Last week we learned that Peter Bouckaert was leaving his post as New Belgium brewmaster to launch a small start-up. Bouckaert is one of those legends in brewing; not only has he helmed New Belgium for two decades, but was responsible for starting their incredible foeder program and turning New Belgium into the eight-largest brewery in the US. It was under his leadership that New Belgium launched a second facility on the East Coast and became an industry leader in sustainability. And of course before that, he brewed at Rodenbach.

This is far from unprecedented. Several years back, John Harris left Full Sail to start Ecliptic here in Portland; before that he'd been the founding brewer at Deschutes. Larry Sidor, who started his career at Olympia, went on to Deschutes where he radically expanded operations and turned the brewery into a national leader. In 2012, he left to start Crux Fermentation Project. In 2015 Chuck Silva left Green Flash to start Silva Brewing. More recently, Mitch Steele, who once worked for Anheuser Busch and then went to Stone Brewing, left to start New Realm in Atlanta.

This can't be an easy decision. Breweries like New Belgium are pretty amazing places to work. The equipment allows brewers to make any beer in the world. All of the companies I mentioned here are known for their experimentation and inventiveness; they're not just making the same flagship beers giant batch after giant batch on push-button equipment. Being at a brewery like New Belgium gave Bouckaert a high-profile platform, and he got to do things like author books, give keynote address, travel, and collaborate with anyone he wished. A brewer can probably expect to make more money--and certainly take on less risk--than at a start-up. And of course, big breweries have the resources to do things like this: