Let’s face it, the days when your boss let you drink a beer at lunch are long gone.
But if you love beer, especially craft beer, you can still drink on the job as a Brewmaster at a local brewery, right? How else would you taste-test your creations?
Well, USF St. Petersburg’s College of Arts and Sciences has collaborated with numerous local and national breweries to create an online course and hands-on training program in the Brewing Arts. Yes, you heard that right.
You’ll get firsthand experience as you gain the foundational knowledge through a combination of online lectures and hands-on training.
“Lectures range from anthropology to the business of brewing to everything in between,” said Jim Leonard, former Brewing Arts director.
The program has 10 modules and each module takes about two weeks to complete. When students are finished with the modules they will move on to the hands-on training portion where students will work with a Brewmaster at one of 10 local and national breweries.
The program is designed for hobbyists and enthusiasts, those who wish to work in a brewery, and those who aspire to open their own brewery one day.
Although Florida is a relative latecomer to the craft beer scene, the economic impact was estimated at $301 million in 2012 and $432 million in 2013, according to Brewers Guild of Florida, a nonprofit trade association committed to preserving the rights and interests of craft brewers throughout the state.
Future predictions project as many as 500 breweries in Florida contributing to a total impact upwards of $2.5 billion in the state.
The brewing program is online and registration is open for the spring semester. To apply, click here. The deadline is Nov. 30. Veterans interesting in applying for the program can apply for a scholarship through Yuengling Brewing Company.
Above photo caption: 3 Daughters Brewing’s Grapefruit Shady. 3 Daughters is a lead sponsor of the Brewing Arts program at USFSP. COURTESY OF 3 Daughters Brewing.
