Boasting a world-renowned brewing scene, the manufacture of beer is big business in San Diego County. As such, the region’s educational institutions have developed programs to assist individuals looking for a leg up entering the industry. Those entities include San Diego State University, UC San Diego Extension, California State University San Marcos, San Diego Mesa College and the Technology Career Institute (TCI) at MiraCosta College. Each covers different disciplines from business management to brewing sciences. MiraCosta’s Brewtech Program is centered around the latter and includes hands-on beer production at an on-site brew lab under the instruction of local brewers, a key element resulting in it gaining certification from the Master Brewers Association of the Americas.
“We are one of 14 programs in the country and one of two in California that are recognized by the MBAA. We are really proud of everyone involved who helped make this program possible,” says Community Instructor Mike Stevenson, who is also Head Brewer at Carlsbad’s Culver Beer Co. and got his start after graduating from UCSD Extension’s Brewing Certificate Program. “We are firm believers that having a brewing lab on-site is what really embeds the fundamental concepts into the students’ heads and better prepares them for a career than a pure lecture environment. Brewing is a hands-on industry; we are a hands-on training program and that’s what sets us apart.”
In addition to on-site brewing, MBAA’s certification requirements dictate a curriculum must meet or exceed Institute of Brewing and Distilling requirements, and offer internships and participation from the commercial brewing industry. The Brewtech Program has benefitted from a great deal of the latter. Ballast Point Brewing, Karl Strauss Brewing, The Lost Abbey, Saint Archer Brewing, Stone Brewing and White Labs have provided behind-the-scenes tour of their brewing operations while also extending internship invitations to program enrollees.
Industry participation extends to the program’s faculty. In addition to Stevenson, Brewtech’s instructors include brewer Greg Turk from Carlsbad’s Rouleur Brewing as well as the owner and Head Brewer at San Marcos’ Stave and Nail Brewing, Justin Stambaugh. Additionally, brewing-industry vendors BSG Craft Brewing and White Labs donate raw materials for use in beermaking associated with the program.
But the key to earning this challenging-to-obtain certification was establishing MiraCosta’s campus brew lab, which is equipped with a one-barrel system, a trio of one-barrel fermenters and a bright tank. Other professional-grade equipment is available so students learn on apparatuses they will encounter in real-life brewery, cellar, packaging and lab situations. Brewing begins on week four (of 15 weeks total), with students working through recipes from instructors then moving on to building their own recipes from scratch and forging them into reality. Having a nanobrewery setup at the students’ disposal is undeniably helpful, but establishing it was no small feat.
“It’s taken an immense amount of effort on my administration and the school for this type of program to happen,” says Stevenson. “Being able to brew beer at a community college is quite the endeavor, from risk management, purchasing, required approvals and improvements needed for our lab, not to mention the fact that the capital needed to endow such a venture isn’t something a lot of school are willing to do.”
MiraCosta’s TCI took on the expense in 2018 after years of wanting to develop a program to prepare students to apply for and secure entry-level jobs in the brewing industry. In addition to beer and brewing coursework and labs, students are offered courses geared toward career readiness such as OSHA-10, LEAN, résumé composition and interviewing skills. The program accepts 18 students per semester and is currently on its fifth cohort. Stevenson and his team have refined the curriculum along the way based on feedback from program graduates, many of which appreciate Brewtech’s serious nature.
“This program is not necessarily geared toward hobbyists or someone playing with the idea of opening a brewery,” says Stevenson. “TCI is focused on being a modern trade school that is dedicated to getting hirable people jobs after completing a course.”
Success stories abound for Brewtech’s alumni. The employment rate for those who have completed the program is well over 60%. Graduates have gone on to work at local operations including Belching Beaver Brewery, Booze Brothers Brewing, Harland Brewing, Kilowatt Brewing, Lost Abbey, Mikkeller Brewing San Diego, Mother Earth Brew Co., Rip Current Brewing, Societe Brewing, Stone and Wild Barrel Brewing. Other alums are at work building their own operations or have moved away from San Diego, starting their careers at brewing companies outside the county.
Overall, Brewtech consists of 30 lectures, eight quizzes, a midterm and final exam. Each week, students are required to complete a worksheet related to the week’s lecture along with other assignments. Students’ capstone project is to develop a recipe in a group, then successfully brew and cellar that ale (lagers are not allowed as they take up too much tank time during fermentation). To date, 40 batches of beer have been produced at the brew lab, including various IPAs, fruited kettle sours, porters, wheat ales and Belgian-style beers.
“All lectures and worksheets are published online for students to complete on their own time on a weekly basis,” says Stevenson. “The 18 students are divided into three groups that are required to meet one-to-two times per week for a shift in the lab depending on the week’s schedule.”
Individuals interested in being part of the program’s Fall 2021 cohort can email MiraCosta for enrollment information. Meanwhile, brewing companies and industry members interested in partnering with Brewtech can email Stevenson directly.