Born and bred in New Jersey, I have lived there for most of my life. Growing up in the Garden State, I developed a deep connection with it and an appreciation of all it has to offer. I only lived outside of New Jersey during the four years that I attended Bates College in Maine. While living in Maine, I got to experience not only massive snowfall and extremely cold temperatures, but also a state that has a unique and interesting culture. I knew after graduation that I wanted to do something special that involved bringing a bit of Maine back to my home state.

Portland, Maine is an amazing city with so much to offer, but I was especially drawn to its amazing craft beer culture. I found myself exploring the Portland beer scene. I became fascinated by beer and its diversity and complexity of flavors.

As luck would have it, there was a brewery only a few miles away from my college. I was interested in experiencing the operations of a small, growing business that made a product I was passionate about. I worked at the brewery during my senior year with the objective of gaining as much knowledge as possible about the industry. This experience laid the foundation for me for I learned a great deal about the operations of a brewery, the various aspects of the craft beer industry, and the camaraderie and respect those in craft beer have for one another. As I mentioned, I knew that I wanted to bring a piece of Maine back to New Jersey with me, and at that point, I finally knew how.