Craft Beer Restaurant is edited and published by Charles Bockway of Mink Shoals, West Virginia. He currently presents information, research, marketing and business strategy concepts on the artisanal food and beverage industries through Brilliant Stream.
Here I am at work while visiting the Hopmonk Tavern in Sebastopol, California in 2008.
Personal Background
Being raised by a mother who worked as a home economist grounded me early on in food and its role in society. Following university graduation, a three-year stint as a public information officer with a state department of agriculture gave me an appreciation for the many sides of agribusiness, from farming to retail. Then spending 10 years providing marketing services to the wine and distilled spirits industries taught me so much more about the beverage side of food and beverage.
I’ll never forget my first wine business trip to France and Italy or my first beer mission to Belgium. Both opened my eyes to new beverage cultures and greatly expanded my appreciation for great food and beverage pairing. Like many, my first exposure to the breadth of American craft beer came from visiting local brew pubs while on business trips around the country during the 1990s. It sure made business travel more enjoyable.
Now I can think of nothing that pleases me more than finding ways to enhance the appreciation and business success of local, high-quality beverage and food enterprises. I love helping these businesses connect with more customers.