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Reply to "Thai brewing: Rebel microbreweries thirst for change in the law"

'I want change'

Chit Beer7P'Chit devotes his weekends to spreading brewing knowledge.

Brian Spencer
Since launching Chit Beer in 2012, P'Chit has not only committed both acts openly -- and paid 10,000 baht ($280) in fines following a minor sting operation -- but also trained scores of aspiring homebrewers at his on-site Brewing Academy.
When I visited, the academy was fully booked for the following three months.
"We all know that brewing is illegal, and I know they can come any time they want and shut this down," says P'Chit.
"But at the same time I want change, and I think the only way we can create change is to create an army of brewers."
On weekdays P'Chit, an active colonel in the Royal Thai Army, manages two IT firms and teaches electrical engineering to cadets at the Thai royal military academy.
For the past few years, however, he's dedicated his weekends to honing his brewing talents and to sharing his wisdom with students.
His pupils have developed a thirst for knowledge through being exposed to the myriad styles and nuanced flavors of imported craft beers that have been arriving into Thailand in recent years.
During these roughly six-hour sessions, P'Chit discusses the legal risks before walking pupils through each step of the brewing process.
Students return a week later to bottle their beer, then again to collect it once it's finished fermenting.
"I tell everybody that we need Thai beer to speak for itself," he says. "Don't worry about the legal stuff -- just keep brewing, keep quiet, and spread the knowledge."
"My goal is that 2020 will be the year we push for legalizing homebrew in Thailand."
FM
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