Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Rodgers.
Hi Brandon, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised in Chula Vista, spent up to 6th grade living on the West side of Chula, and the rest of my life on the East side (but the West still has my heart). I went to SDSU for college and that’s where my beer journey kind of started. I loved going to SDSU football games and we’d have a couple of beers, mostly Budlight or Coors at the time, before the game. Those beers were never really enjoyable though. So when I finally was able to pick out the beers I picked Stones IPA, and that was so much better. But the real journey started when I first tasted Karl Strauss’s Red Trolley, that was what changed everything! And that’s when Reviews On Brews first started to form into what it eventually became today.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s been pretty smooth, the craft beer community is pretty welcoming overall, from beer needs like me to major head brewmasters everyone likes to share info and talk about their journey and methods. But the main point of my page is to bring craft beer education to a mainly big beer drinking area (Chula Vista/Southbay). The area has been more receptive to it since I started which is nice to see. And the page has grown in correlation to that change. It would probably grow even more if I went out more though, sometimes I’m a bit of a homebody. So I don’t stop into breweries as much as I support them from home. So that’s a bit of a small struggle.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I run an Instagram and YouTube page, ReviewsOnBrews where I try and bring craft beer education to the Southbay and San Diego. So I specialize in craft beer reviews and vlogs to bring about this education. I am most proud of the community I am supporting and helping build as well as making some fun photo and video content for craft beer lovers and non-lovers and breweries/brewers. One of my favorite moments was when one of the videos made one brewery laugh so hard they played it on their TVs in the brewery. What sets me apart is my video productions, when I do them, and my individual take on beer reviews. Reviews are one thing that’s pretty subjective, but I think I bring a good take on it. It’s educational but not overbearing, while still being informative but hopefully entertaining. Plus, I see it as an ever-evolving community and niche, so you’re constantly learning. So I never say or think I have the definitive answer or review, it’s just my take on the brew.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
I love the Beer Night in San Diego Podcast, they bring a ton of good info and updates for the SD beer community. I also follow other beer reviewers and lovers through SD to see their take on beers and breweries. Overall, like I said the community loves talking about the whole process and everything. San Diego Beer News is a great source for local Beer knowledge; The HomeBrewer is an amazing source of information for beers and homebrewers; the bottle/can shops like BrandyWine and many others are great to pick up the latest brews.
Contact Info:
- Email: reviewsonbrews@gmail.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/reviewsonbrews
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCnP_uCpRjxzuBYvPNFpaRgQ
- Other: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy50cmFuc2lzdG9yLmZtL2JyZXdlcnMtdm9pY2U?ep=14
