Craft 805 grew out of a simple idea: the best way to understand something is to immerse yourself in it.

In 2011, I set out on a personal challenge — 300 different beers in 365 days. Just months earlier, I had tasted beer for the first time. If I was going to learn, I wanted to learn by doing. That year became a foundation. What started as a quest quickly became a deeper exploration of flavor, process, and place.

Over the next several years, the challenge continued — 300 new beers each year, more than 1,500 in total since I stopped counting in 2016. I traveled to renowned beer cities and small towns, spending time in taprooms, bottle shops, and breweries, paying attention not just to what was in the glass but to the culture around it. The common thread was education. The strongest beer communities weren’t just selling beer — they were telling stories, encouraging discovery, and creating spaces for conversation.

As the Central Coast’s craft scene continued to grow, it became clear that there was an opportunity to contribute to that momentum. Not by critiquing what existed, but by helping connect people to it — spotlighting producers, elevating retailers, and encouraging consumers to explore with curiosity.

Craft 805 is the next chapter of that original quest. What began as personal exploration has evolved into an ongoing effort to support beer culture on the Central Coast through education, storytelling, and thoughtful advocacy.

The learning never stopped. It just became something bigger than one persons journey.