USA, CA: Stone Brewing brewmaster leaving to start his own brewery

Mitch Steele, the brewmaster of Stone Brewing for the past decade, announced on June 14 that he will leave the Escondido, California-based brewery effective June 30.

Steele is leaving to start his own brewery, Stone announced. “The [Stone] breweries are going to be fine,” Steele said in a video posted on Stone’s YouTube channel. “They’re going to be up and running. … I have no doubt that the beers are going to be excellent coming from these spots. I’m here to help for as long as I can.”

Steele, a respected brewer among his peers, graduated from the University of California, Davis in 1984 with a Fermentation Science degree. Prior to working at Stone, he worked for Anheuser-Busch, managing brewhouse and fermenting operations in three breweries, and he developed new beers as part of the Anheuser-Busch Specialty Brewing Group in the mid-1990s. Steele is also the author of IPA: Brewing Techniques, Recipes and the Evolution of India Pale Ale.

Steele said more information on his new venture would be announced in the coming weeks.

17 June, 2016