Conversations like the one held a couple of weeks ago with Guillem Laporta, Beer Sommelier and Owner of Homo Sibaris, is what make the Pourtraits series make sense. The reasons that have led me to reach this conclusion are various.

On the one hand, we are talking about the protagonist number 10 of the Pourtraits series, a not-so-insignificant number for a modest blog/space dedicated to beer culture such as CRAFTED. On the other hand, he was one of my teachers in the beer specialization courses from the University of Alicante, and since then, I have always considered him a reference. But above all, because this Pourtraits post comes at a very special moment and serves, thanks to the initiative promoted by the Barcelona Beer Festival team, to review his trajectory and present his recent, and more than deserved, nomination as one of the six finalists to the III Steve Huxley Award - Recognition of the Professional Brewing Career, within the framework of a joint action in which various media, blogs, and podcasts have participated (Birraire, Factoria de cerveza, Beer & Trips, Como la birra misma, The Brewer Factory, and myself).

When I think of Guillem, the first thing that comes to mind is an experience that I had a few years ago in the mythical Homo Sibaris in Plaça d'Osca de Sants. Coincidentally that day, another of the award finalists was also present, Salva Marimón, who came to tell us about installations, cleaning them, and the enormous importance of the often-forgotten final phase of the process that ends with beer in the glass.

I remember that during that day, Guillem gave a master class in which, in addition to me being amazed at how the same beer varied depending on the number of pours from the tap and the rest time between them, he taught us some tricks to turn a more carbonated beer into creamy or create foam where there is none. After class, we enjoyed a great family meal in his bar, and Guillem kindly shared his vision of the sector with all the students while we sampled some jewels from his collection.

Fate and the passion for beer have meant that after a few years, we once again sat together at the same table to share a pleasant talk about beer culture that, for me, has been a real gift. Thank you very much, Guillem, and good luck!

Ø.- Guillem, when you began to be interested in the world of craft beer, in our country, there was no brewing tradition typical of Anglo-Saxon or Central European countries, with decades of making beers of different styles in microbreweries.

Can you explain where and when you tried for the first time that kind of "different" beers that were not typically served in bars?

Guillem:  It all started through my mother's partner, José Luis Coma, a theater actor who knew many people in the world of hospitality. Among those friends, a man named Bobby opened the first English pubs in Barcelona and probably in Catalonia. I remember once when they took me to one of those pubs, and they gave me a taste of a Kriek - the commercial ones - and of course, when they asked me if I liked it, I said yes, because it hardly tasted like beer.

Later on, Coma himself, who had left the theater and was engaged in other jobs, such as working in transports, began to help a friend named Steve (Huxley) transport some things to a brewpub called Barcelona Brewing Company. In return, Steve gave him beers. I remember that when I was fifteen years old, he took me with him in the van and told me: "we are going to go to a place where we are going to try a beer that is not so cold, that does not have so much gas, but that is super good". And I thought: "Let's see, I'm fifteen years old, I don't usually drink beer...". The thing is, when we got to the bar, they did serve me a half pint of the Real Ale that Steve was brewing there, along with another brewer named Dave, and when I tried it, I said, "This is great!" I loved it.

When I was sixteen, it was legal to drink wine and beer in bars, so from sixteen to seventeen, I would go there whenever I could and had some money. Therefore it was the place where I tried my first beers.

But just when I turned seventeen, the law changed, and I was in "dry dock" for a year, so to speak. At that time, I was going to an “agrupamiento escolta” in Poble Sec, and when I was walking up the street, I remember seeing the lights of Cervecería Jazz, and I thought, "Wow, when I turn eighteen, I'm definitely coming here".

When I finally turned eighteen, Steve had already closed his brewpub, and I started going to Jazz without knowing that he also had a relationship with the people there. I started trying things, and I saw that they also had an association that brewed beer in the attic. I met a lot of people at that time, and when we tried the beers they brewed, I loved them. I could say that this was where I discovered the world of craft beer and got into it.

Ø.- You studied Hispanic Philology at the University of Barcelona, but soon you realized that your vocation was beer. Can you tell us what role it played in determining your career path, the passage through the Humulus Lupulus association?

Guillem: I have to start by saying that I started studying Philology but I quit right away. After passing the selection process at eighteen I had to go to work and did a four-year break in which I did not study. After those four years, I stopped working, I received a settlement, and I began to receive unemployment support, and that was when I decided that it was time to resume my studies. First I signed up for Japanese, to train myself to study again, and then Philology.

But I am hyperactive, and I realized that philology is studied sitting down. It is read and written sitting down. And I, who had been brewing beer at Humulus Lupulus for some time, felt much more comfortable doing that. I thought: “I can become an ok philologist, but I am not going to stand out because I cannot sit still for so long. But on the other hand, as a brewer, I do think it is something I can excel at”.

With beer, what happened to me is that when I tried it, I would remember the name, the smell and the taste even years later, so I realized that that was my thing. It was also much more dynamic. So, indeed, I can say that the passage through Humulus Lupulus was very important in determining my career path.

Ø.- During those years that you were involved in Humulus Lupulus, an association that you came to preside over for four years, in addition to brewing a lot of beer, you had the opportunity to travel to other countries, organize and attend festivals, and import beers that we had never seen here before.

If you compare those years of effervescence and discovery with the sector's current situation, not only nationally but internationally, what aspects do you think have been lost and would you like to get back? And on the other hand, in what do you think we have improved?

Guillem: When Bernat Carreras and I made our first beer at Humulus Lupulus, we were amazed. Because we had been lucky and it turned out well. However, the truth is that the key to that result was that the association members, the founders, accompanied us throughout the entire brewing process.

It was a time when the group was breaking up, they had been burning out, and the association was about to dissolve. But of course, we wanted to make beer. We had signed up to make beer. But they never found the moment. So we said, "well, we pay the fee, so let's make beer. One day we will go there, we will add malt, hops, and if you want it to go well, join us".

It was then that Inma Collado, Alex Padró, and Alex Bordas, among others, passed by, and each one was giving us advice and guiding us through every step. Thanks to them, we got a great beer. I remember that we were looking at the beer while we thought, "this what we have done, how cool, can you imagine that one day we go to a bar in Barcelona, order a beer, and something similar to this comes out of the tap?". Well, this, nowadays, is already a reality in Barcelona and almost all of Spain. It is very easy to find this type of beer, and we have improved a lot in that there is a lot of beer available.

What do I miss? Well, when we started this whole revolution, we could never imagine that from the tyranny of industrial lagers, we were going to pass to the tyranny of IPAs. I miss authentic beer culture so much. Hype is good, it's good to sell, it's good to be cool, but that’s not us. If you look at my bar, I am one of those who always have taps with things that are not hype. In fact, I am quite anti-hype.

Ø.- Do you think that in some way we have "commercialized" ourselves, or, to put it another way, that the romanticism of initial days has been lost?

Guillem: What happens is that new actors and actresses have been incorporated into the movie. We are experiencing a new chapter in which a group of people thought that there was money here and that business could be done. People from the world of business have entered. And they go with their idea. They have come with a lot of money, much more money than us romantics had back then; they have invested in marketing and are the visible profiles today. But I can tell you that this is going to change. Because all of us who have been here from the beginning have not disappeared. Some of us are still here, and we are plotting things to take a new step. It is not about removing anyone from the middle or anything like that; what we want is to return to contributing to what we have dreamed of.

We have already achieved something that seems incredible to us, changing society at the beer level. Even at much higher levels than we thought. We have been observing how these people work, what they are doing and how they reach the consumers. We are preparing to take new steps and get them to drink lagers again, and continental ales like those from Belgium, ales like those from the islands, with little gas, from a hand pump at a temperatures of 8-9 degrees, which are fantastic to enjoy. There is going to be a new coup. We have to reclaim the beer culture, that all beer is great and each style has its moment.

I am shocked, so to say, when I see people ordering, for example, a fantastic cheese board and a Neipa, or these hop shakes that are a bad reinterpretation of what a Neipa should be (it should not be rough, It shouldn't be astringent, you shouldn't notice bits of hops in your mouth…). They called them juicy because they have to be something with little bitterness, silky, very pleasant, very aromatic, elegant, the opposite of what has been done. But that happens due to a lack of culture. It is expected that it has happened, it is not bad, we are growing, and this is a part of growth.

Ø.- Steve Huxley is considered the father of craft beer and the person who changed the beer paradigm in our country. However, in your case, Steve was more than just a benchmark, giving courses, lecturing, and teaching brewing.

Can you explain your relationship with him and what memories you have of the years you shared behind the bar at La Cerveteca?

Guillem: I consider Steve family. It's a very different relationship, the one I had with him. For example, at La Cerveteca, I was the one who hired Steve. Many people thought that he was the owner, but the truth was it was me who asked him to come at a time when no one was betting on him, and he had had some problems in life. He was in a low moment, and nobody gave him a hand. And I knew he was a fucking genius. And he had to be. The pity is that it was not a time to get the most out of his potential; we needed something else at that time. He joined us with all his humbleness and functioned as a waiter when it was not his task, neither by age nor by anything; it was a complete waste of his talent.

The truth is that I had never learned anything from Steve, because the moment just wasn’t right. He was indeed the one who inspired the association, but he soon disassociated himself from it since he had his own projects opening breweries and other things that did not end well for him. But during the time of La Cerveteca, I had incredible development and personal growth thanks to him.

For me, Steve's beer part, which is vast, is nothing compared to his philosophical part. He had a degree in classical philology, so imagine the knowledge that man had. He experienced the sixties in the front line, all the underground culture…, all that was inside him. Besides, he was a man from Liverpool, with all the Anglo-Saxon culture that it entails. Steve was a well of wisdom and taught me a lot about beer, but much more about life. It gave me that kind of knowledge that I would never have imagined would be lost at the rate that it is being lost today. A series of values that I think are disappearing and that should be preserved in some way.

Steve was the one who told me, "you have to go to San Diego, where the world championship is being held, you have to meet Boris de Mesones, I'm in touch with him, and you have to do all these things, because Guille, this is what will allow you to take a leap". See the world and go to the next level. And I listened to him.

I was lucky enough to go to San Diego to meet Boris, see what was happening in California, and visit Russian River in 2008 when it was still a very humble pizzeria. In fact, I remember that when I was there trying beers there, and I told the brewer: "I come from Belgium, from the Zythos festival, and what you are doing here is fucking crazy". And she answered: "we are winemakers, and of course, when we saw that to make great wine, we have between 30 or 40 opportunities, one per year, but instead we could make beer every day...". On that trip, I also met Stone's founder; it was amazing.

Steve has taught me so much. He has never given me beer classes, but he has inspired me, taught me, and guided me. I have met a lot of people thanks to him. Imagine how many things I’ve learned with Steve. Being close to him meant learning.

Ø.- Speaking of La Cerveteca. You founded it in 2006 together with Francisco Gálvez (Condal Chef), and it was the first bar or pub in Barcelona dedicated solely and exclusively to craft beer. Can you describe the beer fan profile who visited your bar at that time, and what kind of beers you used to offer?

Guillem: I have to say that the beer fan did not visit our pub, mainly because he did not exist. There were no beer fans. One of the first wise decisions we made together with Ruben Zurita, who was one of those who founded the bar with me, was to decide that we would have nothing other than beer. Nothing.

First, we were a shop and then a bar, because as a shop it was difficult for us, and after the change, we decided that we would not serve anything other than beer because we would end up selling the other. People came in, looked around, didn't understand anything... and we explained to them that we had Cantillon, De Dolle Brouwers ..., all beers from people we knew. We created our customer base.

And it was a great idea because it generated authentic word-of-mouth marketing, and we became a benchmark. When someone wanted beer, they came to us. We had installed it in people's heads. If you want beer, you go to La Cerveteca. There were other bars with imported beers, but there were no craft beer bars that only had true craft beer.

I told people: "we are a lot of people around the world who have understood that what is most cool is live beer, that it is much more complex, it makes you feel better, and gives you much more. And also, behind it, there are very cool people and very cool projects". Because it's not just beer, it's a philosophy; it's culture, it's politics. It is a way of understanding the world through beer.

Ø.- In 2011, after leaving La Cerveteca, you founded another of Barcelona's beer temples in the Sants neighborhood: Homo Sibaris. How did the idea of creating your own bar come about, and what do you think has been the secret to keeping it solid for all these years and that seems to outlive the hype that is so common today?

Guillem: Homo Sibaris was founded after I left La Cerveteca, four years after its foundation. While I was still there, I realized that I had to study to become a sommelier. One day, the TV came to visit, TV3, and they told us that they wanted to film a program about beer in the pub. When I told them what I had to say, they said nothing, that they already had their own sommelier. I asked them who he was because I knew almost everyone in the field, and when they told me his name, I did not know who he was. He was a good professional, he knew what he was talking about, but he was not from our world. Then I realized and understood. “Who knows that I know something about this?" Why should they believe me if I don't have a degree or anything?”. And that's when I decided to study to be a sommelier.

At first, I was planning to open a tasting room and do consulting, but my parents needed a job. Things were a bit bad, so I thought about opening a bar and offering jobs to more people. Then the idea of creating Homo Sibaris came up. We did it with Juan Carlos, who was a former client of La Cerveteca. He is a technical architect, and when I was looking for a place, he told me: "Hey, why not this place," and I replied, "because I don't have the money to buy it" (it wasn't where we currently are). At that moment, he offered to help me and also joined the project. Bernat, a lifelong friend of mine, also put in some money. And between what I was left with when leaving La Cerveteca and the rest, well, we put it together.

Why have we survived? Because we are very stubborn. And because we have had help from friends, especially Sergio Ruiz, who has put a basis for the project (we would be closed without him!). We owe him everything.

And on the other hand, because we have not wanted to change our philosophy. We are indeed becoming more flexible because, in the end, we have to live, but our clientele is the people of the neighborhood. People come here with their children, with their parents, with their brothers and sisters, groups of friends... and many of the people who come here do not come for the beer scene.

The good thing is that we have understood that beer geek is a very small piece and that the cake is much bigger. We have focused on the other piece of the cake. And we are doing very well, of course, because here people come because they eat and drink well. Surprisingly, nobody comes to buy a Cantillon, even if I keep very good prices. They prefer other places, so that means I drink them. That is the proof that I do not have that audience except for beer tourism, who does come.

Ø.- You started learning in a self-taught way, but you also have formal training and are a certified sommelier, both in wine and beer. I have been a student of yours in courses at the University of Alicante. I must admit that this training meant a before and after for me, not only at the level of knowledge but also respect and admiration for beer as a product.

What recommendation would you give to all those people who are beginning to feel curious about the world of craft beer but do not know where to go to continue learning?

Guillem: I recommend them to study and, above all, read if you can get your hands on it (as it is out of print) the "The World Guide to Beer" by Michael Jackson. It's the most incredible thing I've ever read. I’ve read it until it’s nearly broken. I like it so much; it explains everything so well, it explains so many things, and there is so much information. It's an onion, it has a thousand layers, and the more you know, the more you learn. It's amazing. And it also transmits what beer culture is as it has been transmitted to me and that, as I have told you, it is something that I think is in danger of being lost. However, we will not allow that.

When I went to Europe to learn, to Germany for example, and asked in a typical pub if the brewer was available and they introduced him to me, I explained that I also brew beer, that I liked his beer, and then he reacted and told me "come on come on, I'll show you everything" We talked about beer, he gave me a taste of fermenters... And that, which was something that happened to me everywhere, is something that we are losing. Now, if you want to go on a tour, the tickets are this much, the beers cost this much,… It is something we cannot lose. Perhaps reading this interview or a book like the one by Michael Jackson, people understand what this is about.

As for workshops, courses, etc., it depends a bit on the level of each one, where they want to go and if they do not wish to dedicate themselves to it professionally, then yes, they should do tastings, trying beers, especially different kinds of things, without prejudice, and that they experiment and read entertaining books such as “¿Qué vino para este pato?" by Ferran Centelles, that does not talk about beer, but about gastronomy and that you can apply to beer.

If you want to dedicate yourself professionally, it is essential to study and understand everything that has happened before, because knowledge is power. For example, when I have been brewing beer and have had problems, thanks to having a knowledge of a beer culture, I have been able to solve them, or I have been able to turn them around. Sometimes I have even changed the style because I wanted to do one, and I came up with another. But it’s ok, I have noticed it, and all I had to do is change the label because it was not a bad beer; it was excellent. Or it has become contaminated, but it is positive contamination, so I have decided to put it in a barrel. The fact of having studied gives you a lot of resources.

I remember an anecdote: when the Black IPAs came out, or rather, just before they came out, I remember I had read about Schwarzbiers in Michael Jackson's book. Its history is the same as Black IPAs, and in fact, I am convinced that everyone who started making them knew about it, that it has to do with dehulled black malt. The bitterness is in the husk, and if you remove it, then the flavors of the Maillard reaction do not appear, and it does not taste like a dark beer. And so it was born. I read it and said I want to do the same. At that time, I did not know that I was doing the same thing as many other people, at the same time, around the world. The Black IPAs were not yet born. And interestingly, these things happen, I made the Espasa Nocturna with Bernat. We were innovating, inspired by the past because I knew the history, but without knowing it I could never have done it.

Ø.- I know that you are a great lover of sour beers, and now that I have you here, I can't help but ask for your advice and that you recommend and briefly describe three Lambic-style beers that, in your opinion, those of us who are devoted to this type of beer should try.

Guillem: Cantillon, Girardin unfiltered, and Oud Beersel. Cantillon, for example, has evolved a lot. The first time I went, Jean's father (Van Roy) was in charge. I saw the transition from father to son, and now I am seeing the change from Jean to his children. When I started drinking Cantillon, I got goosebumps from it being very sour. Now instead, it is very elegant. Cantillon is “the lambic”.

Girarden is "the introvert"; you will never see interviews with the brewer. I had the opportunity to meet him, but because my friends from Brasserie de la Senne took me to the bar where, according to what they told me, it was the only place where perhaps we could be lucky enough to meet him. Imagine a bar in the middle of the Brussels countryside, only open on Sundays, serving their beer. And indeed, I met him there. Their beer is spectacular, and it is the essence of lambic.

As for Oud Beersel, they are working very well with fruits. La Framboise is madness, and they have also innovated since they are making it without using a barrel. The fruit has an amazing definition because they are in stainless steel, and that means that there are no interferences.

And finally, although it is not a lambic, continuing with the line of spontaneous beers, I would recommend Loverbeer. Because it is a beer that has character, the fruit works very well, and if you taste their saison, you will see that it tastes like natural wine. I have given it to sommeliers to try without telling them, and they thought they were tasting a wine. They work the style very well.

Ø.- In addition to having a comprehensive vision of beer, both at the level of history, as well as its preparation, tasting, evaluation, and service, you are an expert in one of the things I like the most in life (along with beer and chocolate): cheese. So I have to ask: what essential criteria must be taken into account when pairing cheese and craft beer?

Guillem: First of all, I must tell you that I do not consider myself a cheese expert because you have to respect true cheese experts. I have been close to them for a long time, I know them, I like them, and maybe I can be an expert for someone who does not know anything about cheese. But the truth is that there are real professionals in the world of cheese.

That said if I am a sommelier, at a level of pairings with a product as fatty and salty as cheese, I would tell you that you have to avoid tannins. For example, red wine in barrels does not go well with cheese, as the tannins accentuate the salinity of the cheese. The cheese does not do well with wine, and the wine, if it is bad, the cheese does well because it hides the wine's defects.

With beers, what happens is that many of the aromas of cheese are also found in beer, so there are many possible pairings. Hops should be avoided, and although there are some exceptions, they are very few. An example would be found in Cheddar, the real one, not the block one. These types of cheeses do work with hops. But not just any hops or any level of hops. Typically, in my experience, caramelized and roasted malts are usually a good choice for cheese. It is a reasonably accurate pairing.

As for how I approach cheese pairings, I can tell you that I started based mainly on classic pairings because there are people like Oliver Garret (Brooklyn Brewery) who have already written books about it. Gruyere and Comté with lagers are fantastic because they have those notes that are reminiscent of DMS, and they go very well together. As I said before, Cheddar goes well with English IPAs, of a traditional cut, and with Pale Ales. The Gouda, with Strong Ales.

I have also "stolen" the spider web chart from the Italian sommeliers' association that they use for wine. It's a score-based way of approaching pairings. In any case, the world of pairing is still beginning, and although there are some great references, such as Celler Can Roca, there is still a long way to go.

Ø.- And to finish Guillem, if you could choose an experience, a moment, a conversation, a beer moment… of all the ones you have experienced to date and relive it right now with just a snap of your fingers, what would it be?

Guillem: San Diego, with Boris. Boris taught me a lot. With nonsense like "pour me a beer". I serve it to him and ask him: "Have I done well?" and he tells me: "it depends, you haven't asked me anything”, and I thought, "oh, that’s right". "You haven't asked me if I like it with more gas or less, and I like it with more gas. So you haven't done well", he told me.

During that trip, I was in San Diego for the world championship and in San Francisco, in Napa Valley; thanks to my friend Adam who showed me everything over there; he welcomed me into his home. I remember paying to be in all the private world championship activities, and we went to a party in Escondido, behind closed doors, where there were only brewers. Charles Papazian approached me, as he noticed a Humulus Lupulus T-shirt that a friend of mine was wearing. I gave him my card and when he saw that I was the president and he said:" 'Look, like me!" and I said, "yes, of course, exactly the same". It was a moment to remember.

Another moment that I would relive was when I went as a beer hunter to Denver, to the Great American Beer Festival with Condal Chef. We were able to obtain the distribution for Rogue after meeting with Charlie Papazian and his team.

It is very difficult to mention just one moment, because I have been lucky enough to experience so many. I once saw Michael Jackson signing books ...

If I think of festivals, the best I've ever been to would be the Bruxellensis. It was held for three years and was organized by Brasserie de la Senne. I have not seen anything like it. Everyone was talking about beer all the time. At that festival, I remember that people were lining up to order an Agullons, and everyone was talking about beer between them. It was impressive.