City Brew Tours offers unforgettable all-inclusive tours and beer-focused experiences in some of the best beer cities throughout North America. With over a decade of experience, City Brew Tours has created the ultimate craft beer experience that blends history, beer knowledge, transportation, and great food with unrivaled access to an area’s top breweries and their beer.
Our mission is to be the leading curator of craft beer experiences for visitors, locals, and the community as both an ambassador and an advocate for the brewing industry.
Where we began
City Brew Tours was founded in Burlington, Vermont in 2008 by Chad Brodsky, a college kid who had fallen in love with craft beer while studying in Vienna. Thirsting for more, he returned home and enrolled in the University of Vermont’s “Beer Making 101” class. Fortunately, Chad quickly realized he wasn’t cut out to brew beer. Instead he bought a used church van, put on his lederhosen, and set off to spread the gospel of craft beer.
Chad’s timing was perfect. MSNBC had recently pronounced Burlington the fourth best beer city in the world, and Americans were starting to get a taste for craft beer. Vermont Pub and Brewery founder, Greg Noonan, was the first to open his doors to the new business, and Burlington Brew Tours was born. At the tender age of 21, Chad became the first to establish a brewery tour company on the East Coast.
Burlington Brew Tours became well known for its unique tours led by beer geeks who doubled as designated drivers. By 2012 Chad had perfected his business model. He left his full-time job in finance and opened a second location in Boston. With tours running in two cities, Chad changed the company’s name to “City Brew Tours” and set off to add more locations.
By the end of 2017, Chad was juggling operations in five cities and needed help. Enter Barry Hansen, Jr., a professional brewer and part time City Brew Tours beer guide who was instrumental in launching operations in Washington, DC a couple years prior. Barry grew into the role of COO, became co-owner and used his background in leadership, biotechnology and the brewing industry to streamline logistics and expand the company.
With Barry on board, City Brew Tours grew quickly. The company opened three new locations and launched a franchising program in a span of just two years.
As of September 2021, City Brew Tours operates in 14 cities and continues to expand. City Brew Tours jumped to the West Coast in November, 2019, when it acquired a majority stake in BREWVANA, a brewery tour company in Portland, Oregon. In 2021 CBT opened three new locations: Des Moines, I.A. and two franchises in North Carolina, one in Charlotte, the other in Raleigh.
Meet the Team
Chad Brodsky: Founder & CEO – Certified Cicerone®
Chad has always been an entrepreneur. As a child, he started businesses that ranged from convincing his peers to buy other people’s business cards to shoveling his neighbors’ driveways. Chad decided to buy his brother a Mr. Beer kit for his birthday as he thought it would be a great brother bonding experience. The first beer they ever brewed was a Nut Brown Ale, which didn’t turn out great. Between homebrewing with his brother and spending a semester studying in Austria, Chad’s passion and excitement for flavorful beer grew immensely. Still not knowing much about craft beer except that he loved drinking it, he enrolled in “Beer Making 101”, an elective which was offered at University of Vermont. After graduating, Chad took a job as a Financial Analyst at a local bank but realized his entrepreneurial spirit was stifled. In 2012, Chad decided to leave his finance job and move to Boston to focus on growing CBT full time. It was in Boston that Chad met his wife, Liana. When not beer touring, Chad enjoys taking his dog, Oliver, to the park, traveling, and trying new types of food.
Favorite Beers: Duchess de Bourgogne, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, Lost Nation Brewing – Gose, and any delicious Lactose IPA.
Brian Hatheway: Chief Personnel Officer
Brian Hatheway: Chief Personnel OfficerBrian is a lifelong native of Pittsburgh and has been homebrewing since 2011. He loves everything about beer, especially the brewing process, and he is a Cicerone Program Certified Beer Server. In his free time, he enjoys watching TV series & movies and exploring the outdoors. He also loves hearing a good yinzer accent.
Favorite Beers: Hill Farmstead Poetica #3, Strange Roots Concord Koel-Aid, Eleventh Hour Archer, and Black Project Habu
Julie Walker: Chief Experiences Officer
Julie is a writer, reader, gamer, homebrewer, baker, traveler, proud geek, and community builder based out of the Raleigh, North Carolina area. She has been a homebrewer for almost 12 years and is a Cicerone Program Certified Beer Server. After joining City Brew Tours as a Tour Operations Coordinator in 2019, she is now bridging her passion for craft beer with her professional skills to manage both their in-person and online events, and support their team of Unforgettable Hosts and Tour Operations Coordinators. You can usually find her studying beer, posting on her beerstagram, playing games – including ones with 20-sided dice – or going on adventures with her family.
Favorite Beers: Ommegang – Hennepin Saison, Heavy Seas – Winter Storm ESB, 21st Amendment – Blood Orange IPA, and anything that tastes like a campfire.
Todd Summers: Chief Innovation Officer
Todd’s favorite joke about his current job is that after getting his Master’s in Clinical Psychology he found a different cure for what ales you. Todd began with CBT as a private event coordinator, where his love for selling unforgettable events blossomed and continued to grow in his role as Sales Manager. Now as CBT’s Chief Innovation Officer, Todd’s goal is for everyone to experience one of our events. A native Chicagoan, Todd calls Vermont home where he can be found skiing, golfing, and waiting in line to buy beer with his wife and dogs Olive and Earl.
Favorite Beers: Fiddlehead – IPA, Foley Brothers – Pieces of Eight, Foam Brewers – Retrovertigo
Valerie Cedrone: Personnel Specialist
Valerie has lived all over Massachusetts, from a bustling Boston suburb to a tiny, rural hilltown in western Massachusetts and many places in between. An explorer at heart, Valerie soon found that visiting local breweries was a great way to learn more about a place and the community that enriches it. Outside of work, Valerie can be found hiking and camping in the beautiful New England forests, trying new local restaurants and breweries, or curling up on the couch with a good book.
Her favorite beers are whatever’s local, which for now is: Berkshire Brewing Company – Irish Red Ale, Northampton Brewery – Northampton Pale Ale, and Progression Brewing – Twist & Stout
Kalimah Mustafa-Widberg: Administrative Specialist
Kalimah is a purebred Bostonian
with an affinity for cozying up with a warm porter on a crisp fall evening. She used to be one of the “I just don’t like the taste” beer-naysayers, but a sip of her first milk stout changed everything. Since then, she has embarked on an exciting journey through the wonderful world of craft beer, which lead her to join the City Brew Tours team in October 2017. Outside of her beer peregrination, you can always count on Kalimah for comic book recommendations and unsolicited lectures on honey bee anatomy.
Favorite Beers: Night Shift – Awake, Fishtown – The Pepper in the Rye, and pretty much everything by Dogfish Head.
Isaac Bell: Business Development Manager
Isaac is a citizen of the world but calls Maryland home. With a variety of accolades in graphic design, his thirst was never quenched. He quickly realized that being born with a beard was no medical mistake or miracle, just that he was destined for something beer related. Taking on the role of Business Development Manager, Isaac realized his calling was found, and now wants to bring a City Brew Tour to every city in the US!
Favorite Beers: Hellbender – Double Chazzwazzer, Green Man Brewery – Trickster IPA, Oliver Brewing Company – Burn the Candle & Creator/Destroyer.
Matt LaRosa: Sales & Development Specialist
Matt never met a beer he didn’t like. He developed a deep knowledge of the industry and a love for the culture and community surrounding beer while working as a sales representative for a beer distributor in the North Shore of Massachusetts. He joined the CBT team to launch our wholesale business and help clients create unforgettable moments during our craft beer experiences. In his spare time, you will find him tearing up the ski slopes, paddling on the closest body of water, or on the hunt for new beers and breweries wherever he travels.
Favorite Beers: Foam – Experimental Jet Set, Allagash – White, Founders – Breakfast Stout
Corrie Purvis: Private Sales Coordinator
Corrie was born and raised in Philadelphia, and, after traveling the world, moved back to her beloved city. After graduating college, Corrie worked as an Au Pair in Munich, Germany, where she developed an affinity for German beers and spent many of her weekends at various Bavarian Bierfests (adorned in a traditional dirndl, of course). Upon her return to the US, she then moved into the realm of sales at an international tour company. Pairing her love of travel with beer, Corrie always tries to drink local, wherever in the world she may be.
Favorite beers: Love City – Eraserhood, Avery – White Rascal, Herzoglich Bayerisches Brauhaus Tegernsee – Tegernseer Hell
Emily Cacchione: Private Sales Coordinator
Currently based in her hometown of Erie, PA, Emily has worked in the travel and tourism industry for the last 5 years, originating in international travel sales. She joined CBT to continue to share her love of planning the perfect trip, and is excited to discover new beers and breweries through CBT’s network. Outside of work, Emily enjoys concerts, traveling, traveling for concerts, and going to the dog park with her pup, Leo.
Favorite beers: Lavery Brewing – Gummi, Erie Brewing Co. – Cherry Bomb, Yards – Pynk
Jill Zahareas: Private Sales Coordinator
Jill has worked in the food and beverage industry for 20 years starting off as a bartender pouring beer to coordinating large scale client events. She has a passion for great food and drink and the memories those experiences create. She joined CBT to increase her knowledge of craft beers and bring her love of hospitality into the virtual event world. Outside of work she enjoys live music, cooking, and spending time with family!
Favorite Beers: Scarlet Lane – Dorian Stout, Allagash – White, 21st Amendment – Hell or High Watermelon
Jordyn Newsome: Private Sales Coordinator
Jordyn was born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and has over 10 years of experience in the food & beverage, hospitality, and sales industries. With over a decade of planning weddings, corporate events, social events, and more under her belt, it seemed fitting to combine her love of events with her love of craft beer by joining CBT. Outside of work, Jordyn loves to spend time with her pup, family, and friends and discover new breweries, spend time at the beach, and travel to new places with her boyfriend.
Favorite beers: 2sp – Up & Out, Tröegs – Perpetual IPA, and Winding Path – Hazeway IPA.
AJ Snapp: Tour Operations Coordinator
AJ originally joined CBT in 2018 as a tour guide in Philly. As a music teacher and a competitive homebrewer, he brought a focus on education and the brewing process from the classroom to the brew tour van. During the pandemic, he transitioned to an online Live Homebrew Experience guide, teaching people the joys of homebrewing from his basement brewery. (Yes, AJ has a brewery set up in his basement.) After a decade in the classroom, AJ is now bringing his expertise in education to us here coordinating tours in Philly, New York, Boston, and Burlington VT.
His favorite beers change with the season, but he’ll never turn down a well-hopped IPA, a complex stout, or an expertly crafted sour.
Molly Sutter: Tour Operations Coordinator
Molly was born and raised in the south suburbs of Chicago and made her way to the ‘Burgh in 2018. After claiming she didn’t like beer all through college, that changed when tending bar at the local craft beer joint and she hasn’t looked back. Molly has worked with many breweries between both Chicago and Pittsburgh, and she believes the scene in Pittsburgh can’t be matched. When not enjoying a hop-forward beverage, she can be found hanging with her dog and 3 cats or hosting a “friendly” game night.
Favorite Beers: Three Floyds – Zombie Dust, Grist House – Kaboom Candy, and Voodoo – Lacto-Kooler
Laura Juntunen: Online Events Coordinator
Laura was born and raised in Tapiola, Michigan (way up in the U.P.),
spent some time in Florida, and eventually found her way to Seymour, Indiana with her spouse; she has finally found a happy medium between frigid ice tundra (Michigan) and sweltering frying pan (Florida)! Laura is a reader, author, podcast creator and host, fitness enthusiast, and bunny-mom. You can usually find her motorcycling or spending time with family, but most often, you’ll find her curled up in a corner reading a good book.
Laura will always opt for a stout when she’s out and about, though she will try anything and everything at least once.
Emily Bolinger: Customer Success Manager
Emily grew up in Hollywood, FL, and her love of all things
travel led her to pursuing a hospitality degree at Boston University. From there, Emily has worked in customer service in a variety of amazing places including The Ritz Hotel in London, Disneyland, and the Biltmore Estate. She currently lives in Asheville, NC, where she’s cultivated a love of craft beer in the amazing little city known locally as Beer City, USA. When she’s not working, Emily can be found playing video games, spending time with family, listening to music, and loving on her two cats, Johnny and Moira.
Favorite beers: Hawaiian Pizza Ships – Bhramari Brewing Co., Starchaser – Highland Brewing Co., Tropical Pineapple Cider – Flat Rock Cider Co.
Kate Hill: Customer Success Specialist
Kate was born and raised in Texas. Moving often and attending 22 schools growing up has made her a master of being comfortable wherever she is. Currently, that is Boise, Idaho. She has been a part of the Food & Beverage industry for most of the past 25 years, but has sprinkled in a few odd jobs from time to time such as bookkeeper, Medicaid biller, and in-school suspension teacher. Kate loves how all her previous experiences have led her to the Customer Service role at CBT. She enjoys helping people in any way possible and leaving them with a smile on their face. Outside of work she enjoys being on the water, gardening, reading, and seeing live music and plays.
Adrian Avalos: Customer Success Associate
Adrian was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, but has been living in Boston for over half a decade. Animals are one of Adrian’s biggest passions, having worked with horses, pigs, chickens, and even having his first job in New England at a doggy daycare! His free time is usually spent with his dog, Captain Sniffer, either outdoors, at a local brewery, or at home playing video games, watching shows, or making music. Originally, Adrian worked as a Beer Guide in Boston before joining the Customer Success team. He also has a mild gluten intolerance, which actively challenges him to homebrew delicious gluten-free beers!
Favorite beers: Ipswich Ale Brewery – Celia Saison, Omission Brewing – IPA, Bearmoose Brewing Co. – Illegal Pour, Aeronaut Brewing Co. – Robot Crush, Winter Hill Brewing Co. – Lunar Tune-up
Kate Hellner: Content Marketing Associate
A native Michigander, Kate has lived and worked in multiple states and countries before boomeranging back to Northern Michigan. Denali Brewing Company was her gateway into craft beer, and she believes there is nothing more cathartic than cracking open a cold one while surrounded by nature. She loves to travel, write, drink beer, and watch the same six tv shows over and over.
Favorite beers: Snowbank Brewing – Cranknbrew, Horse and Dragon – Sad Panda, and New Belgium’s La Folie
Unboxed Experiences is a sister brand of City Brew Tours.
Taylor McCune: Marketing Manager
Taylor grew up in the food and beverage industry and jumped into the world of craft beer as soon as she was legally able to. After earning her degree from NC State – and spending many hours drinking from the taps at Flying Saucer Draught Emporium – Taylor moved back home to Beaufort, North Carolina. She has worked in journalism and marketing and is especially fond of the time she spent developing and managing a craft beer program for a local restaurant. In her spare time she enjoys cooking, thrifting, going out in the boat and drinking beer at the neighborhood pub.
Favorite Beers: Taylor likes to drink whatever is local to her current location. At home, she likes just about anything by Fishtowne Brew House.
Brian Franzoni: Social Media & Digital Content Associate
Brian is a record collector, movie lover, photographer, gamer, avid Baltimore Ravens fan, and a proud husband and father. He is based out of Pittsburgh, PA. Brian fell in love with craft beer in college, hunting down desired brews and making whatever drive necessary to get them. He began curating his travels around popular brewery cities. He went to Burlington, VT on his engagement trip and Portland, OR for his Bachelor Party. You can find him drinking Hazy brews on his deck, surrounded by family and friends, playing corn hole, and listening to good music.
Favorite Beers: Anything by Helltown Brewery and Insurrection Aleworks
Iain Oldman: Content Marketing Associate
Raised in the shadows of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains,
Iain has been a writer since he could hold a pencil. After playing in bad punk bands and finishing university, Iain landed in Austin, Texas, to work as a community newspaper reporter before jumping into the marketing world. His travels have taken him to tattoo parlors in Guadalajara, sun-drenched vineyards in Hill Country, Belgian EDM clubs and blueberry patches in the Laurentides. Iain discovered his love for craft beer at one of Virginia’s oldest craft beer bars in his hometown and has been sharing pints with friends ever since.
Favorite Beers: Jester King Le Petit Prince; De Koninck Bolleke; Beau’s Local Organic
Allie Hackel: Media & Affiliate Relations Associate
After traveling all over the world, Allie settled down
in her hometown of Philadelphia. While in Belgium, she fell in love with Belgian beers and thus began her obsession with craft brews. After working in tech, the music industry, and in restaurants, Allie found a way to combine her marketing skills, passion for creating fun experiences, and love of beer with this job. In her free time, you can find her whipping up a feast in the kitchen, listening to music, or curled up on the couch reading a book.
Favorite Beers: Hill Farmstead – Double Motueka, Boulevard Brewing Company – Tank 7, Dupont – Saison, Miller High Life
Willie Roman: Digital Marketing / E-Commerce Analyst
Originally from Puerto Rico, Willie currently resides
in Central Florida. Willie has worked as an analyst in several different industries for over 17 years and joined City Brew Tours in 2021 to bring his love of beer and creative business analysis to the team. He loves spending time with his family, being out in the sun, and tinkering in his garage. He is a jack-of-all-trades; building, crafting, designing, and always finishing each project with a celebratory beer or two.
Favorite Beers: Deviant Wolfe’s Falling Iguanas Lager, Orlando Brewing’s Pal Campo Craft Beer (Ñeña), and Guinness Draught
Thom Roholt: Fulfillment Manager
Thom fell in love with Craft Beer while on a date in 1998. The story is one to be heard while on tour with him, but in the two decades since, he’s transformed that passion into a quest, a film, and finally a career. On August 15, 2015, he was part of a five-person team that set the record of going to 77 breweries in one day. The feat was chronicled on Twitter, was later made into a documentary called PDX: Brew City, and eventually led to this job.
Thom’s favorite beer is the one in front of him. He rarely drinks the same beer twice, but if he’s going back to the well it’s usually for a Deschutes Streaking the Quad, a pFriem IPA or a Four Play from Upright Brewing.
Pete Commo: Inventory Control Coordinator
Pete was born and raised in Vermont. He started in the beverage industry in the early 90s with a classic morning favorite, that’s right… Coffee! Being a connoisseur of morning beverages, he also has an affinity for after-hours beverages, and Vermont is a great place to be as it is home to many fine craft breweries. For the next chapter in his career it really made sense that it be beer related. In his spare time, Pete enjoys riding his Harley, spending time at camp, on the water and time with his friends, family, children and grandchildren.
Favorite Beers: Hopped to Trot – Stone Corral, Phaze – Four Quarters, Sugarhouse IPA – Lawson’s Finest Liquids and, when visiting his hometown favorite watering hole “The Reservoir,” he also enjoys a few ice cold PBR’s from his mug club stein while chatting with his longtime friends.
Mindie Hernandez: Fulfillment Coordinator
Mindie was born in raised in Hamburg, NY a suburb of “Buffalo: A Drinking Town with
a Football Problem but we are on our way” which makes her by birthright, a diehard Buffalo Bills fan and she wouldn’t want it any other way. Her diverse employment background in Administration, Human Resources, and Purchasing led her to this position in our company. In her spare time, she loves to travel with the love of her life, golf (she is just learning, so not ready for the pro circuit just yet!), and spend time with her kids, grandkids, friends, and family.
Favorite Beers: Genesee Cran Orange Kellerbier, Blue Moon Belgian White