Brewing up business: Hart School students tour local brewery

Students in the Hart School of Hospitality, Sport and Recreation Management cover a wide range of topics in their introductory courses including tourism, lodging, food and beverage and event management. When students broached the topic of beverages, Professor Miguel Baltazar, decided the best way to show this industry in action is by visiting a local working brewery. 

Baltazar took students on a tour of Pale Fire Brewing Company in downtown Harrisonburg and were given a first-hand look at what it takes to run the front- and back-of-house operations. 

First, Pale Fire’s front-of-house operations were explained, and students were offered a brief explanation of the entrepreneurial side of the business, their revenue-generated products, the industry as a whole and the most prominent players and trends. 

Students’ second half of their tour consisted of a more in-depth explanation and demo of how beer is brewed, including the different types of beer, components needed to brew, the brewing areas and the process of producing beer at each stage. Students were even given the opportunity to taste, smell and directly handle the brewing ingredients such as starchy cereals and hops.

Once the tour of the brewery was finished, students had an opportunity to ask questions about the brewing process, starting their own companies in this sub-segment of the industry and career opportunities within the beverages sector.