This week, we welcome Shelley Smith, Senior R&D and Lab Operations leader at Boston Beer Company, a chemical engineer turned brewer, one of only 28 Master Cicerones in the world, and the creator of the marathon-inspired 26.2 brew. Shelley walks us through how a new beer goes from idea to shelf, the surprising upstream supply-chain constraints that shape production, and the R&D tactics her team uses to test quickly and scale thoughtfully. We talk yeast and flavor, the booming extremes in beer (high-alcohol flavor bombs and sophisticated non-alcoholic options), leadership lessons from long study hours to asking for help, and practical advice for founders on getting scrappy without over-scaling.  Connect with us! Connect with Shelly!