Craft beer Gweilo has gone from strength to strength. From humble bedroom beginnings, the craft brewers are set to open Hong Kong’s largest craft brewery next summer.
Located in Fo Tan, the US$5million, 7,000sq ft venue will be churning out enough beer to meet the high demand. Originally founded by husband and wife duo Ian and Emily Jebbitt, along with their friend Joe Gould, joining them will be one of the biggest names in the craft brewing business - Matt Walsh.
Walsh, like the Gweilo team, began his craft beer journey by home brewing. After several years working in the Military and Department of Defence, he decided to turn his hobby into a career.
His first brewing job was at AleSmith in San Diego, followed by a long stint at Karl Strauss Brewing Company where he eventually became head brewer. He was also the head brewer of Speakeasy and Lost Coast Brewery and most recently opened Modern Times before moving to Hong Kong.
On working with Gweilo, Walsh says, ‘I leapt at the opportunity to join them and once again build a new brewery. I have always loved visiting Asia, so the opportunity to live and work here, along with the excitement of launching a new facility, were too much to pass up’.
For more on Matt and move to Hong Kong, look out for our feature in the upcoming issue of Time Out Hong Kong, due out this December.