Brewer Interview: Sean Gorzynski (Logyard Brewing)
Back At It
Well we’re back at it, with some interviews from brewers. This fun series looks deeply into a brewer (or brewers) from some of your favorite breweries, and asks them questions about their past, present, and future; as well as the brewery they work for. I’ll have a list of some other brewer interviews later in the article.
Today’s brewer interview is with Sean Gorzynski – head brewer of Logyard Brewing out of Kane Pennsylvania. Back in 2019 I got to visit Kane Pennsylvania and stopped in at Logyard Brewing with my daughters after we visited Kinzua Bridge earlier in the day. Loved the brewery, loved the beers (and all other beers I’ve had from them since), and my daughters also loved the place – my one daughter still asks about the beer cheese they used for their nachos – Lily loved it that much.
So without further adieu, let’s get on with the interview and meet Sean Gorzynski.
The Interview
(For ease of the interview, after the first few initial questions, I will refer to myself / the blog as “TBT” rather than The Beer Thrillers or B. Kline; and I will refer to Sean Gorzynski as “SG” rather than continually using the long form of his name and my own and the website itself. This should make the interview flow smoother. Also, the interview follows a clean style of question – answer, question – answer, question – answer, etc. Names of The Beer Thrillers and Sean Gorzynski will be bolded and the answers will be in regular font.)
The Beer Thrillers: When and how did Logyard Brewing start?
Sean Gorzynski: Logyard Brewing was started by Michael Dunn, Royce Novosel-Johnson and Tim Roberts. They started out with a 1bbl system in Kane, PA. The brewery started operations in 2019.
The Beer Thrillers: Who was involved in the creation of Logyard Brewery?
Sean Gorzynski: There were numerous people involved but it was primarily the 3 mentioned above that got the place off the ground.
TBT: Why Kane Pennsylvania?
SG: Kane is Royce’s hometown and it’s going through quite the revitalization. We’re right in the Allegheny National Forest and there are tons of activities to do around here.
TBT: What is the size of the brewery? (Taproom size, brewery size, barrel production, etc.)
SG: The taproom is right around 5000 square feet, as is the brewery. We have a 15bbl brewhouse with 3x15bbl FVs and 5x 30bbl FVs. Currently doing around 4500bbl/year but are quickly expanding.
TBT: Does Logyard Brewing have a canning line or bottling line?
SG: We operate a two head Wild Goose canning line.
TBT: Does Logyard Brewing have distribution?
SG: Logyard distributes throughout the state of PA currently with further markets in mind as we
continue to grow and expand.
TBT: What is your background Sean? Tell us about you – your age, education, past breweries, etc.
SG: I am 36 years old, went to school for music recording technology; and for some silly reason and here I am. I’ve previously worked at Berwick Brewing, Troegs, Lagunitas and Victory with a few in between.
TBT: How did you get started in beer and craft beer in particular?
SG: My step dad drank craft beer and one day I found a bottle of Blithering Idiot from Weyerbacher in the refrigerator and asked to try it. I hated it, it was way too much at the time but I found it really interesting and that piqued my interest in craft beer.
TBT: How did you get started in brewing? Did you homebrew?
SG: I started helping out with a small project at Berwick Brewing and a little while later was offered a job as a brewer. That was a much better option than working at Lowes as a manager so I went with it. I had never homebrewed prior to brewing on a commercial level.
TBT: Initial favorite beers (when you were first getting into craft beer)?
SG: Probably something from Dogfish Head. I recall 90 Minute IPA being really interesting but really bitter so I tried 60 Minute IPA and found that to be a nice compromise.
TBT: Favorite early breweries (when you were first getting into craft beer)?
SG: I really enjoyed the wacky stuff Dogfish Head did. The local breweries of course, Troegs, Victory, Sly Fox. I also started to really enjoy Belgian beers like Rochefort, Westmalle, Chimay.
TBT: As a consumer; What styles and types of beer do you enjoy?
SG: German Pilsners are by far my favorite beer style. If I have a beer on a consistent basis though, it’s High Life because it’s a crisp, clean beer that always tastes the same. I’ll also say the cliche “I enjoy a little bit of everything” as I still can appreciate a nice dry, bitter West Coast IPA or a big chewy milk stout.
TBT: What are some of your favorite breweries?
SG: Wayfinder out in Portland, OR make some amazing stuff that we unfortunately don’t see here on the east coast. Allagash, Troegs and Dancing Gnome all make some awesome beers and would be up there for me. I’m also biased due to my time working there but Lagunitas put out some of the best IPAs you can get.
TBT: Do you like to travel to breweries or rather drink at home?
SG: I don’t get to visit as many breweries as I’d like to just because of life being busy but I definitely enjoy going and seeing new breweries / taprooms.
TBT: As a consumer, what do you look for in a beer, what flavors, or styles, or ingredients / hops do you enjoy?
SG: I look for crisp and clean styles. I like the earthy, herbal and crisp profile of a Pils and the chocolate and roastiness of a stout or dark lager. As for hop combos, Mosaic/Citra/Simcoe is the holy grail in my mind.
TBT: What styles and types of beer do you enjoy making?
SG: I like making everything to be honest. Kind of a boring answer but I really just enjoy brewing no matter what the style.
TBT: What are some of the more creative ways you like to brew?
SG: Messing around with different yeast strains is fun. It can get cost prohibitive at times but there are a lot of nice dry yeast strains out there to help cut costs down a bit and make it reasonable. Yeast is such a driving factor in flavor profiles of beers and I like to see what different strains can do.
TBT: What have been some of your favorite beers or recipes that you have brewed?
SG: Trees Louise West Coast IPA turned out even better than I expected so that was awesome. We just recently packaged Prognosticator Pils, a German style keller pils. Heavily hopped in the kettle with Spalt Select, it turned out very crisp and herbal/floral, just what I was looking for.
TBT: Have any preferences – West Coast vs. New England? Porter vs. Stout?
SG: West Coast IPAs for sure. I can appreciate some hazies but always find that a single 16oz can leaves me kinda bloated and not interested in food or beer afterwards.
TBT: Thoughts on the ways consumers now view and treat breweries and beer? Preferences on things like pints vs. flights? Bottles vs. cans?
SG: Flights are a necessity but I do feel bad for the bartenders with them at times. As for bottles vs cans, I like cans better because they can be recycled for eternity and while they have higher total packaged oxygen initially, they allow less oxygen in over time. There’s always the debate of bottles tasting better than cans but that’s different from person to person.
TBT: Things that you enjoy about being a brewer?
SG: I like the creativity of brewing a lot. I’m not an especially artistic or creative person but when it comes to brewing and brewing processes I feel I can get weird with it sometimes. I also really enjoy the camaraderie in the industry. I’ve made a ton of friends in brewing over the years and stay in touch with most of them even without having seen them in person in years.
TBT: Things that annoy you about being a brewer?
SG: I don’t deal with it anymore but rotating shifts all the time and never getting into a rhythm in terms of sleep or social life wasn’t very fun. It’s all part of the game though and could be much worse.
Let’s do a quick round of ‘favorites’:
TBT: What is your current favorite non-Logyard Brewery?
SG: I’d have to say Wayfinder Brewing. Their lagers crush and every style I’ve had from them has been on point.
TBT: What is your current favorite non-Logyard beer?
SG: That’s a tough one. As I said earlier, I really enjoy High Life but from a craft perspective either Sunshine Pils from Troegs or Braumeister Pils from Victory.
TBT: Favorite/Best state for beer traveling?
SG: I really enjoyed traveling around the Bay Area in California while I lived there. Driving one hour north or one hour south of where I lived offered a huge variety of breweries doing all kinds of different things.
TBT: Favorite/best city for beer traveling and drinking?
SG: San Francisco, hands down. Good breweries and bars with beers from everywhere. Toronado on Haight Street is by far my favorite bar. It’s a little grimey but they always have a killer bottle and tap list and the vibe there is awesome.
TBT: Favorite beer you’ve made?
SG: Back at Berwick Brewing I made a beer called “Couple Two’Tree Pale Ale”. It was about 5% ABV with Cascade and Citra hops. I brewed it for my wedding and it turned out exactly how I wanted and it holds a special place in my heart.
TBT: Favorite beer you’ve done a collaboration with? Favorite brewery to do a collaboration with?
SG: I haven’t actually done too many collaborations in my time so I can’t really say. I have a few in planning that I’m looking forward to though.
Let’s look into the future….
TBT: Where do you see craft beer in the future? In the next 5 years, the next 10 years? The next 20 years?
SG: Unfortunately I see the craft beer industry slowing a little for the next few years. The pandemic messed stuff up as we all know and everything has gotten so expensive across the board, it’s almost weekly that I’m getting emails of price increases. I think in a few years or so things will stabilize again and we’ll start to see the industry pick back up again.
TBT: Where do you see Logyard Brewing in the next 5 years? 10 years? 20 years?
SG: Continuous growth at the right pace. Balancing growth and quality is a big deal, you don’t want growth to get ahead of quality control. I’d like to think in the 5-10 year range we’re starting to look into upgrading to a bigger brewhouse, FVs, etc.
TBT: Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years? 10 years? 20 years?
SG: Kind of the same thing from the previous question, I imagine I’ll be helping to grow this company and start planning out the new equipment and things of that nature. 20 years from now? I’m back out in California. My aching body won’t be enjoying the cold weather at that point in life.
TBT: (the interview questions were developed and sent at the beginning of December, 2022): 2023 is right around the corner, what do you think will be the big trend of 2023? The big trends going forward in craft beer?
SG: Bioengineered yeasts. Speaking to other brewers, there is a lot more interest in these strains. Hops are expensive and shipping them is pricey as well. If you can use an engineered yeast to create some hop flavors and have to put less hops in your batch and get a better yield, why wouldn’t you?
TBT: Where do you see more breweries putting emphasis in 2023? In person/taprooms, distribution, bottling, canning, etc.
SG: Normally I’d say more focus on taprooms but the pandemic may have changed that. Again, with the price of everything going crazy it makes sense to focus on taproom sales as that’s where you make your money, especially if you’re in a bigger market.
TBT: What would be some advice you would give to a starting home brewer?
SG: Don’t worry or get frustrated if your beers aren’t great to start. It takes time to get processes dialed in.
TBT: What would be some advice you would give to an advanced home brewer looking to start his own brewery?
SG: Get a job at a brewery for a bit before starting your own place. There’s quite a bit of stuff to learn on the commercial level and it will only make it easier to start your own spot. There’s a big difference between brewing 5 or 10 gallons at a time to 500 gallons at a time.
TBT: Any last comments, or things you would like to say or plug for Logyard Brewing? Or any new beers you would like to promote?
SG: We’ve recently released a new Blueberry Sour that turned out great. We haven’t done too many sours here in the past so it was a nice change of pace.
I would like to thank Sean Gorzynski and Logyard Brewing very much for the opportunity for the interview. I appreciate the time and effort taken to give the answers so thoroughly here. It really means a lot to us here at The Beer Thrillers, as well as I’m sure it does to our readers. Thank you very much!
Logyard Brewing
For more information on Logyard Brewing, let’s first look to Untappd. According to Untappd Logyard Brewing is a micro brewery from Kane, Pennsylvania. They have 137 unique beers and 47,700 ratings. They have a global average rating of 3.77 (as of 1.18.23). Their Untappd description is currently blank.
You can find them on their social media platforms:
- Logyard Brewing – (Untappd)
- Logyard Brewing – (Official Website)
- Logyard Brewing – (Instagram)
- Logyard Brewing – (Twitter)
- Logyard Brewing – (Facebook)
For More of Our Articles
Wanting to read more about Logyard Brewing, check out our articles here:
- Logyard Brewing’s Prognosticator Pils is the Official Beer of Groundhog Day 2022
- Beer Review: Prognosticator Pils (Logyard Brewing)
- Best in Beer – Farm Show Awards (2023)
- Farm Show Beer Competition – Best in Beer (2023) – Stats
Our Trip To Logyard Brewing
Interested in More Interviews?
Interested in reading more of our interviews? Check these out:
- Brewer Interview: Rod Stahl (Axemann Brewery)
- Brewer Interview: Tyler Budwash (Pilger Ruh Brewing)
- Interview: Ryan Galiotto (Fueled by Hops)
- Brewers and the Industry Look Into 2023
- A Word From Brad Moyer of Liquid Noise Brewing
- A Message From Brooks Hemauer of Hemauer Brewing Co
Thanks For Reading
Firstly, once again I want to thank Sean Gorzynski of Logyard Brewing as well as Logyard Brewing themselves for doing the interview with me. At the end of the year with everything happening (holidays, end of year, etc), they graciously took time to do this and I greatly appreciate that.
Please, if you are even remotely near Kane Pennsylvania, make sure you stop by and check them out. They are making some tremendous beers there.
Secondly, if you are a brewer, brewery, or brewery personnel and want to do an interview with us here at The Beer Thrillers – please be sure to reach out to us at: thebeerthrillers@gmail.com. We always love hearing your side of the stories and we love telling your stories here.
Now, I want to thank all my readers as I always do, thank you for reading, and viewing the blog. I’ll do my typical blogger / YouTuber / content creator spiel here – please like, follow, subscribe, smash that button, do this, that, and the other thing, yadda yadda yadda. Ultimately though, it really does help and matters. So thank you for all of you that do.
Once again I want to call attention to the Hemauer family. They had a devastating fire that destroyed their entire home and will be making it difficult to brew for their brewery – Hemauer Brewing Company. You can read more about it here:
You can also go directly here to their GoFundMe page to help support the family – they are currently at 32,000$ and the goal is 50,000$: Hemauer GoFundMe
Please – if you are able – please help and donate. Or at least get the word out. Thank you.
Once again, thank you all for reading. Be sure to follow us, as there is a load of great content on its way, so keep checking back in with us!
Cheers All!
-B. Kline
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