FIVE QUESTIONS FOR THE BREWMASTER – Brewer Interview by Jack Horne – JUNE 2024
Matthew Horney Owner/Head Brewer
Ecology Beer Creative
1401 Baronne St. New Orleans, La.
https://www.ecologybeer.com/
1. How did you start brewing?
I started in 1999/2000 when I found my dad’s old home brewing equipment in the basement of my parent’s Michigan home. I asked if I could give it a go. He gave me his copy of Charlie Papazian’s “The Complete Joy of Homebrewing” and gave me everything he had. I started reading and made by way to the local homebrew store and began down a very curious road.
2. How did you get into commercial brewing?
I got my start during the recession in 2010. After working as a landscape architect in Atlanta for nearly 10 years with the last bit in China. The company had reached a sad turning point and the China office was closed and I was the last of 50 people to be laid off. I decided a career change would be best and started my search across the south-eastern United States and that led me to Louisiana. I moved and worked for Abita, then moved back to Georgia to brew for Terrapin, then back to Louisiana to brew for the Old Rail before starting Ecology Beer Creative in New Orleans. It was a crazy run but each step had a purpose and led to bigger things. It’s all still amazing to think how fortunate I was to have somehow created these opportunities.
3. Which style(s) are you most interested in brewing and why?
I love Belgian beers and classic styles. There is something about Belgian beer that is mysterious yet exciting from both a formulation and historical standpoint. Belgian beers have such complexity and trying to pull the flavors into each style is pretty complex but when successful it is something to behold. I love formulating these recipes as some of the historical formulations are kept secret. You have to know your ingredients and your process. This goes for classic styles as well. Learn and understand what make them unique. Lagers, Pilsners, ESB, whatever it is I just love creating them in my way with my own thoughts on water, grain crush, time, and temperature.
4. What is the most challenging aspect of being a commercial brewer?
These days it’s brewer and owner so the challenges run deep but as a commercial brewer it’s not the process so much as it is logistics. Keeping the canning and labeling equipment in tune, boiler running at optimum, making sure I have ingredients on hand when I need them, making sure parts are available, and water is continually treated and to standard are some of the things that do pose a challenge. Something is always in need of attention. It can be consuming to manage all these components. There is a lot of effort beyond brewing and recipe formulation to bring a beer to a glass and it’s at this point you will find just how many hours really are in a day and how much mental capacity and physical energy you have.
5. What advice do you have for homebrewers?
If you want to make good beer, follow a consistent procedure and learn your styles. Know the off flavors. I’ll say this again, know the styles. Know your water and treat your water. Know and accept criticism. Document your brew days. Never stop learning and never pretend to know everything.
Crescent City Brew Talk 