Psssst! Wanna hear a secret?!? A juicy secret? Okay, it’s not reeeeeeaaaally a secret. It’s something that I haven’t really spoken much about online but something that is incredibly exciting for me… and maybe even a little anxiety-inducing. I’m going to be running the kitchen of the new microbrewery/beer pub, Rincón Beer Company, here in Rincón, Puerto Rico, scheduled to open this winter!

That’s right, guys, I’m dusting off my boxing gloves and getting back in the ring! It’s been nearly 8 years since I’ve worked in a professional commercial kitchen but this time I’m reemerging as the executive chef rather than an employee. When I was approached about a year ago by my good friends (and now business partners) Sage and Naomi Hobbs, to handle the kitchen of their brainchild, The Rincón Beer Company, I was flatter and incredibly excited. In the US, the micro and nano brewery scene has been around and bustling for so long nearly every state is saturated with local, delicious breweries. Here on la isla del encanto that’s not been the case.

When I first moved to the rock about two and a half years ago, there was only the Medalla factory in Mayaguez and one single microbrewery, Old Harbor, based out of Old San Juan. In the small town of Rincón, I think I found one bar that carried a single IPA back then and grocery stores were pretty much void of all craft beer. But that has all been changing! Within the first year of living here more bars started carrying craft beers and eventually they started popping up in the markets as well. Now there is even a community of a handful of micro-brewers who are all passionate about making craft beer and expanding the beer scene on the island. From Dacay Cerveza Artesanal to Boqueron Brewing Co. to the soon-to-open Rincón Beer Co. just to name a few, there is an exciting group of brewers who are looking to show Puerto Rico what it’s all about. You all know my own personal love of craft beers (remember that whole ”beer porn movement” I was trying to start back in ’09?) and my intense love of food. How’s a girl like me supposed to say no to running the kitchen of a brewery like that? Pretty much impossible, right?

Under construction! The current store front of the Rincon Beer Co.

With the opening menu coming together, working on food costs and projections and interviewing prospective employees with the hopes of building a like-minded staff, I’ve got my plate full right now. And I couldn’t be more excited about it! NaBloPoMo is kinda like the cherry on top… or more like the cherry trying to balance on top of the cherry that is already on top. (aka I’m still doing FPD and trying to enjoy life beyond work at the same time too.) Lots of cherries. 😉 This is far from the last post you will be forced to sit through from me on the Rincón Beer Company over the next month and coming years. I’ve been dying to spill the beans for ages now. If you happen to find yourself in Puerto Rico, take a day trip to our beautiful little surfer town of Rincón on the west coast of the island and come share a pint, a bite and say hello! I’d love to see your shining faces out here enjoying la vida tropical as much as I have been!