#72: Gene Beck | Nocturnem Draft Haus

Graining In

The guys are once again treated to an in-studio guest as they welcome Gene Beck, owner of Nocturnem Draft Haus in Bangor, ME. Gene holds an undeniable place in the Mount Rushmore of Bangor beer, having played a pivotal development in its ongoing maturation since Y2K. The episode starts where he started; At, of all places, Swett's Tire and Auto, an exit ramp gas station and small convenience store. Over the course a decade, Gene inexplicably turned Swett's into one of the best, and certainly earliest, destinations for retail craft beer in the northern half of Maine. The conversation eventually moves toward the second half of Gene's beer career, as he opened Nocturnem, a decidedly high-end beer bar in the center of a city that was decidedly struggling. We talk about the difficulties and rewards of being an early adopter, the terrors and exhilarations of entrepreneurship, the responsibilities of leadership within a community, and the amazing things that can come from imperfect circumstances. Being one of the funnest and rounded conversations the podcast has seen, it's only fitting that it concludes with quite possibly the best Three Bay in its storied seventy-two episode....Please enjoy this little slice of honesty half as much as we did. ....... ........................ ............................... Music: "Mountain Climb: by Jake Hill