In Milwaukee Record’s “Meet A Brewer” series, we aim to introduce you to some of the professionals behind the scenes who are responsible for making your favorite local beers. The recurring series continues with MobCraft Beer brewer and packaging lead Tim Kowalski.

Milwaukee Record: What first brought you to brewing?

Tim Kowalski: One of the first times I had MobCraft Beer, I was like “Wow, this is a good beer!” I wasn’t a big beer fan to begin with, but the first beer I had by them was Bat$h!t Crazy. At that point, I was working in a food factory making protein shake mix. Large quantities, 30,000 pounds a day. I was a lead there. Basically, one day I was having a beer and talking to Andrew the co-owner and I’m like “Beer is pretty cool, what can I do to get in here?” I started out part-time. I’d work my full-time job for nine hours a day, then come right here and work four or five hours. I did that for about five or six months up until the point where MobCraft brought me on full-time and I didn’t look back.

I left MobCraft during COVID. It was a layoff, but there were no hard feelings or anything. Everyone was having issues during COVID. Luckily, within four days, I was able to get a job at Sprecher. I was at Sprecher for two and a half years, starting as just a cellar guy and then moving all the way up to their supervisor. They also had a thing called Soda Lab, where every week, I’d make a new soda flavors—weird flavors. I made chocolate covered strawberry, two different blue moon ice cream sodas, pumpkin spice root beer, pumpkin spice cream soda, habanero cucumber lime soda, elder flower soda, I made my own version of Tahitian Treat.

After being there two and a half years, MobCraft said “Hey, do you want to come back?” And I said “Yes, please!” I came back in a better position than when I started both in knowledge and work ethic. And now I’m here.

MR: What are some go-to beer styles when you’re at a liquor store or at a bar?

TK: I would say an IPA or a pilsner. The best of both worlds is a dry hopped pilsner. I like a little bit of hoppiness in my beer, but I don’t like when it’s a bitter bomb or where you almost have to chew it down. At a certain point it’s just too much. One of my favorite beers is Moon Man, the No Coast Pale Ale from New Glarus. At family cookouts, I’ll usually grab an MGD. It’s always a good beer.

MR: So Miller would probably be your go-to macro brewery then?

TK: Yeah, New Glarus is a go-to for big micro breweries, but for super macro beers, it would have to be MGD.

MR: Are there any local breweries you’re especially fond of?

TK: I like Indeed, which I know started in Minnesota, but they’re good. There is a spot in my heart for Sprecher for traditional beer. I love their Black Bavarian. It’s one of my favorite beers. And their root beer! Oh my gosh.

MR: Do you have any hobbies or passions outside of brewing?

TK: I’ve been playing bass for about 17 years. I play in three bands. One of my bands, Jump The Bluff, is playing at Weird Fest. We’re a pop-punk band. The second is called Overflow, an indie-alternative mix. The third band is a blues cover band called Indigo Dog. I love music. I actually went to school for it. That’s probably my favorite thing besides brewing beer.

MR: Speaking of music, who are some of your favorite musical artists?

TK: There’s one band that I’d say I’m obsessed with. It’s a metal band named Opeth. They’re like Swedish death metal that started in the early ’90s, but they’ve evolved into progressive metal and almost like prog rock. That’s hands down my favorite band. They’re so eclectic and so versatile. Last year, I was in the top .05 percent of Opeth listeners on Spotify.

But I love all music. The first CD I ever bought was Straight Outta Compton by N.W.A. when I was 14. I love jazz. I have about 60 jazz records. I love Static-X, The Allman Brothers, and Queens Of The Stone Age, but Opeth is my number one for sure.

MR: Do you have any favorite local bars or restaurants you frequent, or just some places you like and want to use this platform to give some attention to?

TK: I’m an introvert. I’m not a people person, but my favorite bar is my yacht club. I’m part of a yacht club that I like going to because I get really good prices on drinks. If I’m paying full price for drinks, I think Great Lakes [Distillery] is fantastic. I love their cocktails. I like At Random. I also have a spot in my heart for good dive bars. One bar that’s not around anymore is Circle-A Cafe. It felt like I was in a family member’s basement bar.

MR: Do you have any movies, TV shows, or other types of media you enjoy?

TK: I’m a nerd for mystery. Clue is probably one of my favorite movies of all time. I’ve seen it at least 350 times. I could probably be in a one-man play of Clue. I like anything Agatha Christie. I like watching ‘60s and ‘70s murder mysteries. And lately I’ve been on a really big Murder, She Wrote kick. But I’m also a big Bob’s Burgers fan. I love puns.

MR: Any favorite restaurants or types of foods?

TK: I love almost everything. I love fish. I could eat fish every day of the week. I live in South Milwaukee, so one of my favorite restaurants in Erv’s Mug. Me and my girlfriend like discovering new places, like this new vegetarian Indian food place called India Delight in Oak Creek. Pizza is probably my favorite dish because you can put anything on it. I’d say fried fish and pizza are two favorites.

MR: What are some favorite local fish fry?

TK: Slick Willies is good. It’s honestly some of the best fish fry in town. Great prices, but the biggest fucking dive bar. Imagine old Frank’s Power Plant made fish. They prep all their fish on their pool table and there’s attitude when you go in there, but it’s so good.

MR: Is there something you really want to do or a beer you’ve been pitching over and over?

TK: You know, whenever we do N/As or non-beer beverages, MobCraft gives me a lot of creative freedom. Like, I came up with this hop soda recipe that’s a little sweeter than hop water. I did research, took a stab in the dark and it worked. We’re doing more of that type of stuff and we’re doing more Hop Of The Pops, our hop soda.

MR: I’ve been asking brewers an open-ended, fill in the blank-type question lately. Brewing in Milwaukee is…

TK: Historical. My mom’s grandpa—so my great grandpa—was a line lead at Pabst back in the ‘10s to the ‘30s. Being in the industry doing what my forefather did 100 years later is pretty cool. I think Milwaukee is very lucky. We’re a beer mecca. Hands down, we have the best water. It might not smell good outside sometimes, but people have done water tests and our water is almost identical to Munich’s water, which is one of the origin points of beer. We’re not Miller, we’re not Coors, we’re not a huge brewery. But we’re a little brewery on a big stage.

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About The Author

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Co-Founder and Editor

Before co-founding Milwaukee Record, Tyler Maas wrote for virtually every Milwaukee publication (except Wassup! Magazine). He lives in Bay View and enjoys both stuff and things.