She sets the glass down and turns back to the tank she was cleaning. I should leave. I've done what I came here to do. The tasting is complete, we have a plan, and there's no reason for me to stick around.
"Want some help?" The words are out before I can stop them.
Merri turns, surprise written all over her face. "You want to help me clean a fermentation tank?"
"Why not? I'm here. You're working. Might as well make myself useful, and it’s not much different than the cleaning I do on my roasting equipment."
"Wyatt Dalton, offering to do manual labor for me. I should buy a lottery ticket."
I level her with a flat stare. "Don't be a smartass. Do you want help or not?"
She studies me for a long moment, like she's trying to figure out my angle. Then she shrugs. "Sure. Grab one of those brushes over there."
We work in companionable silence for a few minutes, scrubbing the interior of the tank. It's meditative, repetitive work, and I find myself relaxing into it.
"So," I say, breaking the silence. "How'd you get into brewing? What made you decide this was what you wanted to do?"
Merri glances at me, her eyes narrowing. "You really want to know?"
"I wouldn't ask if I didn't."
"Hmmm." She goes back to scrubbing. "Well, I initially planned to go into accounting or maybe finance. But I took a brewing science elective my junior year, and it just clicked. I loved the chemistry of it, the creativity, the way you could take basic ingredients and create something completely unique."
"So you went to Colorado after graduation?"
"Yep. Rocky Mountain Craft Brewery picked me up right out of school. I spent two years there learning everything I could, from proper techniques to recipe development and quality control to distribution logistics. It was intense but incredible."
I rinse my section of the tank, genuinely curious now. "Did you like living there?"
"The mountains and craft beer scene are incredible. But…" She pauses, her expression turning thoughtful. "I kept thinking about building a first-class brewery in Pelican Point. Something smaller that would fit the town and focused on quality over quantity. There’s so much competition for breweries out west, it’s difficult to get a foothold. Most small breweries out there don’t last two years. I had a better chance to succeed here."
"So you came home."
She smiles. "I took out every loan I could get, bought used equipment from a brewery that was closing, and started The Sassy Siren Brewery in a space that was previously a surf shop. It was terrifying and exhilarating and the best decision I ever made."
"It shows. This place is impressive, Merri. You should be proud."
She looks at me, a flicker of vulnerability on her face. "Thanks. That means a lot, Wyatt."
We fall into silence, but it's not awkward. Something's shifted between us, and some of those walls aren’t there anymore.
"What about you?" she asks after a while. "How'd you end up in coffee? Danny told me you were a big, bad Marine, traveling the world and blowing shit up. What made you choose coffee roasting after you got out?"
"Coffee was a lifeline in the Corps. It didn't matter where we were deployed, Iraq, Afghanistan, wherever, if we had coffee, we could function. I’ve always liked coffee, but I became obsessedwith the different roasts and origins, and what made a good cup versus a great one." I rinse another section. "When I got out, I knew I wanted to work with my hands and build something. Coffee roasting made sense. It's precise and methodical, but there's also an art to it."
"Like brewing."
The corner of my mouth tugs up. "Yeah. Exactly that."
"What's your favorite part? Of roasting, I mean."
"The transformation. You start with these green beans that smell like grass and hay, and through careful application of heat and time, you unlock all these incredible flavors. Chocolate, fruit, nuts, spices. It's like magic."
Merri nods slowly, understanding in her gaze. "That's how I feel about beer. Watching the yeast convert sugar to alcohol, as the hops add bitterness and aroma, both creating something that people enjoy."
"We're nerds. That's what this is."
She snickers. "The nerdiest."
