The pair first met at a local bar in Telluride. Fish was the brewmaster, and Tommy the bartender. At night, they spent long hours discussing their quest for the perfect beer and their ultimate dream of opening a brewery.

Over time, Fish's beers began attracting attention - winning gold and bronze medals at the Great American Beer Festival and developing a dedicated following throughout Colorado. Tommy, meanwhile, went on to become a middle school history teacher. He and Fish remained close, however - seeing music, going on rafting and ski adventures, arguing over their favorite football teams, and, always, talking about their quest for the perfect beer.

Now, more than a decade in the making, Fish and Tommy made their quest for that perfect beer a reality. In May 2011, Fish and Tommy partnered with Telluride real estate broker Brian Gavin and local graphic artist John Lehman to form the Telluride Brewing Company. The team spent much of 2011 working to build their brewery and fine tune their brewing process.