Meet Alex Bell, our 2023 Young Henrys Brewing Scholarship winner
A huge congrats to Alex Bell - a talented brewer from Jervis Bay in southern NSW, and winner of our 2023 Young Henrys Brewing Scholarship.
Alex swung by our Newtown brewery recently and we were blown away by her impressive background in Geotech science, infectious positivity, curiosity, and above all, love for brewing. With an ultimate beer dream that involves a potential strobing light telephone booth, we can’t bloody wait to see what the future has in stall for this legend.
Check out our chat below.
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YH: Congrats on winning the Young Henrys Brewing Scholarship! What are you most looking forward to this year?
AB: Thank you all so much, it’s an amazing honour to receive this scholarship from the legendary Young Henrys! I’m going into my 2nd year of brewing with Jervis Bay Brewing Co in Huskisson on the South Coast and there is so much more to learn! There’s my TAFE course to finish, it’s going to be a whirlwind!
YH: Apart from the obvious love of beer, what inspired you to take up a career in brewing?
AB: Good question it was certainly a meandering path to brewing! My first gig was for a Geotechnical Laboratory in my 20’s, the team was one of the best in the world, I had the opportunity to travel to Europe and experience all the delightful beers!
After 10 years I started a Bachelor of Medical and Health Sciences at UOW and was soon working for a large medical laboratory’s Histology department. After 5 years I was looking for something closer to home so I took a position in client services for a local environmental laboratory and that’s how I started meeting brewers bringing in their trade waste samples for analysis.
The first person that offered me a role was a Dr of Phycology that used a commercial brew kit to extract polysaccharides from seaweed for amazing health, sustainability and research projects so I quickly became familiar with tri-clovers, valves and CIP. When I was approached by my now head brewer at the pub it was a no brainer and I made the leap.
YH: As part of our Young Henrys Brewing Scholarship we offer quarterly mentoring with our head of Lab, Head Brewer and Head Distiller. Do you see yourself taking up these opportunities and if so, which one are you most looking forward to?
AB: I’m really into the great leaps you are making in the areas of sustainability and continuous improvement. I fan girl over the research you are conducting with algae so I’ll really enjoy hearing about new processes and new techniques from some of the industry greats! I’ll be finishing my TAFE Brewing course at the end of the year and this scholarship helps so much especially as a regional person and feels like a real part of the greater brewing community is what I really get out of it.
YH: What’s your idea of the Greatest Beer Ever?
AB: The greatest? That’s so hard I think it would have to be a flavour changing beer, I once visited the Bol’s Genever Museum in Amsterdam and they gave us this liquid to hold in our mouth after they locked us in one of 3 vibrating, strobing rave telephone booth type things.. it was wild. The liquid changed flavour depending on the vibration lights and colours! That concept might make the greatest party beer ever.
YH: What are some breweries either domestically or internationally that you’re digging at the moment?
AB: I love that the craft brewing industry is creating village breweries again like l observed in Germany, every city has its own unique flavour and appeal. After years of not much option on the taps we can enjoy so much more range. While the costs of running breweries are energy intensive, pioneers like Young Henrys and ours are really embracing the opportunity sustainability brings and showing responsible brewing practices can translate into major savings.
YH: Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?
AB: Hopefully still brewing! I love beer and food paring, so I’d love to explore that more. In 10 years? In that time, I’d hope to return all the support and encouragement I’ve received. I’d love to mentor in the future as I’ve had many great ones in my careers. Special mention to Richard Lane, Chris Lloyd, George Court and Janette Walsh.
YH: Our Brewing Scholarship is aimed to create more opportunities for female / non-binary brewers, plus create awareness around the plethora of career paths one can take in the wonderful world of booze. What else can our industry be doing to help improve its diversity?
AB: If anyone has spent any time in at least the craft breweries I’ve been to, you realise that the brew team peeps are just the best bunch of people you can meet. Passionate, hardworking, authentic, dedicated, socially responsible, inclusive and embracing. I think highlight the amazing culture and community! More brew clubs and brew days where folks can see everything in action. It’s really a remarkable process!
Are you a female or non-binary individual considering a career in brewing? Learn more about our annual Brewing Scholarship here. Feel free to reach out with any questions ahead of our 2024 intake using the form below:
