Who is your brewing mentor/hero?

Hey, fellow HBT'ers!

I looked, and couldn't find this thread - I think it might be an interesting one...

Who was/is the person who got you in to brewing? Who gave you the extra boost you needed when you were staring down your first extract kit? Who first told you to relax, don't worry, and let a perceived crisis pass while you drank a homebrew?

My Dad is my brew mentor/hero. He has never made anything but kit-and-can beer kits, but has made amazing wine for 30 years. He is a chemist (and fermenting anything with him takes on the feel of PG-rated Breaking Bad) and seems to have knack for understanding not just what is happening with a batch, but what will happen.

When I was 19 (legal in Canada!), he drove me to the LHBS where he'd bought his first gear, took me in, introduced me to the shopkeep, and had them set me up with my beginner's kit. He told me my first brew was drinkable, but needed work - which it did; he told me when I'd hit quality.

That's my story. I aspire, someday, to be this person for a new brewer.

If you're interested, share your story.

A big prost to all the brewing mentor/heroes out there!!!!

My uncle got me into brewing without knowing it. He had gotten a mr beer kit and made some and I thought it was neat. Then Sam Adams contest commercials set it in for sure

I would have to give a lot of credit to jim koch for motivating me. Someone who starts in there dads kitchen and goes on to become the largest american owned brewery. A lot of respect for that man. However the person who kept pushing me was the owner of a local brew shop. He is a chemist by day and always pushes me to go farther. I might have quit at first if it wasn't for that man.

This might sound cheesy but my only real inspiration was myself. I started making beer and wanted to start making better beer. Had some friends I brew with but we never really push each other. If anything I guess my closest hero is hombrewtalk and the northern brewer forum.

I would have to say Randy Mosher. There's something about his cavalier yet learned approach to homebrewing that strikes a chord within me.

I would have to say it is the great people here on homebrew talk that have given me the support I need to keep brewing

Without doubt Jim Koch.

Getting to play mad genuis all day and run a successful company.
Thats the dream for me.

A couple people local to me but mostly a guy I work with (Rumble) who is constantly teaching me new things and encouraging to push the envelope every time I get frustrated with a new design or trying to come up with an idea for one. He really has been a great guy to learn under and to continue to learn from.

Interesting question, I bought a homebrew kit for me and my brother to use as their housewarming gift. I dont' know if anyone inspired me at that point. As far as people who inspire me I would say it's some combination of Sam Calagione (Dogfish) and the guys who run Cooperstown Brewery. The latter because they just seem like homebrewers at their core who make beer for fun more than profit.

Probably Denny Conn. I took a lot of tips from Denny in my earliest days of Brewing. Thanks Denny.

Everyone's responses have made me realize my pantheon of brewing heroes is bigger than just my Dad...

Local microbrewer, Dave - he offers courses and advice to homebrewers. I know what scatole is because of his off-flavours course. His Humulus Ludicrous IPA made me tear up with pure joy, and convinced me to grow hops. I have to give Dave props.

Keep the stories coming!