PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. -- Arizona Cardinals left tackle Jared Veldheer is best known as a hulk of a human being who owns his own gym in Michigan and protects quarterback Carson Palmer's blind side.
When Veldheer isn't playing in front of 65,000 fans, he’s content spending hours alone in crafting beer in his backyard brewery. His passion has grown into a hobby that could someday be his career. For now, however, Veldheer enjoys experimenting with flavors and hops while churning out new beers every two and a half weeks during the offseason.
“Some people get the golf bug. I got the brew bug,” Veldheer said. “It’s fun.”
Here are five things to know about Veldheer's hobby, which has turned him into a self-proclaimed "hop head."
Veldheer’s portal into homebrewing was gifted during a season with the Oakland Raiders. Veldheer’s contribution to an offensive line gift exchange was a homebrewing kit. It was basic -- a brew bucket and beginner’s brew kettle highlighted the kit -- and Veldheer knew in the back of his mind that if no one else wanted it, he’d take it home. He got his Christmas wish that year. Veldheer ended up with the kit, went home to Grand Rapids, Michigan, that offseason and began brewing his own beer. The first beer he brewed was an Irish red ale -- which Veldheer said he’s not even a big fan of, but the recipe was among the easiest to brew. “It wasn’t exactly an Irish red. It was a little different, but it was good. It was good beer. It was drinkable. I [thought], I could keep doing this stuff. It kind of evolved from there.”
The 29-year-old said he probably had his first beer during spring break in his senior year of high school. It was “maybe a Corona.” Veldheer’s palate has matured. It started developing while at Hillsdale College in Michigan, where he stayed away from macro-brewery favorites such as Bud Light and Miller Lite, opting for six packs of craft beers such as Bell’s Oberon Ale, which is made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, or Stone Brewing Company’s Arrogant Bastard Ale. Veldheer’s choices grew after he was drafted by the Raiders and lived in the Bay Area, which also has a large craft beer community. “That’s what jump-started it,” Veldheer said. Now his palate is refined to the point where he can pick out flavors. Having such a keen sense of taste and knowledge of what he’s drinking has had one negative side effect. “It’s kind of become beer snobbery, which isn’t always great sometimes. It’s fun. You can really enjoy the complexities of good beer."
Veldheer is a science geek. The 6-foot-8, 321-pound left tackle was a biology major in college, which helped foster his passion for brewing beer. Veldheer isn’t exactly wearing a white lab coat and goggles at his Paradise Valley, Arizona, home, but he loves being alone in his brewery, calling it “isolated,” “introverted” and a “step-by-step analytical process.” One missed step could derail an entire batch. Sometimes the beer is salvageable, but usually it goes right down the drain if something goes wrong. “It’s pretty controlled," he said. "There’s a lot of variables, and you want to control those variables as much as possible. If some of those variables slip, it’s not the end of the world. You’re still going to get a good beer, but then if you’re going to try to make it again, it’s hard. You want to be able to lock it in as much as possible just for repeatability.” Listening to Veldheer describe the beer-making process is like listening to a scientist deliver a lecture. He’s well-educated, well-versed and extremely passionate. “It’s just nice to have some time to yourself and be able to craft the beer,” he said. But after the two and a half weeks it takes to ferment, Veldheer also enjoys the social aspect of beer.
Veldheer doesn’t have one favorite beer; he says he has a top 25. He was kidding, but only kind of. Three of his all-time favorites are Russian River Brewing Company’s Pliny the Elder, Bell’s Two Hearted Ale and Founders All Day IPA. He also likes sour beers from Russian River. Because Pliny the Elder is a rare find outside of Northern California, it’s become one of the beers Veldheer likes to try to clone. “The clone tastes really good," he said. "I don’t know if it’s quite the same, but it tasted quite good.” Another beer Veldheer has cloned is Alchemist’s Heady Topper. Cloning a beer is as easy as going online, finding a recipe and brewing, Veldheer said.
Brewing beer may be a hobby for now, but Veldheer could branch out after his football career. He has trademarked the name “68 Brewing Company." For now, Veldheer is content playing football and entering his beer into competitions. He entered three beers into the National Homebrew Competition a couple of years ago: a black IPA, a pale ale and a Kolsch made with coconut water that was initially entered into a fermentables category with few entrants, giving Veldheer hope he might place. The Kolsch, which received Veldheer’s highest score, didn’t place, but the pale ale did -- the blue ribbon is hanging on the wall of his home brewery. This past offseason, while he was in the midst of a brewing spree, he brought Cardinals coach Bruce Arians a growler of beer and left it on his desk. “I’m sure he wouldn’t have let me hear the end of it if I didn’t share with him.”