Local Man Nabs Master Homebrewer Title

When William Pozniak heard the name of the second place winner at the 2012 Master Homebrewer Competition in New York City last month, he knew he had it in the bag.

Claiming he was “on pins and needles” when the title of Pilsner Urquell's Master Homebrewer was announced, Pozniak said the feeling was “surreal” when his name was called as the winner.

“As a homebrewer,” the longtime Cinnaminson resident said, “to win anything is a big deal.”

Out of the 88 who qualified for the competition—one held in NYC, the other in Chicago—Pozniak took home the Northeast crown for brewing a Czech-style pilsner a la Josef Groll’s 1842 original pilsner beer creation.

Pozniak started out as many homebrewers start—with a simple beer kit.

More than 15 years ago, Pozniak’s wife bought him the kit. And it sat in the closet for years.

“I went to clean out the closet one time and thought, ‘I can’t throw this out without using it,’” Pozniak said.

He had a friend who brewed beer and even though it “looked nasty,” Pozniak said, and had “all kinds of stuff floating in it,” it tasted good.

His first batch tasted good, too, he said—as good as it could using 3-year-old ingredients.

He got hooked anyway. And little by little, he increased his home-brew equipment. And a few year ago, he joined Barley Legal Homebrewers, South Jersey’s largest brew club. He credits the club with his win as Master Homebrewer.

“For years, I brewed just on my own knowledge,” he said. “There were no beer experts in my life or anybody who knew anything about beer. The biggest change of my life was joining the club. It’s great having all that feedback.”

Pozniak entered the same competition last year and came in third. That allowed him to be in the room as the judges were critiquing his beer.

“I was able to get some insight from the judges,” he said. “That helped me a lot.”

Pozniak calls homebrewing an “art,” likening it to a chef.

“You’re creating something,” he said. “It’s like a chef. You’re trying to make good beer. I’m passionate about it, I really am. I’d like to do this for a living, believe it or not.”

His own personal brewing name is Rebel Goat and he’s working on a logo and website for his creations.

Pozniak’s win doesn’t just come with a title but with a trip to Plzen, Czech Republic, this fall to tour the historic brewery and brew a batch of beer with Pilsner Urquell’s Brew Master Vaclav Berka.

“I’m stepping up from my homebrew kit to one of the oldest breweries on the planet,” he said. “I’ll be right there with the master brewer getting my hands dirty. I’m really looking forward to it.”