craft beer came up. “We should have a brewpub here,” one of them joked. But almost immediately, it became obvious that what seemed like a whim actually showed promise. Professor Kuykendall shared the idea with his faculty mentor, Associate Professor of Business Administration Bill Spear, who took it to Vice President and Dean of Students David Sauerwein. After many conversations between them and with other faculty and staff, as well as an enthusiastic meeting with Flying Goose owner Tom Mills, Brewing Science was born. The class is offered again this spring and is expected to become a regular in the Colby-Sawyer catalog. The broader context for the course is the extraordinary rise in the popularity of craft brewing in the United States. What was once an obscure corner of the drinking world is now a $14 billion industry that makes up 14 percent of the American beer market. That means not just better sipping for the country’s beer lovers, but more than 100,000 jobs—and growing. And the industry is expanding into Colby-Sawyer’s own campus. The brewpub that was dreamed of last fall opened in early February in Lethbridge Lodge, thanks to the efforts of the administration and members of a committee that includes faculty from several departments. Professor Kuykendall has been delighted, and even a little surprised, by how speedily the pub idea became a reality: Construction of the bar began within two days of getting the required permits. “Higher education can be slow to move,” he marveled as the pub neared its opening day, “but in this case it was anything but.” When the pub opened, Inaugurale was one of four beers on tap. The ale is also available at the Flying Goose.
Courtney Troxell ’15 sniffs the class’s brew, Inaugurale, before the fermentation phase begins.
Back in Wheeler Hall that cold afternoon in December, the students of Colby-Sawyer’s first Brewing Science class happily posed for pictures and reviewed last-minute details for the presentation they would make from the stage. Meanwhile, they sipped from 6 oz. glasses of Inaugurale, poured straight from a tap operated by a beaming Marley. “It was kind of a mystery how it was going to come out, but it worked!” said biology major Alex Fredette ’15. He was referring to his glass of pale, crisp ale, but he might as well have been talking about Brewing Science itself: A class that was an experiment and is now a sparkling success. ® l–r: Professor Darrell Kuykendall and Rik Marley of The Flying Goose Brew Pub and Grille gear up with students for a day of brewing; the students’ brew, Inaugurale, includes rosemary, bee pollen, lavender and lemongrass flavors; Jesse Socci ʼ15 hoses down the tank after the long day of brewing.
spring 2015 21