Tim Gossack Oral History Interview

Tim Gossack is the Production Manager for Bell’s Brewery in Michigan, where he has been since 2014. In this interview, Gossack talks about growing up in Salem, farming and working on his family cherry orchard, his activities in school (swimming, running, outdoor adventure), and his school interests (math, science). Gossack attended Lewis and Clark College, and he talks about the campus environment, Portland beer in the mid-1980s, and his interest in homebrewing. Gossack worked at Deschutes Brewery for 6 years (1990-1996), and he shares stories about working with John Harris and Mark Vickery, as well as memories of the pub and Bond Street brewery. He moved to Arizona in 1998 and opened his own brewery, Rio Salado Brewing Company and he talks about the challenges of running his own company, differences in that new environment, distribution problems, and his favorite events.

Gossack also worked at MillerCoors from 2006-2014, and he talks about his opportunities for learning about brewing operations at a much larger company, especially the ability to track and analyze the process. He also talks about working towards an MS from the University of Nottingham, where he learned more about styles and different workflows from his international classmates. He talks about his move to Bell’s Brewery, his job with the company, and what it is like to live in Michigan. The interview concludes with his thoughts on his 28 years in the brewing industry, what makes him stay in craft brewing, his anniversary collaboration beer, and why the longevity of the Deschutes is important to him.