by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
Workspace: Angelo Cayo, Anheuser-Busch Senior Brewmaster
Like many college graduates, Angelo Cayo didn’t know where he was going to apply his chemical engineering degree from the University of South Florida and he didn’t know the first thing about brewing beer. But Anheuser-Busch gave him an opportunity to stay in Tampa after he graduated in 1983 and, after 26 years, he knows a thing or two about brewing beer.
“I wanted to stay local,” said Cayo. “I didn’t know much about making beer when I started with the company, but I developed a great passion for brewing beer once I got my foot in the door.”
That foot has gone through many doors within Anheuser-Busch throughout his career. After beginning his career in Tampa, Cayo made stops in St. Louis, Fairfield, Calif, back to St. Louis, Houston, Fairfield, Cartersville, Ga., and he currently resides as senior brewmaster for Anheuser-Busch’s Jacksonville Brewery.
In this position, Cayo will oversee the brewing of over 8 million barrels of beer each year at the Jacksonville brewery. Its three bottle lines, three can lines and one draught line produce 12 of Anheuser-Busch’s line of nearly 90 products. Those brands include Budweiser, Bud Light, Busch, Busch Light, Budweiser Select, Michelob Light, Amber Bock, Michelob Ultra, Michelob Amber Ultra, Landshark, Natural Light and Natural Ice.
His days start around 6:30 a.m. and his first meeting is the 24-hour recap.
“We discuss how brewing went over the previous 24 hours,” said Cayo. “Did we have any problems? How is the equipment operating? Are we on schedule? These are some of the things we discuss.”
Along with monitoring the brewing process, Cayo and some of the 65 brewers on staff at the Jacksonville brewery gather at 3:30 p.m. each day for beer sampling. While this may appear to be one of the best perks of the job, it is work. The brewers are split up to taste a handful of beers being produced at the brewery. They not only test finished beer, but also beer at different stages of the brewing process. They also taste the water used during different stages of the brewing process to ensure its quality.
“Water contributes to the taste of the beer, so that needs to be monitored on a regular basis,” said Cayo.
The tasting methods are similar to what you would expect at a wine tasting. The beer is swirled around the glass and then several, short “rabbit sniffs” help brewers check on the quality of the beer.
Once the beer sampling is completed, brewers submit themselves to one more test. A breathalyzer is set up in a small room off of the sample room and it is linked to a computer that the employees sign into. The test score is registered after they finish. Employees aren’t allowed to drive if they register .05 blood alcohol concentration or higher. The legal limit in Florida is .08.
“If that happens we would call someone a cab to get them home,” said Cayo. “We have never had to call someone a cab.”
The brewmaster ensures that professionalism and quality are a constant at the Jacksonville brewery, but his favorite part of the job is the change.
“It’s a constantly changing natural process, brewing beer,” said Cayo. “Ingredients are always changing and we get new crops. I like the challenge of maintaining a high level of quality in the face of constant change.”
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