QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST: Business Lessons Learned Over a Beer or Two - By Jim Koch - On Sale: April 12, 2016

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Apr 12, 2016, 08:00 ET

BOSTON, April 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- In 1984, there was no roadmap for starting a business in an industry that didn't yet exist or for selling a product that consumers didn't even know they were thirsty for. It was unheard of for someone to give up job security and a reliable salary to pursue a dream. But Jim Koch believed in the tenet of the American dream and the founding ethos of our country that inspired many revolutionaries, artists, and innovators to break the mold. Thirty-two years ago he set out, recipe in hand, on a passionate mission to brew a full-flavored, high-quality beer that would change American tastes and show drinkers that there was more to beer than the flavorless options they had been drinking. Out of this idea Samuel Adams Boston Lager was born. In QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST: Business Lessons Learned Over a Beer or Two (Flatiron Books; on sale April 12, 2016; $27.99) Koch tells the stories of founding and growing his business, sharing the lessons learned along the way that are valuable to aspiring entrepreneurs and anyone looking to strike out on their own.

Samuel Adams Founder & Brewer Jim Koch's New Book, QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST, Hits Shelves Today

When Jim Koch told his family, friends, and colleagues that he wanted to start a brewery, many, including his own brewmaster father, thought he was crazy. At the time, the American beer landscape was dominated by pale, bland domestic beers and imports that were often stale or skunky by the time they arrived on our shores. Koch saw an opportunity to offer something more complex and flavorful, a beer that would challenge palates, ignite conversation, and provide a happy career doing what he truly loved, brewing.

In QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST, Koch tells the story of starting The Boston Beer Company, introducing Samuel Adams Boston Lager, and then helping ignite the craft beer revolution which is stronger than ever today. Offering his quirky, counter-intuitive insights into the whirlwind ride from scrappy start-up to admired public company, Jim relays the trepidation, pitfalls, failures, and successes he encountered along the way. Covering everything from how to "Find Your Yoda" and "Grow Skinny" to using a common expletive to improve communications, Koch tells it like it is and provides unconventional and unvarnished lessons for business and life that are incredibly entertaining. QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST is the key to the ultimate dream: being successful while doing what you love.

Profits from the sale of QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST will be donated to fund small business microloans through Samuel Adams' core philanthropic program, Brewing the American Dream, which provides coaching/mentoring and microloans to up-and-coming food and beverage businesses, and craft brewers.

Jim Koch is the founder of The Boston Beer Company and brewer of Samuel Adams beers. He founded the company in 1984 using his great-great grandfather's recipe and set to the task of revolutionizing American beer. Although Samuel Adams beer is America's leading craft beer, it accounts for only about one percent of the U.S. beer market.

Advanced Praise for QUENCH YOUR OWN THIRST:

"Quench Your Own Thirst is a frosty mug full of sound advice for turning passion into a great business."
—Tony Hsieh, New York Times bestselling author of Delivering Happiness and CEO of Zappos.com, Inc.

"Like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Larry Ellison, and the other greats, Jim Koch's entrepreneurial journey is motivated by a deep commitment to making superb products and building a unique culture that reinforces innovation and risk-taking. This book tells a compelling story about how he did it. The lessons will be invaluable for anyone starting a business or building a career."
—Bill Hambrecht, Co-founder of Hambrecht & Quist and Chairman of WR Hambrecht + CO

"Quench Your Own Thirst introduces an engaging, down-to-earth, fifth-generation brew master who also happens to be a savvy, creative, disciplined business mastermind. Jim Koch's story of how he built his beer company – and, incidentally, helped start a new industry in craft beer – serves candid, inspiring insights useful for entrepreneurs in any field. Koch's practical optimism sets the standard for how business success and personal happiness can be beautifully connected."
—Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Harvard Business School professor and best-selling author of Confidence: How Winning Streaks and Losing Streaks Begin and End and Move: Putting America's Infrastructure Back in the Lead

"Jim Koch has opened a lot of doors for craft breweries like mine who have succeeded based on the premise of challenging the status quo. Every entrepreneur and aspiring entrepreneur will find useful and sage advice between the covers of Quench Your Own Thirst – and Jim's personality, wisdom and sense of humor come through in his writing as crystal clear as a pint of Sam Adams Lager."
—Sam Calagione, President & Founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

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