Well, seeing how the guy is a chef and a "foodie" then I think I will build an AG set we can share, and in the mean time brew some extracts to get the technique down.
BTW, by technique, you mean adding hops and aerating the yeast? Cause I don't see any other points of failure in extracts.
Proper sanitation, making a yeast starter, hitting and holding the proper temperature for specialty grains, learning your heat source's ability to hold a boil and how high to keep it, figuring out whether you want to use hop sacks or strain, figuring out what a hot break looks like in person, coming up with a good checklist system to make sure that you don't forget to rehydrate your irish moss or whatever, using a hydrometer, chilling the wort, aeration, temperature control, leaving in primary for the proper amount of time after fermentation ends, sanitizing bottles, using the autosiphon and bottling wand to fill things, if you need ice or water what's the best way to prep, store, and use it, etc.
And things like when are you going to have a hand free to hold a sanitized piece of equipment and when are you going to have to plan to have a sanitary place to keep it, learning not to put the hydrometer anywhere it can roll around even in the tube, etc.
None of it's hard, but walking through it once or twice gives you some first-hand experience.