Ricardo Aftyka
How did you get into the beer industry? Why does beer matter to you?
I started my beer career very early, at 19 years old, as a brewer. After more than 15 years in which I participated in the founding of the Argentine Brewers Association, wrote articles, made video tutorials and wrote a book, I decided to found my own brewery, Juguetes Perdidos. I have been an International Judge for more than 15 years and thanks to beer I have traveled all over the world and met wonderful people. Today I am 45 years old and my life is completely filled with beer, so much so that my children learned to say "aftertaste" before "dad." If I had to define in one word what beer means to me, I would say it is “passion."
Why do you judge at the World Beer Cup? What does judging at the World Beer Cup mean to you?
I trained for many years to be able to enter the World Beer Cup as a judge. It is the highest level we can aspire to as international judges. Judging at the World Beer Cup is a unique opportunity to learn from other judges, share time and experiences, represent my country, Argentina, and be part of the most important competition in the world of beer.
What else would you like the world to know?
Juguetes Perdidos, my brewery, was the first one to get a Gold award for Argentina at the World Beer Cup!
