Julia Burke
Kinart: 'It's almost impossible not to learn something every day.'
Capital Brewery has a new brewmaster. The Middleton-based brewery announced Thursday that Ashley Kinart has been promoted to the job as it embarks on a major expansion phase. She is the first woman to hold the position in a Dane County craft brewery and is among only a few female brewmasters across Wisconsin.
"I think this is another point chalked up for women in the brewing industry," says Kinart. "I guess the last couple years I've spent here have proved there shouldn't be any worries that being a woman will detract from succeeding in this industry."
Kinart is a graduate of the Siebel Institute of Technology, a world-renowned brewing program in Chicago and Munich, but she also credits experiences at Capital with her growth as a brewer. She started working there in late 2012, and this year was the first woman to develop a new beer from start-to-finish for the brewery.
"My education through Siebel definitely gave me a base of brewing knowledge to start with, but working at Capital Brewery has taught me a huge amount," she explains. "I've absorbed so much knowledge from the staff here; it's almost impossible not to learn something every day just listening and working with them."
Brian Destree, who was also hired by Capital in 2012 to manage the brewery's production, has been promoted to director of operations. He will oversee Capital's massive expansion into a new and larger facility in Sauk City, which will triple the brewery's capacity.
"Working for Brian has been such a great experience; his knowledge of the industry and brewing process as a whole is just amazing," notes Kinart. "I guess the biggest compliment I could receive is his approval and confidence in me to move up into this position. I am really excited to be able to work with him on bringing Capital Brewery into a new era, as we expand our portfolio of beers and our facilities."
A passionate beer lover and ambitious brewer, Kinart has worked to build connections around the craft industry, and is a member of the Pink Boots Society, a networking organization for women brewers. She made a splash earlier this year for Fishin' in the Dark, the first beer she developed for Capital. A sweet and smooth schwarzbier, it debuted at the 2014 edition of Burgers & Brew back in May.
Kinart's beer debut bodes well for Capital as she takes charge of recipe development.
"On top of production scheduling and raw material ordering, I will be doing the initial legwork on recipe formulation and new product development," she explains. "We do have some plans for some fun new beers coming out in the near future, but at the moment, I'm trying to learn and train as much as I can."
