out of Brazil and it’s great to see them getting international recognition. I particularly like Maracujipa, an IPA made with passion fruit by 2Cabe as.

What’s the most memorable travel destination at which you’ve had an opportunity to sample the local beer?

I worked with artisans in the Amazon and tried their fermented yucca drink. At the time I didn’t appreciate it, but I would love to go back and see how they make it and the different flavors that can be pulled from the process.