The Art and Culture of Craft Beer with Chad Henderson

Standing waist deep in the excavated floor of a building, prying eroded 67 year old plumbing up that smelled rusted sewage, Chad Henderson was grimacing through sweat and smiling on the inside. A big smile. He was upgrading to his dream job, working hard to make it happen- paying the bills and living the beer culture. Home brewer with a degree in Psychology, Biology and Physiology from Appalachian State turned professional brewer. A dream come true in more ways then one.

They sat me down and said, "would you like to be our brewer" and I screamed "Yes!"

Chad Henderson is head brewer at NoDa brewing in Charlotte NC, USA and says that "we are using craft beer as a vehicle to express ourselves."

TEDxCharlotte-

http://youtu.be/gwa7vACB0X8

It wasn't just the discovery of beer in his college years that inspired him begin following the home brewing hobby:

“This was beer that had a story, this was beer that had a purpose”

“...tucked in under the alcohol production and distribution industry, an industry in itself that really was more of a community, more of a culture. And I became obsessed with it. And that culture was craft beer.”

“The diversity and detail and the amount of history that went into craft beer blew my mind.”

Not only was Chad able to eventually switch from the medical field to professional brewing but he found himself conversing with one of his beer idols: Sam Calagione. Sam was the "beer-lebrity" Chad had always wanted to meet and later found homself exchanging more then words of encouragement and thanks with the beer culture icon when a packaged arrived for Chad containing cards, swag and his favorite beer: Olde School Barleywine.

Sam himself is a veteran of the TED stage:

http://youtu.be/XAvE61JqkQs

Both speeches are inspirational and comedic- referencing the on going movement of the beer cultured. 

XOXO